WEBVTT - Mac & Bone Show - Trevor Sikkema Interview 

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, obviously it's tough, right? When you talk about teams

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<v Speaker 1>who are the most successful in this league and sort

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<v Speaker 1>of make it the furthest, you got to have a

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<v Speaker 1>little bit of luck on your side when it comes

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<v Speaker 1>to injury. And I would say that in the secondary

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<v Speaker 1>and in the trenches outside of maybe quarterback, those are

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<v Speaker 1>really the two most important spots. Defensive line, you could

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<v Speaker 1>obviously argue that as well, but I feel like a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of times you get to have on the defensive

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<v Speaker 1>line sort of waves of guys that could sort of

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<v Speaker 1>come in and it's a little bit easier to, hey,

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<v Speaker 1>next man up when it comes to that defensive line.

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<v Speaker 1>When it comes to roster construction, it's really hard to say,

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<v Speaker 1>all right, sure, yeah, our starting tackle's down. We'll just

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<v Speaker 1>sub somebody else out in, especially for the injuries that

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<v Speaker 1>the Panthers already had going into this season, any sort

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<v Speaker 1>of extra injuries along the offensive line. You know, it's

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<v Speaker 1>really got the potential to hurt them. And the secondary

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<v Speaker 1>is interesting because the Panthers under Jiro Ebro have played

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<v Speaker 1>more off-zone coverage than anybody else in the NFL. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>on one hand, you could say that, hey, it might

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<v Speaker 1>be a little bit easier to find players that could

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<v Speaker 1>sort of play that off-zone coverage role and at least

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<v Speaker 1>keep the floor of this team and this secondary and

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<v Speaker 1>what's after it a little bit higher. But on the

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<v Speaker 1>other side of things, with zone coverage does come chemistry.

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<v Speaker 1>It comes with demand for being able to play in

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<v Speaker 1>close continuity with the guys who are next to you.

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<v Speaker 1>And it's hard to sign guys who maybe haven't been

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<v Speaker 1>on the team for a long time or at least

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<v Speaker 1>been running with the ones. And so, It's sort of...

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<v Speaker 1>I'm not sure which one's going to matter more, right?

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<v Speaker 1>Is it the fact that they need that chemistry and continuity,

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<v Speaker 1>or is it the fact that, hey, it's softer zone

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<v Speaker 1>coverage stuff by nature. They like to keep things in

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<v Speaker 1>front of them a lot. They like to sort of

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<v Speaker 1>run and chase the football and not give up explosives

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<v Speaker 1>and really be able to sort of control the game

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<v Speaker 1>that way. Does that make it a little bit easier

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<v Speaker 1>to replace those guys? So, you know, anytime you're replacing it,

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<v Speaker 1>you're trying to replace a talent like J.C. Hornet, it's

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<v Speaker 1>never going to be easy, but... I think there are

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<v Speaker 1>ways to sort of mitigate that a little bit, but

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<v Speaker 1>it's obviously going to be tough, and any time that

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<v Speaker 1>you have the injuries that the Carolina Panthers have just

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<v Speaker 1>mounting up in the early parts of the year, it's

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<v Speaker 1>going to require a lot from some unsung heroes, no doubt.

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<v Speaker 2>Trevor, Bryce Young's off to a really good start. Leads

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<v Speaker 2>the league in passing yards, albeit early. Didn't have his

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<v Speaker 2>best game on Sunday, but nonetheless, a really good start.

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<v Speaker 2>What do you attribute his early success to, and how

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<v Speaker 2>sustainable do you think this start is for Bryce Young

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<v Speaker 2>in the long haul?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I think I'd sustain it to just natural growth

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<v Speaker 1>and progression and maturation of a young quarterback sort of

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<v Speaker 1>becoming an NFL quarterback. And when I look at Bryce,

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<v Speaker 1>I look specifically at the fact that not only is

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<v Speaker 1>he leading the the NFL in passing yards and a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of passing categories, it's specifically against zone coverages, something

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<v Speaker 1>that he really struggled with early on in his career. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>it's interesting because attacking zone coverages was something that he

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<v Speaker 1>was great at when he was at Alabama. But the game,

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<v Speaker 1>if this is more evidence to people, it's just so

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<v Speaker 1>different at the pro level when it comes to speed

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<v Speaker 1>and how tight these windows are and how you can

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<v Speaker 1>second guess and doubt yourself. Even a player like Bryce Young,

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<v Speaker 1>who played with elite anticipation when he was at Alabama,

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<v Speaker 1>When he got to the NFL, he started second-guessing himself.

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<v Speaker 1>And it took him a year and a half. It

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<v Speaker 1>took him 10 weeks into his sophomore season in the

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<v Speaker 1>NFL for him to throw a touchdown against zone coverage.

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<v Speaker 1>And he's already got multiple of those and a ton

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<v Speaker 1>of yards against zone this year. I think that is

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<v Speaker 1>just a matter of getting a lot of snaps under

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<v Speaker 1>your belt, really having a lot of confidence in that

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<v Speaker 1>anticipation and what you're seeing from the defense. And so

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<v Speaker 1>that's what I love the most about Bryce Young right

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<v Speaker 1>now and why I can say that I feel as

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<v Speaker 1>though this is not something that's fleeting. This isn't something, well, oh,

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<v Speaker 1>he had a couple of good matchups early on in

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<v Speaker 1>the season. It's not going to be the same moving forward.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that we can see this sustained level of

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<v Speaker 1>success from him because I think that it stems from

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<v Speaker 1>legitimate growth. from Bryce Young. So yes, I think he's

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<v Speaker 1>been playing at a very high level to start the season,

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<v Speaker 1>and I think that they can continue to lean on

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<v Speaker 1>that from him moving forward, especially if teams want to

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<v Speaker 1>continue to play a lot of zone against him.

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<v Speaker 3>We're talking to Trevor Sykema, NFL Media, about the Panthers, obviously.

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<v Speaker 3>And this week, it does stink. We have all these

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<v Speaker 3>injuries in a national showcase game. It's been You know,

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<v Speaker 3>over a decade since the Panthers, Trevor had a Sunday

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<v Speaker 3>night game here.

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<v Speaker 2>We don't get invited much, Trevor. In Charlotte, yeah.

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<v Speaker 3>We get to host this party. We don't even usually

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<v Speaker 3>get invited to this Sunday night party. What do you

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<v Speaker 3>think about the way they match up with the Lions?

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<v Speaker 3>Let's talk about Bryce and the offense. In one respect, man,

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<v Speaker 3>Bryce has to be licking his chops at the wounded

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<v Speaker 3>secondary of Detroit, but also you got the problem with

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<v Speaker 3>your backup tackles trying to protect against Aiden Hutchinson. What

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<v Speaker 3>do you think of this particular matchup?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, so, I mean, you mentioned it a little bit there.

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<v Speaker 1>Detroit's had a lot of troubles in the secondary, not

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<v Speaker 1>just this year, where they're averaging the most yards, passing yards,

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<v Speaker 1>excuse me, against them per game. But also, you go

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<v Speaker 1>back to last year, too. I mean, it's tough for

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<v Speaker 1>them last year. So this isn't a new change or

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<v Speaker 1>something that you expect Detroit to just snap their fingers

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<v Speaker 1>and get better at, especially with the injuries that, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>Kirby Joseph and Brian Branch in the secondary at the

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<v Speaker 1>safety spots. I mean, they are not the same team anymore.

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<v Speaker 1>with those guys out there. Now, an interesting part of

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<v Speaker 1>this is I just talked about how good Bryce Young

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<v Speaker 1>has been against zone. The lions don't want to run

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<v Speaker 1>a ton of zone. Now, everybody in the league runs

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<v Speaker 1>more zone than they do man. But when it comes

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<v Speaker 1>to just overall percentages of man coverage in the NFL,

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<v Speaker 1>Detroit wants to be more in that top five, top

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<v Speaker 1>10 conversation of how often they're able to run man coverage. So,

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<v Speaker 1>Bryce should see a good amount of man coverage in

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<v Speaker 1>this game, but for how poor the secondary has played,

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<v Speaker 1>I don't have a lot of faith that they're going

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<v Speaker 1>to rattle Bryce in any way against that man coverage. Instead,

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<v Speaker 1>I think it could be a really good day at

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<v Speaker 1>the office for Bryce Young, especially if it's anything from

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<v Speaker 1>what we have seen lately. Obviously, you mentioned being able

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<v Speaker 1>to hold up with those tackles is going to be really,

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<v Speaker 1>really important, and Aiden Hutchinson's one of the best in

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<v Speaker 1>the NFL at getting after the quarterback, but I still

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<v Speaker 1>think as though Detroit's sort of searching for that second

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<v Speaker 1>fill to him. Now, They're playing a lot better, I think,

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<v Speaker 1>as a group along the defensive line, specifically on the interior.

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<v Speaker 1>So it hasn't been as strong of a start to

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<v Speaker 1>the year for the Panthers' interior offensive line as well.

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<v Speaker 1>I've noticed that from that group. And you kind of

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<v Speaker 1>need those stars to be able to step up, right?

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, like you look at Robert Hunt, and he's

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<v Speaker 1>got to have a much better start to the season.

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<v Speaker 1>And I just think that the interior offensive line has

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<v Speaker 1>got to continue to play really, really well, or even

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<v Speaker 1>step up and play really, really well amongst all those injuries.

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<v Speaker 1>So I think it's going to be a shootout, right?

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, you talked about how Sunday night football in

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<v Speaker 1>Charlotte for the first time in over a decade. I

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<v Speaker 1>think it's going to be, I think it's going to

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<v Speaker 1>be a light up the scoreboard type of a game.

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<v Speaker 1>So it's going to be really exciting. And obviously Panthers

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<v Speaker 1>fans just hope that no matter what the score is,

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<v Speaker 1>whether the numbers start with a three or a four,

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<v Speaker 1>or I don't know, I don't think it's going to

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<v Speaker 1>start with a five.

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<v Speaker 2>Please don't.

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<v Speaker 1>You just hope that the Panthers are going to be

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<v Speaker 1>on top. I know the fans are thinking of that,

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<v Speaker 1>but I think that they're going to have an exciting

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<v Speaker 1>game no matter what.

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<v Speaker 2>We already saw the 5-9. We don't need to see

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<v Speaker 2>the 60s or anything close to that again. T-Mac's off

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<v Speaker 2>to a slowish start this year. from what we thought.

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<v Speaker 2>Do you think on Sunday night, Trevor, Coker's been banged up,

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<v Speaker 2>you're going over the line in secondary. Is this a

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<v Speaker 2>spot for McMillan to really maybe get going for the

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<v Speaker 2>first time this year in full?

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<v Speaker 1>I think it should be. The recipe is definitely there

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<v Speaker 1>for it. When you're facing a lot of zone coverage,

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<v Speaker 1>it's not always easy to just identify, like, hey, here's

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<v Speaker 1>the superstar wide receiver on the team. Let me feed

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<v Speaker 1>him the ball. Sometimes your game plan can be predicated

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<v Speaker 1>around that, but I think a lot of it is

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<v Speaker 1>instead giving Bryce a lot of different passing options to

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<v Speaker 1>give you the ball to and being able to attack

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<v Speaker 1>zone coverages in the correct way there. I think that

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<v Speaker 1>that's left a little bit of meat on the bone

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<v Speaker 1>when it comes to what Tetra O. McMillan can do.

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<v Speaker 1>But I think that it's a great matchup, especially, again,

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<v Speaker 1>since if Detroit's going to try to play that man

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<v Speaker 1>coverage a lot more, well then, okay, you have a

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<v Speaker 1>guy who you want to bet on one-on-one in man

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<v Speaker 1>coverage at all times in McMillan. I know it's been

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<v Speaker 1>a little bit slow for him, but I still feel

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<v Speaker 1>as though he's going to be a major factor in

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<v Speaker 1>this game. Coker, I know he's been banged up as well,

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<v Speaker 1>but I think this could be a big, great game

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<v Speaker 1>from him if he is out there. I think that

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<v Speaker 1>those two guys, they're in for much more of those

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<v Speaker 1>early week standout performances and maybe even at the same

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<v Speaker 1>time here against this struggling Detroit defense.

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<v Speaker 3>All right, last thing we want to ask you, Trevor,

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<v Speaker 3>when you're watching the Panthers so far, only three weeks in,

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<v Speaker 3>but there's some notable things that look different, and I

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<v Speaker 3>wonder if it has to do with Brad Idzik calling

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<v Speaker 3>the plays. I wonder how much it's in. his influence.

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<v Speaker 3>Have you noticed things differently with Idzik? They're clearly throwing

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<v Speaker 3>the ball downfield more. What do you see differently maybe

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<v Speaker 3>from a play calling or schematic standpoint from this offense

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<v Speaker 3>this year?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, so I do think that they are trying to

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<v Speaker 1>throw the ball deeper. I think that they still want

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<v Speaker 1>to get the tight ends involved quite a bit, and

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<v Speaker 1>I wondered if, you know, with them kind of moving

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<v Speaker 1>away from Jatabian Sanders, hey, are they going to continue

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<v Speaker 1>to try to be a multiple tight end team. And

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<v Speaker 1>they are, they're still trying to get the tight ends

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<v Speaker 1>involved quite a bit. And they've got those guys on

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<v Speaker 1>the field. And I just think that it's really just

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<v Speaker 1>the next evolution of the offense. I don't know how

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<v Speaker 1>much they're doing like schematically that I didn't see last

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<v Speaker 1>year that you could kind of tell like, Hey, they

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<v Speaker 1>want to get into this a little bit more, whether

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<v Speaker 1>it's the tight end passing game or, you know, taking

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<v Speaker 1>shots deep down the field, they just didn't have the

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<v Speaker 1>reliability in either of those areas. And this year, it

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<v Speaker 1>just feels as though, uh, whether it's a Bryce Young

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<v Speaker 1>evolution or maybe just how they've designed some of these

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<v Speaker 1>plays this year, it just looks a lot more confident.

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<v Speaker 1>So to me, the difference this year isn't like, oh,

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<v Speaker 1>they're trying something new that they've never tried before. It's

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of the same philosophy of what they want

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<v Speaker 1>to do. They're just genuinely doing it better. So I

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<v Speaker 1>think that that's really how I identify it is whatever

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<v Speaker 1>it is with Izzik and sort of the plays that

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<v Speaker 1>they're calling, Bryce just has a lot more confidence, and

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<v Speaker 1>these guys are executing at a much higher level to

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<v Speaker 1>start the season than last year. And I think it's

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<v Speaker 1>just that evolution of what they wanted to do last

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<v Speaker 1>year that they felt like they couldn't.