CHARLOTTE – On the same day Josh Norman was introduced to the Washington media, Panthers team captains Greg Olsen and Thomas Davis took to the podium on the first day of Carolina's offseason workout program and addressed the cornerback's sudden departure.
Olsen: "Obviously it came as a surprise to everybody. I don't think it's what anyone set out to have happen through the course of the offseason. Just like you guys, I don't know the ins and outs of how the negotiation went or how the situation played out. We have to trust in Dave and his staff. They've gotten us to a pretty good place right now. I don't think anyone would sit here and say you want to lose good players, you want to lose guys that are some of the best in the league at what they do. I don't think anyone would pretend that's the goal. But sometimes things don't always go your way; sometimes things don't always play out in the ideal situation. I think this one would be a pretty good example of that.
"But I'm happy for Josh. He bet on himself a handful of times this year and there is something to be said and a lot of credit that's deserved for a guy who had confidence in himself to not only not take that deal last year but play all season at a high level. He played consistently well and then this year he wanted to get a contract that he had in his mind. He was able to find that in Washington. I don't think you'll find a guy here that doesn't wish him the best. Unfortunately, it's no longer here with us. But as we've seen in this league, there are tough decisions made every day. It's not an easy league to play in, it's not an easy league to run the roster or to coach in. It's a tough world, it's a tough business."
Davis: "It was disappointing, knowing that we couldn't get something worked out with one of our best players on defense. But at the end of the day, this thing is strictly a business and it's about more than one person. That's the motto around here. It's a team motto and that's how we built what we have around here, based on doing it the team way.
"Talked to him, congratulated him. Very excited for him and his family. Josh has worked extremely hard to earn everything that he's received. So while it was disappointing to see him leave, you can't help but be excited for the kid.
"As players, we understand that this is a business and you have to do what's best for the team. The best move that Mr. Gettleman and Coach Rivera and the whole organization felt like was to move on from the player and put the team in the best situation that we could be in moving forward with being able to sign some of our guys that we have to take care of moving forward."
