Luke Combs may be known for “Beer Never Broke My Heart,” but his Carolina Panthers clearly have.
As free agency kicked off Monday across the NFL, the Grammy-nominated Country singer and avid Panthers fan has become vocal about the state of his team. He’s gone from ripping them on social media to spilling out more of his frustrations Wednesday on The Pat McAfee Show.
Luke Combs Rips Panthers’ Front Office Moves
Combs appeared to talk about “the dump of a franchise” that’s become his Panthers. Even while proudly wearing his Panthers hat, Combs didn’t mince words about how he views his team.
“It’s tough, man,” Combs began. “It really is.”
McAfee even helped pull up an old photo of Combs doing the famed “dab” celebration at a Panthers home game — the same celebration that got popularized by 2015 league MVP Cam Newton.
“I saw the picture on the screen. The dab? Man, those were good times,” Combs said. “It feels like a century ago. Yes, it’s tough right now.
McAfee then asked two more questions involving personnel moves on Carolina’s side: If Combs believes his team is trekking in a good direction with franchise legend Dan Morgan now holding the title of president of football operations, plus how he felt about Dave Canales being named head coach.
Combs, though, didn’t show any enthusiasm in his response.
“I don’t know, man. I don’t know Dave at all. I’m sure he’s an awesome guy. But I don’t get the hype. But I don’t get the hype behind hiring the offensive coordinator for the 20th-best offense in the league, you know what I mean?” Combs said.
Combs Has Grown Frustrated With Childhood Team
The singer, recently known for the smash hit remake of “Fast Car,” has long been a Panthers fan since his days of growing up in Huntersville, North Carolina. He then moved to Asheville at eight years old — a city located approximately two hours west of Bank of America Stadium.
Combs has witnessed the high and low moments of his team — from the 15-1 campaign of the 2015 season to the Matt Rhule era, all the way to watching Frank Reich hit the exit during his first season with the team last season.
The 34-year-old singer and guitarist has even witnessed some of the franchise’s most beloved players get traded away, from Christian McCaffrey to Brian Burns on Monday.
But Combs’ rant on the McAfee Show comes just two days after he ripped the Panthers for the Burns trade to the New York Giants, which involved no first-rounders in exchange.
“WHAT ARE WE DOING?!?!? No first-round pick for McCaffrey a few years back, and now none for Burns?!?! Are we just firebombing the whole team here, or what? I usually don’t comment on these kinds of things, but it’s just becoming slow torture at this point,” Combs posted on his X (formerly known as Twitter) account.
Burns was sent to the Giants for a second and fifth-round selection. Combs drew parallels to the McCaffrey deal with the San Francisco 49ers in 2022 that involved no first-round picks.
ESPN NFL analyst and former quarterback Robert Griffin III was among those amused by Combs’ rare rant at the Panthers.
“Even Luke Combs is tired of the Panthers’ Hurricane-like decisions,” Griffin posted Tuesday, which is in reference to Combs’ 2016 hit single.
One more fan, though, tried to politely send Combs a reminder as the singer vented about the current state of his Panthers.
“At least cold beer never broke your heart!” the fan said to Combs, referencing his 2019 hit.
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