CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Carolina Panthers team sale is entering the "fourth quarter," a source with knowledge of the sale told NBC Charlotte, and a bid is expected to be picked in the next three weeks.
Pittsburgh Steelers minority owner and hedge-fund manager David Tepper, as well as Ben Navarro, a businessman from Charleston, S.C., and Miami businessman Alan Kestenbaum are the front-runners to buy the Panthers. A source also tells NBC Charlotte that a fourth, unnamed source could still be in the mix, although these three named sources were recently presented as the serious bidders, a league source confirms.
Tepper, Navarro and Kestenbaum have all paid a visit to Charlotte in the previous weeks to tour the Bank of America Stadium.
The timeline of naming the potential winning bidder in the next three weeks would make it possible for the owners to vote on the Panthers next owner at the league meetings in Atlanta in May.
On Monday, The New York Times published a report saying Tepper may drop out of the race to buy the Panthers. However, a league source told NBC Charlotte's Kelsey Riggs that Tepper is " definitely still in the mix."
Earlier in the day, Charlotte businessman Felix Sabates pulled out of the bid to buy the Panthers. He told NBC Charlotte's Rad Berky that the price to buy the Panthers was too high.
The Panthers are worth $2.3 billion to $2.8 billion, according to Forbes.
As other bids were made public, Sabates told NBC Charlotte last month that he will possibly be interested in joining another group of investors for a bid.
Stick with WCNC.com for the latest on this developing story.