"That's what we want to do for him: Keep winning games and try to bring him something special," defensive end Julius Peppers said.
Players didn't know Richardson -- the first ex-NFL player to own a team since George Halas -- was at the game until he was shown on the video board in the second half.
"I was one of the people on the sidelines clapping because I didn't know he was here," running back DeAngelo Williams said. "I saw his blanket kind of falling down, and his wife pulled it up. That was kind of cute. To see him up there, after what he's been through, it just shows his dedication to the team. He's not only an owner -- he's a friend and he's family."
The 72-year-old owner was told this week during a hospital stay related to the recent installation of a pacemaker that he needs a heart transplant. He was placed on a donor waiting list.
In spite of his health, Richarson was in a front row seat Sunday in his open-air suite at Bank of America Stadium.
"I thought it was awesome. Just to see him up there in his box and know that he was here to enjoy another undefeated season," Muhammad said. "My first year as a rookie we went undefeated at home in '96 and you know that was a special year, went to the NFC Championship Game. Now to be able to have him watching again and here to see that undefeated season at home again, that's a real special moment."
Richardson missed Monday night's 38-23 win over division rival Tampa Bay. He and his two sons worked for years to get an NFL expansion team, a prospect at one time thought impossible for Charlotte.
The former Baltimore Colts receiver, who caught the winning touchdown pass from Johnny Unitas in the 1959 NFL championship game, was awarded the expansion Panthers in 1993. The team began play two years later and Richardson has become an influential owner in the league, serving on powerful committees and being on the negotiating team on the league's collective bargaining agreement with the players union.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
