WEBVTT - Happy Half Hour Episode 72: What Have We Learned? 0:00:01.720 --> 0:00:04.960 If they were picking first, they would have taken Ikya Kuanu. 0:00:05.160 --> 0:00:07.000 And when you think that way of a guy, of 0:00:07.040 --> 0:00:09.440 course he's gonna end up in the starting lineup. You know, 0:00:09.520 --> 0:00:12.200 whatever steps you needed to go through, this was always 0:00:12.200 --> 0:00:15.000 going to be the destination. And now one of the 0:00:15.000 --> 0:00:17.560 things I'm most curious to see is how he had 0:00:17.640 --> 0:00:21.959 Brady grow together. It's time for a Happy half Hour 0:00:22.360 --> 0:00:27.400 with your friends Kristen Balboni, Will Brian and Darren Ghant. 0:00:31.400 --> 0:00:34.479 Welcome to the Happy Half Hour podcast. I am Kristin 0:00:34.560 --> 0:00:37.640 Balboni and our good buddy Will can't be here with 0:00:37.720 --> 0:00:40.519 us this week, but I have got our expert writers, 0:00:40.600 --> 0:00:44.440 Darren Gant and Augusta Stone here. We are all in Foxboro. 0:00:44.920 --> 0:00:48.800 We have just seen the first of two joint practices 0:00:48.880 --> 0:00:53.360 and we are here to give you all of the details. Hi, 0:00:53.479 --> 0:00:56.000 Darren and Augusta. It's a busy day, but I'm so 0:00:56.040 --> 0:00:59.600 glad that we can do this together. Yeah, so many things, 0:00:59.720 --> 0:01:02.600 all of the things are happening at once, and we're 0:01:02.640 --> 0:01:06.119 here exactly. But it's a good time. It's a fun time. 0:01:06.200 --> 0:01:09.399 It's it's a short time because the time goes by 0:01:09.400 --> 0:01:11.959 so quickly, but it's it's fun, happy to be here. 0:01:12.680 --> 0:01:15.199 You're about to dive in, get straight into it, because 0:01:15.200 --> 0:01:18.400 we know Panthers fans have a lot of questions. But Augusta, 0:01:18.520 --> 0:01:20.679 I mean you you have done. I mean you have 0:01:20.800 --> 0:01:23.000 just hit the ground running in terms of being one 0:01:23.040 --> 0:01:25.560 of our newest employees. Your stories are amazing and you've 0:01:25.560 --> 0:01:27.640 already been on this is already your second road trip 0:01:27.680 --> 0:01:30.200 in like three days. So how's it going for you 0:01:30.280 --> 0:01:33.199 so far? It's going great. You know, I was telling 0:01:33.280 --> 0:01:35.319 Darren the other day, I think I've spent more time 0:01:35.360 --> 0:01:37.360 on the road than i have in my own apartment 0:01:37.400 --> 0:01:39.480 that I've had for about a month in Charlotte. But 0:01:39.600 --> 0:01:41.280 you know, it's so much fun. I'm getting to go 0:01:41.360 --> 0:01:43.680 to all these places I haven't been before, and I'm 0:01:43.720 --> 0:01:46.040 loving and thank you so much. I hope all the 0:01:46.120 --> 0:01:48.200 readers are enjoying what I get to write. I know 0:01:48.360 --> 0:01:50.760 I am enjoying writing it. And I know when you're 0:01:50.760 --> 0:01:53.120 talking about places that you love going that you haven't 0:01:53.120 --> 0:01:54.840 been there before, I mean, spartan Berg's obviously at the 0:01:54.920 --> 0:01:57.560 top of the list, right and then we're then d C. 0:01:57.960 --> 0:02:00.200 Boston will have to let you see how it all 0:02:00.240 --> 0:02:02.480 goes in terms of where everything ranks. But I mean 0:02:02.520 --> 0:02:05.600 I'm right about that, right, Darren, Oh yeah, no question. 0:02:05.640 --> 0:02:08.160 Spartan Burg is in fact the center of the universe. 0:02:08.919 --> 0:02:11.519 That was that a long time ago for the Panthers, 0:02:11.560 --> 0:02:14.960 no doubt. Yeah. But you know we're actually out seating 0:02:15.000 --> 0:02:19.160 the world now too. So this week is always fascinating. 0:02:19.200 --> 0:02:21.440 Anytime you throw another team in the mix for a 0:02:21.480 --> 0:02:24.720 couple of days, it always gets a little more exciting. Yes, 0:02:24.880 --> 0:02:27.320 And just you know, if you are listening to this podcast, 0:02:27.360 --> 0:02:29.920 I'm sure you already know this, so forgive me. But 0:02:30.000 --> 0:02:31.960 just to set the scene of what we were doing 0:02:32.080 --> 0:02:35.200 up here in New England, the Panthers week just had 0:02:35.200 --> 0:02:39.320 the first preseason game on what day was that time? 0:02:39.360 --> 0:02:41.560 As a construct, was that Friday? Was that sad? It 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:45.160 was Friday? It was Saturday, you guys, I have no 0:02:45.280 --> 0:02:49.240 idea what today is? The first preseason game on Saturday 0:02:49.400 --> 0:02:53.080 against the Commander's day off on Sunday. We are here 0:02:53.120 --> 0:02:57.360 in New England Monday through Friday to joint practices, the 0:02:57.440 --> 0:02:59.880 first being today, the second being tomorrow. And this is 0:03:00.080 --> 0:03:03.400 much like last year. If everyone remembers, it's like the 0:03:03.480 --> 0:03:06.760 It's like the starters preseason games. We are seeing the 0:03:06.800 --> 0:03:09.880 Ones take a lot of reps against the Patriots Ones. 0:03:09.919 --> 0:03:12.720 We are figuring a lot out and we had some 0:03:12.800 --> 0:03:15.400 questions answered today, which is what we're going to dive into. 0:03:15.480 --> 0:03:17.840 But we also have some questions that were not answered today. 0:03:17.919 --> 0:03:20.760 So without further ado, let's play a little game of 0:03:21.000 --> 0:03:23.919 what did we learn and what didn't we learn after 0:03:24.400 --> 0:03:28.120 the first joint practice with the Patriots. So Augusta, I 0:03:28.200 --> 0:03:32.399 want to start with you. What did we learn today? Alrighty? 0:03:32.440 --> 0:03:36.000 So basically, we learned that the current plan moving forward 0:03:36.120 --> 0:03:39.320 as of right now is for the first round draft 0:03:39.360 --> 0:03:42.600 pick Ikya Kwanu to be the starting left tackle get 0:03:42.640 --> 0:03:44.480 most of the reps with the Ones. That is something 0:03:44.560 --> 0:03:47.800 that real confirmed for us. I'm sure he was mentioning it. 0:03:47.840 --> 0:03:50.000 We have He has been asked ad nauseum, you know, 0:03:50.160 --> 0:03:52.000 when will he slot in with the Ones? When will 0:03:52.000 --> 0:03:54.520 he be there permanently? And he said, moving forward, that 0:03:54.640 --> 0:03:56.240 is the plan. I had a chance to speak with 0:03:56.280 --> 0:03:58.400 Ikey after practice and you could tell that he was 0:03:58.440 --> 0:04:00.600 super excited to be getting his rep with the Ones. 0:04:01.000 --> 0:04:03.040 He told me that he felt like he had earned 0:04:03.080 --> 0:04:05.920 his role. He's been learning the system, he's been being 0:04:05.920 --> 0:04:09.600 mentored by people like Taylor Moton and Pat elf Line, 0:04:09.600 --> 0:04:11.760 and he's kind of taken it all in. He's feeling 0:04:11.800 --> 0:04:15.240 a lot more comfortable and he's also you know, doing 0:04:15.400 --> 0:04:18.760 he's taking his reps. The Cybraty Christians in at left guard, 0:04:18.800 --> 0:04:21.240 so they moved him over from left tackle. He had 0:04:21.240 --> 0:04:23.400 been taken those those reps with the ones before they 0:04:23.400 --> 0:04:25.680 slid Ikey in, but Matt Rule told us he said 0:04:25.800 --> 0:04:28.560 he wanted to see Ikey in a game scenario, so 0:04:28.600 --> 0:04:31.000 they had the Commander's game. They liked what they saw 0:04:31.279 --> 0:04:33.839 and they moved him over. So in as of right now, 0:04:34.040 --> 0:04:37.359 the current plan is for Ikey to be taken those reps. 0:04:37.400 --> 0:04:39.560 So we did learn that, and a lot of people 0:04:39.600 --> 0:04:41.839 were excited to at least be figuring out something about 0:04:41.880 --> 0:04:45.400 offensive personnel right now, because there's plenty of questions still there. 0:04:45.440 --> 0:04:47.640 But as of right now, Icky Kwanu is in that 0:04:47.760 --> 0:04:50.040 left tackle spot. Yeah, And Darren, you and I were 0:04:50.080 --> 0:04:54.080 standing there together watching this practice today and in watching 0:04:54.080 --> 0:04:57.040 those women before Matt Rule confirmed, which was after practice 0:04:57.480 --> 0:04:59.720 in his press conference. You know, we were sitting there 0:04:59.760 --> 0:05:03.320 and is this the configuration you've seen throughout the entire practice? 0:05:03.320 --> 0:05:06.080 And we knew it was just a matter of time, Darren, 0:05:06.200 --> 0:05:09.440 what it feels good to have something like that confirmed. 0:05:09.480 --> 0:05:11.119 And as I guess have said, it feels good for Ikey. 0:05:11.560 --> 0:05:14.160 I think it feels good for the fans as well. Yeah, 0:05:14.200 --> 0:05:16.640 and I think it's it's a pretty big step for 0:05:16.680 --> 0:05:19.599 the team too, because from the moment they drafted him, 0:05:19.680 --> 0:05:23.320 and and go back to April or May or what 0:05:23.480 --> 0:05:26.320 month was it, really, I don't even know what day 0:05:26.400 --> 0:05:31.120 it is. So in April, um this was the top 0:05:31.200 --> 0:05:34.440 rated player on their board. If they were picking first, 0:05:34.560 --> 0:05:37.360 they would have taken iky Ikwana. And when you think 0:05:37.400 --> 0:05:39.320 that way of a guy, of course he's gonna end 0:05:39.400 --> 0:05:41.240 up in the starting lineup. And it was just a 0:05:41.279 --> 0:05:43.719 matter of time, and you know, whatever steps you needed 0:05:43.760 --> 0:05:46.840 to go through, this was always going to be the destination. 0:05:47.400 --> 0:05:49.560 And now one of the things I'm most curious to 0:05:49.640 --> 0:05:53.760 see is how he had Brady grow together, because in 0:05:53.880 --> 0:05:56.640 camp it was, you know, Brady is the first left tackle, 0:05:56.680 --> 0:05:59.000 Ikey is the second one. Then when Ikey would start, 0:05:59.080 --> 0:06:02.280 sometimes it was with Brady, sometimes it was Michael Jordan's. 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:06.320 I think inevitably or eventually, it's going to be Ikey 0:06:06.360 --> 0:06:10.719 and Brady, and so a couple of young guys being 0:06:10.760 --> 0:06:14.120 able to grow together in those two jobs gives it 0:06:14.160 --> 0:06:16.599 a chance. I keep going back because I'm a hundred 0:06:16.680 --> 0:06:20.920 years old to Jordan's Gross Trebell Wharton, and once those 0:06:20.960 --> 0:06:23.800 two set up shop next to each other, it just 0:06:23.880 --> 0:06:25.919 kind of went next level. And that was when the 0:06:25.920 --> 0:06:29.240 Panthers had some of their best offensive wines and franchise history. 0:06:29.360 --> 0:06:33.159 So I will find out. Time will tell if these 0:06:33.160 --> 0:06:36.120 two guys turn into those two guys, but first round pick, 0:06:36.200 --> 0:06:38.960 third round pick, guys who can both play left tackles 0:06:39.240 --> 0:06:41.200 setting up shot next to each other. There are a 0:06:41.240 --> 0:06:43.479 lot of parallels there, and I'll be looking forward to 0:06:43.520 --> 0:06:46.839 seeing whether it actually turns into one of those or more. 0:06:46.880 --> 0:06:50.200 I mean, Ikey a Quanta was a talented guy. You 0:06:50.240 --> 0:06:53.680 can see out on the practice field in Spartanburg or 0:06:53.720 --> 0:06:57.160 against the Patriots. When he hits people, they move. So 0:06:57.800 --> 0:07:00.680 this is good news, getting his physic cality on the 0:07:00.720 --> 0:07:04.000 field and kind of eliminating that unknown that had existed 0:07:04.040 --> 0:07:06.760 prior to today. And Darren, I know this is something 0:07:06.760 --> 0:07:09.160 that you and I talked about when Dicky was drafted, 0:07:09.200 --> 0:07:12.920 and I'm guessing I'm sure it came from Jordan Gross, right, 0:07:12.960 --> 0:07:14.680 it was a former player. So the best thing you 0:07:14.720 --> 0:07:18.280 can do for a young guy in that tackle role 0:07:18.400 --> 0:07:22.000 is find him his partner, find him his person beside him, 0:07:22.040 --> 0:07:25.560 and keep them together. Do you think Brady Christensen is 0:07:25.600 --> 0:07:29.680 that guy? Probably? So? Probably. So. Here's a weird thing 0:07:29.720 --> 0:07:33.680 about the Carolina Panthers right now. They have options on 0:07:33.800 --> 0:07:37.600 offensive line. Were so good to say that, doesn't it? Yeah? 0:07:38.440 --> 0:07:41.240 What day is it? Really? Where are we? What city 0:07:41.240 --> 0:07:44.680 are we in? Um? The Carolina Panthers have offensive linemen 0:07:44.760 --> 0:07:48.560 plural um that are capable. So last year was a 0:07:48.560 --> 0:07:50.840 little bit of a challenge. Does everybody knows four teen 0:07:50.920 --> 0:07:54.680 starting lineup seventeen games, never really the same guys for 0:07:54.760 --> 0:07:58.480 any stretch of time at all, and not all of 0:07:58.520 --> 0:08:00.840 them as good as the ones you're picking through now. 0:08:00.960 --> 0:08:04.120 And and they've got guys now who are going to 0:08:04.200 --> 0:08:07.240 make the fifty three who started last year who were 0:08:07.280 --> 0:08:11.400 competing for backup roles. And that's that's good news. That's 0:08:11.440 --> 0:08:16.000 nothing against those individual guys. But um, when you think 0:08:16.040 --> 0:08:18.760 about people who were being counted on as starters now 0:08:18.800 --> 0:08:21.880 they're fighting for backup jobs because they've upgraded around him. 0:08:21.880 --> 0:08:25.040 And that's a that's a better situation across the board 0:08:25.080 --> 0:08:28.160 for whoever ends up behind center. And I would just 0:08:28.200 --> 0:08:32.920 say that you know what that those fourteen different configurations 0:08:32.920 --> 0:08:35.600 in the seventeen games last year, we're a lot due 0:08:35.600 --> 0:08:38.160 to injuries. Um, you know, there's just that was just 0:08:38.240 --> 0:08:40.439 could not be helped. It felt like it was changing 0:08:40.480 --> 0:08:44.439 due to injuries every single week. But Darren Augusta, uh 0:08:45.000 --> 0:08:47.480 may never know a time in which the offensive line 0:08:47.600 --> 0:08:53.960 changed every single She was the carbinger of good news 0:08:54.760 --> 0:08:59.839 ectly exactly um And an incredible job by Augusta to 0:09:00.000 --> 0:09:03.200 sucking to Ikey right after we found out the news, 0:09:03.240 --> 0:09:06.440 and that pieces on Panthers dot com. So definitely go 0:09:06.559 --> 0:09:09.600 there for for all of the details. So so that's 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:12.400 what we did learn, and that's a huge thing to learn. 0:09:13.240 --> 0:09:16.000 Quanta is snug in his place at left tackle. All 0:09:16.000 --> 0:09:18.320 Panthers fans can be happy about that. But Darren, what's 0:09:18.320 --> 0:09:22.679 one thing we didn't learn today at joint practice. We 0:09:22.800 --> 0:09:25.559 didn't learn who the starting quarterback was going to be. 0:09:26.480 --> 0:09:30.319 That's one thing they've held off on that one. And 0:09:30.320 --> 0:09:32.600 and you can kind of see, I mean today Baker 0:09:32.640 --> 0:09:35.480 Mayfield got a lot of um, a lot of time 0:09:35.520 --> 0:09:38.520 in two minutes stuff through a couple of nice balls 0:09:38.559 --> 0:09:44.680 to Tommy Tremble hit Christian McCaffrey deep on one, Um, DJ, Yeah, 0:09:45.000 --> 0:09:47.920 the on the other end of the field where DJ 0:09:48.080 --> 0:09:49.600 kind of had to come back to it and make 0:09:49.640 --> 0:09:54.520 a contested catch, doing DJ more things, And so you 0:09:54.920 --> 0:09:57.840 you're seeing a lot more Baker mayfield. That thing's not 0:09:58.000 --> 0:10:01.160 final yet, but you know, I I think most people 0:10:01.200 --> 0:10:04.320 can sort of see the direction it might be pointing in. 0:10:04.840 --> 0:10:07.559 But and I'll be honest, and this is not because 0:10:07.679 --> 0:10:10.199 we work for the Carolina Panthers. Sam Darrel has been 0:10:10.240 --> 0:10:13.080 better this offseason. I mean there are moments where you 0:10:13.080 --> 0:10:16.400 look at Sam and say, I know why people want 0:10:16.440 --> 0:10:19.559 to continue to give Sam chances or continue to keep 0:10:19.600 --> 0:10:23.400 them around. And and Sam has been a fantastic teammate. 0:10:23.679 --> 0:10:26.160 I mean, he's been supportive when Baker makes a play, 0:10:26.200 --> 0:10:28.760 he's back at the huddle of this pumping and that 0:10:28.880 --> 0:10:31.880 kind of thing. But you know, well, we'll see whenever 0:10:31.920 --> 0:10:34.480 they make a decision for the long term, and it'll 0:10:34.520 --> 0:10:37.800 be curious to see what they do Friday night. UM, 0:10:37.840 --> 0:10:40.600 because I get a feeling that we're going to see 0:10:40.600 --> 0:10:44.079 a lot more of other people on Friday. Because that's 0:10:44.120 --> 0:10:47.640 the thing about these joint practices. They can get controlled work. 0:10:47.720 --> 0:10:49.800 They hadn't seen a lot of Baker in two minutes. 0:10:50.120 --> 0:10:53.000 So Rule gets together with Bill Belichick and says, hey, 0:10:53.080 --> 0:10:56.960 let's do three segments of two minutes and you can 0:10:57.000 --> 0:11:00.000 get that concentrated work without worrying about getting your coarter 0:11:00.040 --> 0:11:02.360 that killed in a lit of game, and you can 0:11:02.400 --> 0:11:04.760 see exactly what you want to see. And that's why 0:11:05.160 --> 0:11:09.680 these practices are good, you know, at times for probably 0:11:09.720 --> 0:11:12.440 better than games during the preseason for these teams as 0:11:12.480 --> 0:11:15.120 they're trying to sort things out. And it's it's great 0:11:15.160 --> 0:11:17.480 for the Patriots too because they're trying to figure out 0:11:17.520 --> 0:11:19.840 what they have on defense. So as as you said, 0:11:19.880 --> 0:11:22.440 it's good for both parties, there's no doubt about it. 0:11:22.520 --> 0:11:24.840 And so what you were just saying, Darren about both 0:11:24.840 --> 0:11:27.160 of those guys being great sports. You know, I talked 0:11:27.160 --> 0:11:31.760 to both quarterbacks at FanFest and after the first preseason game, 0:11:31.800 --> 0:11:34.480 well during the first preseason game, after they were both 0:11:34.520 --> 0:11:38.760 finished with their respective series, and as you said, they 0:11:38.840 --> 0:11:42.680 both genuinely seem to just really like each other, root 0:11:42.720 --> 0:11:46.000 for each other, understand that the competition is within themselves. 0:11:46.600 --> 0:11:48.160 But it will be interesting to see. As you said, 0:11:48.160 --> 0:11:50.720 it was almost a fifty fifty today it felt like, 0:11:50.800 --> 0:11:52.720 and of course during the preseason game that you know, 0:11:52.720 --> 0:11:56.000 they we're gonna get this, this amount of snaps for 0:11:56.040 --> 0:11:57.880 each guy. We want to see what they can do. 0:11:58.240 --> 0:12:01.480 It'll be interesting to see if that continues tomorrow, Augusta Darren, 0:12:01.520 --> 0:12:04.240 do you guys think that we're gonna still see the 0:12:04.440 --> 0:12:08.400 exact split down the middle tomorrow as well? Would you 0:12:08.440 --> 0:12:11.920 be surprised if it started to lean more one way 0:12:12.000 --> 0:12:15.240 than the other. I feel like we're gonna see it 0:12:15.400 --> 0:12:18.240 be the fifty fifty until we're told otherwise. The only 0:12:18.320 --> 0:12:20.920 thing that leads me to believe that we might see 0:12:20.960 --> 0:12:23.079 more of one than the other is a couple of 0:12:23.120 --> 0:12:25.240 weeks ago in Spartanburg, we were told that this was 0:12:25.280 --> 0:12:28.280 the week that, you know, tentatively that they might think 0:12:28.280 --> 0:12:31.600 about potentially naming someone. Nothing was set in stone, but 0:12:31.720 --> 0:12:34.680 it was the one that they floated. They go Patriots Week. 0:12:34.760 --> 0:12:38.240 You know, we kind of like to know. But I mean, personally, 0:12:38.240 --> 0:12:40.240 I wouldn't be surprised to see more of the fifty 0:12:40.240 --> 0:12:45.040 fifty split, especially like Darren said, since on Friday specifically, 0:12:45.160 --> 0:12:48.400 probably won't see a ton of Baker and sam Um. 0:12:48.440 --> 0:12:51.199 I feel like in these practices, they'll they'll keep it 0:12:51.800 --> 0:12:55.640 kind of even too. I don't know, if just continue 0:12:55.640 --> 0:12:57.760 to evaluate figure out, we'll see what they want to see. 0:12:57.760 --> 0:13:00.040 Like Darren said, they're seeing different defenses right now, and 0:13:00.120 --> 0:13:02.560 they are seeing more of what they want to see 0:13:02.559 --> 0:13:05.480 without the risk of getting them hurt in Um, you know, 0:13:05.520 --> 0:13:08.960 a game situation. Like you said, So there's a there's 0:13:09.000 --> 0:13:11.439 a lot of reasons. I personally don't think they'll start 0:13:11.440 --> 0:13:14.320 showing a lot of somebody until they tell us a 0:13:14.360 --> 0:13:17.800 great point. Yeah, we'll probably know before we see it 0:13:17.840 --> 0:13:22.240 on the practice field. It's a great point by augusta. Um, 0:13:22.280 --> 0:13:25.920 all right, Darren, what else did we learn at today's 0:13:25.960 --> 0:13:28.480 joint practice. We we learned that if you have a 0:13:28.559 --> 0:13:34.640 joint practice in August, people are gonna fight. Yes, that's 0:13:34.640 --> 0:13:36.440 that's kind of a given. I mean, it was that 0:13:36.480 --> 0:13:40.079 way last year in Indianapolis. Uh, it was this way 0:13:40.800 --> 0:13:45.520 this morning out there in Foxboro, and it um, you know, 0:13:45.679 --> 0:13:48.680 it's kind of a right of summer that it's always 0:13:48.720 --> 0:13:51.160 the case every time you get a bunch of people together, 0:13:51.240 --> 0:13:53.439 a bunch of alpha's who were trying to show off. 0:13:53.520 --> 0:13:56.200 And you know one thing, I do think the Panthers 0:13:56.240 --> 0:13:58.720 We were talking to Jeremy chan about it. After practice. 0:13:58.800 --> 0:14:01.560 They are trying to was a lot of turnovers, so 0:14:01.600 --> 0:14:03.600 the dvs are getting in there trying to rip the 0:14:03.640 --> 0:14:07.800 ball out. Maybe the Patriots took exception with some of that, 0:14:08.040 --> 0:14:10.120 maybe some you know, but there were a couple of 0:14:10.120 --> 0:14:13.040 good scrums and and there were people and it wasn't 0:14:13.040 --> 0:14:15.520 all of one team or the other, you know, who 0:14:15.600 --> 0:14:19.320 got hot. There were some punches thrown around the fringes 0:14:19.360 --> 0:14:22.120 of that thing. But they kind of, you know, ruling 0:14:22.160 --> 0:14:24.680 Belichick talked about it. They said, hey, if guys fight, 0:14:24.680 --> 0:14:26.760 we're gonna get them out of here. And you know, 0:14:26.840 --> 0:14:29.960 Kenny Robinson got sent out early, and Phil Hoskins got 0:14:29.960 --> 0:14:33.480 sent out early, and a couple of Patriots receivers left 0:14:33.520 --> 0:14:36.640 and caught an early shower after that one. So, uh, 0:14:36.680 --> 0:14:38.960 those are the kind of things that are always gonna happen. 0:14:39.040 --> 0:14:41.360 They're a little bit inevitable when you get all these 0:14:41.360 --> 0:14:44.920 guys together. But uh, it was interesting to me that, 0:14:45.320 --> 0:14:48.360 you know, for a pretty good chunk of practice, it 0:14:48.480 --> 0:14:51.040 was like, oh God, what's about to happen. These guys 0:14:51.040 --> 0:14:53.680 are gonna throw down. But after that, it kind of 0:14:53.720 --> 0:14:57.120 they sort of refocus and and listen, the Panthers defense 0:14:57.280 --> 0:15:00.240 is kind of an intense bunch anyway. You gotta bunch 0:15:00.280 --> 0:15:04.520 of dudes over there. Frankie Luvu's firing everybody up and 0:15:04.560 --> 0:15:07.800 making pick so when he makes a play, everybody's excited. 0:15:08.120 --> 0:15:11.560 J C. Horns just one of those guys. I think 0:15:11.600 --> 0:15:13.960 the kids say he has a dog inside of him, 0:15:14.080 --> 0:15:15.720 or he would say that. He said that to me 0:15:15.800 --> 0:15:18.080 the day he got drafted. Yet he would own that 0:15:18.160 --> 0:15:20.560 and and want to be referred to that way. So 0:15:20.720 --> 0:15:22.560 you know, I mean, that's just kind of the way 0:15:22.600 --> 0:15:24.880 these guys are. So there's gonna be some of that. 0:15:25.160 --> 0:15:27.440 But that was definitely mostly on the field where the 0:15:27.480 --> 0:15:31.200 Panthers defense and the Patriots offense was so I I 0:15:31.240 --> 0:15:34.160 think that's not for nothing. File that one away too, 0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:36.800 I think so you know, I had someone text me 0:15:36.840 --> 0:15:38.880 and say, oh, you know, I heard it got chippy 0:15:39.000 --> 0:15:41.320 out on the field. And they're not cameras allowed in 0:15:41.360 --> 0:15:44.960 the team period, So you know, either there are Patriots 0:15:44.960 --> 0:15:47.200 fans there a few Panthers fans made their way up. 0:15:47.200 --> 0:15:49.040 But people are asking and I think Darren is making 0:15:49.080 --> 0:15:50.840 a good point, which is, you know, if you see 0:15:50.880 --> 0:15:54.720 that tweeted out or whatnot. It really not to minimize 0:15:54.760 --> 0:15:57.200 it because you don't want anyone throwing punches, you want 0:15:57.200 --> 0:15:59.320 anyone to get it hurt. But it does feel like 0:15:59.360 --> 0:16:01.760 if you're having a joint practice, like Darren said in August, 0:16:01.880 --> 0:16:05.840 you know, there's gonna be some chippiness. There's gonna be 0:16:06.280 --> 0:16:08.840 there's gonna be some guys running from the opposite field 0:16:08.840 --> 0:16:10.720 to see what's going on and if they need to 0:16:10.800 --> 0:16:13.760 jump in. And I don't think it necessarily means anything. 0:16:14.000 --> 0:16:17.520 I don't think that it's gonna lead to anything bigger. 0:16:17.560 --> 0:16:19.280 It just feels, like Darren said, it's like a rite 0:16:19.280 --> 0:16:21.280 of passage. I would not be surprised if we see, 0:16:21.480 --> 0:16:24.320 you know, another little dust up tomorrow, and as long 0:16:24.320 --> 0:16:27.000 as everyone stays safe. It's it does feel like just 0:16:27.120 --> 0:16:30.320 part of the new the new wood thing with joint practices. 0:16:30.440 --> 0:16:33.560 You know, temper tempers are running high. Both sides want 0:16:33.640 --> 0:16:36.760 to to protect their guys and and that's what we get, 0:16:37.840 --> 0:16:41.920 you know, alright, augusta round us out here, so we've 0:16:42.520 --> 0:16:45.160 we need to know one more thing that we did 0:16:45.240 --> 0:16:49.240 not learn from joint practices today, one more thing. And 0:16:49.280 --> 0:16:50.960 I think it's it's a good thing. Like we were 0:16:50.960 --> 0:16:53.040 talking about the offensive line depth. But there are a 0:16:53.040 --> 0:16:56.600 ton of really quality water receivers and there's not a 0:16:56.600 --> 0:16:58.880 ton of roster space. When we make the cut down 0:16:58.880 --> 0:17:01.600 to fifty three, somebody's gonna be left out. And I 0:17:01.640 --> 0:17:03.600 think what we're seeing is there are a lot of 0:17:03.640 --> 0:17:05.879 people that just keep flashing and flashing, and kind of 0:17:05.880 --> 0:17:08.000 people that you think about more on the bubble. The 0:17:08.000 --> 0:17:09.760 person that I wanted to talk about the most with 0:17:09.800 --> 0:17:13.240 Shy Smith because we saw him. We saw him in 0:17:13.320 --> 0:17:16.880 Washington against the Commanders, saw him with Baker. Their connection 0:17:17.000 --> 0:17:19.600 is excellent. He's he's one of those guys that you know, 0:17:19.720 --> 0:17:21.840 anytime you know has all come in toward him, he's 0:17:21.840 --> 0:17:23.679 gonna come down with it. And he's not, you know, 0:17:23.840 --> 0:17:25.399 one of the people that like pops up in your 0:17:25.400 --> 0:17:27.119 head first. You know, he's not your Robbie Anderson, r 0:17:27.240 --> 0:17:29.760 DJ more, but he's there and he and Baker already 0:17:29.760 --> 0:17:32.159 have that chemistry about him. And then we saw it 0:17:32.200 --> 0:17:34.439 again today the same thing with Shy Smith. You know, 0:17:34.480 --> 0:17:36.760 whenever he's gonna make a play, he's gonna make a play. 0:17:37.040 --> 0:17:38.560 And to me, I feel like he's one of those 0:17:38.560 --> 0:17:41.040 guys that a lot of people are excited about you know, 0:17:41.080 --> 0:17:43.480 he's a Carolina kid. He went to South Carolina, which 0:17:43.800 --> 0:17:45.800 um was a team that I've covered before I came here. 0:17:45.880 --> 0:17:47.199 So I have a lot of people I know that 0:17:47.240 --> 0:17:50.479 are excited and always asking about him. He's popular and 0:17:50.600 --> 0:17:52.480 he's he's doing a good job. He's had a real 0:17:52.520 --> 0:17:55.440 good camp. Um, He's not the only one. I think. 0:17:55.520 --> 0:17:58.639 Richard Higgins is another one who he just he also 0:17:58.720 --> 0:18:01.120 has a Baker connection. They've both played at the Browns. 0:18:01.280 --> 0:18:03.960 So um. But there's just there's a lot of people 0:18:03.960 --> 0:18:06.400 in that room. C J. Saunders was having an amazing 0:18:06.480 --> 0:18:09.160 camp before he got hurt. Um, and now he's kind 0:18:09.160 --> 0:18:12.119 of a non factor just because he's hurt. But there's 0:18:12.160 --> 0:18:14.000 so many guys on that roster. I mean, the death 0:18:14.119 --> 0:18:16.560 is the depth is wild, and when they make that cut, 0:18:16.680 --> 0:18:19.439 it's gonna be, you know, interesting to see where they 0:18:19.520 --> 0:18:21.679 draw the line, who they end up carrying and and 0:18:21.720 --> 0:18:24.040 who they end up who they end up getting rid 0:18:24.040 --> 0:18:28.640 of part ways with Yeah, number of numbers games there 0:18:28.720 --> 0:18:32.040 is gonna be fascinating because generally six wide receivers it's 0:18:32.080 --> 0:18:35.359 what they'll carry in the regular season, and you figure, Okay, 0:18:35.440 --> 0:18:38.280 d J. Moore, Robbie Anderson, Terris Marshal. Those three are 0:18:38.280 --> 0:18:40.800 gonna be on the team. And then you've got Andre Roberts, 0:18:40.840 --> 0:18:43.440 who's only one of the best returners in the NFL 0:18:43.720 --> 0:18:47.159 who they signed specifically for that purpose. There's four. Okay, 0:18:47.200 --> 0:18:50.320 now there's two spots left. You got a Brandon Zilstra, 0:18:50.400 --> 0:18:54.560 who's a core special teamer, Shy Higgins. You know, again, 0:18:55.000 --> 0:18:57.119 you feel bad for c J. Saunders, but he was 0:18:57.200 --> 0:18:59.560 right in that mix before he gets hurt. You wonder 0:18:59.600 --> 0:19:02.800 what's to happen with him now, So you start talking 0:19:02.840 --> 0:19:06.120 about a couple of guys for three or four guys 0:19:06.200 --> 0:19:10.040 for two or three jobs, and you wonder what's going 0:19:10.080 --> 0:19:12.320 to happen. I mean, there are things that do happen 0:19:12.440 --> 0:19:16.119 on the course of field during training camp and preseason games. 0:19:16.119 --> 0:19:21.120 Obviously that changes the calculus on this. But yeah, figuring 0:19:21.119 --> 0:19:23.879 out who those five or six receivers are gonna be, 0:19:23.880 --> 0:19:26.560 and it might be five because they are keeping an 0:19:26.560 --> 0:19:28.720 extra quarterback this year, So you got to find that 0:19:28.840 --> 0:19:32.200 roster spot somewhere, and it's gonna be interesting to see 0:19:32.200 --> 0:19:34.440 where it comes from. Darren, if you were at the GM, 0:19:34.480 --> 0:19:37.240 would you go with five or six? I know that 0:19:37.240 --> 0:19:39.119 that I know that's not in a vacuum, because then 0:19:39.119 --> 0:19:40.919 you've got to take that spot from somewhere else. But 0:19:40.960 --> 0:19:43.639 it feels to me like you, like you said, you 0:19:43.720 --> 0:19:46.399 just paired down that list. It was like six is 0:19:46.440 --> 0:19:49.840 the number. But when I start thinking about when I 0:19:49.840 --> 0:19:52.640 started thinking about how you fill out special teams, and 0:19:53.080 --> 0:19:55.440 you know, again you see Higgins and Shy and making 0:19:55.480 --> 0:19:58.760 all these plays where the Carolina Panthers have been special 0:19:58.800 --> 0:20:00.919 teams wise without a brand and zeal stretch, and not 0:20:01.040 --> 0:20:04.840 just as a backup kicker, um just all the roles 0:20:04.880 --> 0:20:08.199