Dale Earnhardt Jr. on pulling for the Panthers:“I got a lot of friends, real, real close friends that are Panthers fans, and they make it real hard to pull for the Panthers. The way they act and cheer for them team is just, I don’t know … Some of my close buddies, they just don’t have any class when it comes to the Panthers, especially when they beat the Redskins. I have to hear about it years and years later. They beat them two years ago, and I think I still hear about that.
“But I got to get to know [Panthers tight end Greg] Olsen really good working together with him on some stuff for our charities, and he restored my faith in the football team. I really appreciate what they do for the Charlotte community and the area. Obviously, being a business owner in downtown Charlotte with Whisky River, they have a huge influence on our business and on our company and the decisions we make, and they’re something that we’re very proud of.“I’ll always, always pull for the Redskins No. 1, but I’m definitely warming up to the Panthers after meeting some of the players. They’ve got some genuine, quality people on their team, and [Panthers linebacker] Thomas [Davis] is one of them.”