from the Giants.

He made the call to trade Jon Beason to the Giants after three games. And although he received only a seventh-round pick for him, the defense came together after the move.

What Gettleman has done with the salary cap has been nothing short of miraculous. He convinced players with big deals to take cuts. He convinced Gross to cut the final year off his contract, which is why his future is up in the air.

"The gaffes I made this year didn't hurt us too much," Gettleman said with a laugh.

Asked what gaffes, he laughed again and let out a "Woooo" that would have made Ric Flair proud (if we're still allowed to use that name here).

Then there was a long silence. When I suggested he wasn't goingI felt this was the best job. And you know what? I guessed right."

So did the Panthers when they took a chance on the man who had been bypassed for general manager jobs so many times he was ready to step back in his role with the Giants.

"I came in and no one went out the door and that made it easy," Gettleman said of his first year in Carolina. "They accepted me and my Yankee craziness. ... The vision has to keep going."