Every NFL team’s Mount Rushmore

Carolina Panthers

-Cam Newton, Steve Smith, Sam Mills, Julius Peppers

The Carolina Panthers are a relatively young franchise in comparison to a lot of teams on this list, so it may seem like a lot of the names on the team are incredibly recent when it comes to building a Mount Rushmore. However, these names, no matter how recent they may be, are some of the best of the best in Panthers franchise history and contributed to a ton of the team’s success.

For starters, Cam Newton comes in as the most recent name on the list, with a league MVP and a Super Bowl appearance on his resume over the last few years, despite some lackluster seasons otherwise. He’s without a doubt the future of the franchise, no matter how bad his antics may seem, and he could be adding some hardware soon if the team plays their cards right.

Next comes one of the most controversial players in team or league history, with Steve Smith adding his face to the mountain. He was an incredible wide receiver, an even better trash talker, and he was a big part of the team’s run to the Super Bowl in 2003 before losing to the New England Patriots.

Two more big names in Panthers franchise history to make their way onto the mountain come on the defensive side, with Sam Mills and Julius Peppers rounding out the list. While Mills didn’t have as much of an impact on the franchise as Peppers did/has, the two together helped bring a ton of leadership to some young Panthers’ squads. Mills ended up in the Hall of Fame, and Peppers is likely heading there, so it makes sense they’d make their way onto this Rushmore.