Intending to do the opposite, Jerry Richardson has provided his fellow NFL owners an object lesson in what happens when you try to do pro football on a budget. You get embarrassed. Repeatedly. And you end up losing buckets of money anyway.

The Big Cat doubtless thinks he can muddle through this season, survive a lockout of undetermined length, and open for business with fans ready and willing to spend cash on his Cats. Dream on.

The Panthers would first need a massive front-office shake up — with Marty Hurney hitting the streets in favor of a Tony Dungy or Bill Parcells. Then — although it would be no guarantee of on-the-field success — a “name” coach. Things get weird and backwards after you give reason for fans to doubt your commitment to winning.

And because Hurney and the braintrust have contempt for Panther fans football IQ, I doubt Carolina makes any moves before the trade deadline — shipping a Williams or Smith away for draft picks. That, they believe, would be too obvious. But I absolutely believe that this will be DeAngelo’s last season in Carolina.

And what of this season? You can find at most two wins on the schedule.

Bonus Observation: I have come to the conclusion that John Fox simply takes pity on Jeff Davidson. Nothing else explains the situation. To call a quick screen in front of Julius Peppers is madness. Peppers of course proceeded to make exactly the same play he made as a Tar Heel and as a Panther — bat the ball into the air and corral it for an INT. The only question is if he keeps his feet and scores on the play or not.