WEBVTT - Happy Half Hour Episode 6: MLS Brand Launch 0:00:08.560 --> 0:00:12.360 It's time for a Happy half Hour with your friends 0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:22.000 Kristin Balboni, Miles Simmons, and Will Brian. That's right, it's 0:00:22.040 --> 0:00:24.520 that time of the week. Welcome to the Happy Half 0:00:24.560 --> 0:00:28.240 Hour podcast. Kristen here with Miles and Will and guys, 0:00:28.600 --> 0:00:31.880 we have a lot of exciting news to talk about 0:00:32.000 --> 0:00:34.800 this week. We know a lot more about training camp 0:00:35.159 --> 0:00:37.120 and and a little bit more about what the season 0:00:37.200 --> 0:00:39.760 should look like. We're going to talk about the reveal 0:00:39.840 --> 0:00:44.159 of Charlotte Football Club. We we finally know now what 0:00:44.200 --> 0:00:46.760 the Charlotte MLS team is going to be named. We 0:00:46.760 --> 0:00:49.040 we've got the crest, we've got the colors, we've got 0:00:49.080 --> 0:00:51.640 the name. So so excited to talk about that with 0:00:51.640 --> 0:00:54.880 both of you. Um. But but first and foremost, everyone 0:00:54.960 --> 0:01:06.080 doing well. Okay, don't sounds so excited, Miles. You know, no, 0:01:06.200 --> 0:01:08.240 it was good, you know. I well, I spent the 0:01:08.319 --> 0:01:11.200 last I spent last week up in Cleveland and got 0:01:11.200 --> 0:01:12.680 to see my mom for a little bit and was 0:01:12.680 --> 0:01:14.840 still working up there. But yeah, so it was nice 0:01:14.880 --> 0:01:17.399 to be around another human for a little bit. And 0:01:17.520 --> 0:01:20.720 I'm not so I guess I'm back to my my normal. 0:01:21.080 --> 0:01:24.000 You know. I got you, I got you. Yeah, good 0:01:24.000 --> 0:01:26.800 for the soul. Getting to to see parents, no doubt 0:01:26.800 --> 0:01:29.119 about it, getting to see family, especially in these times. 0:01:30.400 --> 0:01:32.800 So let's jump right into it. Um. We have learned 0:01:32.840 --> 0:01:36.360 a lot in the past few days about what training 0:01:36.400 --> 0:01:38.920 camp is going to look like, what it might look like. 0:01:39.040 --> 0:01:43.400 Testing has started, um, especially with the rookies. So Miles, 0:01:43.440 --> 0:01:45.360 why don't you fill us in on the latest and 0:01:45.400 --> 0:01:48.200 what we know now about what the NFL and NFL 0:01:48.280 --> 0:01:50.680 p A have agreed to and and where we still 0:01:50.800 --> 0:01:54.920 um have room for negotiations. Yeah, so I guess let's 0:01:54.920 --> 0:01:57.440 just start with what we know about where the Panthers are. 0:01:57.600 --> 0:02:01.040 So good thing earlier that happened. This that happened earlier 0:02:01.120 --> 0:02:04.360 this week, all the rest of the Panthers rookie draft 0:02:04.400 --> 0:02:07.800 picks signed their contracts. So all those guys from the 0:02:07.840 --> 0:02:11.200 second to seventh round, you know, the true gross Mattos 0:02:11.280 --> 0:02:14.720 of the world, Jeremy Chin, etcetera, etcetera. Those guys signed 0:02:14.720 --> 0:02:17.960 their contracts. So that's good. I think that you know, 0:02:18.000 --> 0:02:21.280 we already saw Derrick Brown had signed his contract. That 0:02:21.320 --> 0:02:23.160 was all the way back in May. So that's one 0:02:23.200 --> 0:02:26.760 thing that that's good for the Panthers. Okay, now, what happens, 0:02:27.080 --> 0:02:30.240 they have they technically reported yet, I mean yes, kind 0:02:30.280 --> 0:02:33.680 of um. But at the same time, at this point, 0:02:33.720 --> 0:02:36.120 what we know is that with the latest agreement between 0:02:36.120 --> 0:02:38.480 the NFL and the and the nfl PA, so players 0:02:38.520 --> 0:02:41.400 need to take to COVID nineteen tests separated by at 0:02:41.480 --> 0:02:44.440 least seventy two hours, and you have to test negative 0:02:44.760 --> 0:02:47.920 for each of those things before you can enter the facility. 0:02:48.120 --> 0:02:50.919 So the first day at this point, since players have 0:02:50.960 --> 0:02:53.680 already these rookies have already started to get tested, first 0:02:53.760 --> 0:02:56.799 day that they would possibly be able to get into 0:02:56.840 --> 0:02:59.880 the building would be Saturday in order to take their physical. 0:03:00.560 --> 0:03:04.120 So that's where we are with the Panthers right now. 0:03:04.160 --> 0:03:06.200 And I think if you look at where the veterans 0:03:06.200 --> 0:03:09.640 come into play, as they start to get integrated into 0:03:09.680 --> 0:03:12.520 more things over the course of the next week, then 0:03:12.560 --> 0:03:14.399 it's going to be the same. You have to get 0:03:14.639 --> 0:03:17.200 one test. Basically, what happens is they're going to drive, 0:03:17.240 --> 0:03:20.280 they drive up to the stadium, they get swabbed, um, 0:03:20.360 --> 0:03:22.080 and then they drive away, and then you have to 0:03:22.080 --> 0:03:25.080 get another test basically in the exact same way seventy 0:03:25.080 --> 0:03:28.880 two hours later. So right now it's basically trying to 0:03:28.919 --> 0:03:32.640 get into the process of everybody even being possibly able 0:03:32.800 --> 0:03:35.080 to get into the stadium. Coaches are going through that 0:03:35.120 --> 0:03:39.400 same process as well, So that's where the Panthers are now. 0:03:39.440 --> 0:03:42.240 As we sort of expand that to a league wide view, 0:03:42.720 --> 0:03:44.839 it's at this point we're not expected to see any 0:03:44.840 --> 0:03:47.520 preseason games. That's something that the NFL has apparently offered 0:03:47.520 --> 0:03:48.880 the NFL p A, and that's something that the p 0:03:49.000 --> 0:03:52.240 A has been pushing for for a long time because, 0:03:52.680 --> 0:03:55.720 as they put it, there's no health and safety reason 0:03:55.960 --> 0:03:58.760 that you need to have preseason games, and everything right 0:03:58.760 --> 0:04:01.600 now should be focused on health and safety. So that's 0:04:01.640 --> 0:04:03.880 also something that it appears that we are going to see. 0:04:03.920 --> 0:04:06.760 I don't believe it is finalized as we're recording this though, 0:04:07.000 --> 0:04:09.800 at about you know, twelve thirty Eastern time here on Wednesday, 0:04:09.840 --> 0:04:11.800 July twenty two, So, but I expect that we'll see 0:04:11.840 --> 0:04:16.000 that finalized um certainly very soon. And also as I'm 0:04:16.320 --> 0:04:19.640 creating these reports, it looks like they're probably going to 0:04:19.680 --> 0:04:22.200 be only eighty players in training camp, which is kind 0:04:22.200 --> 0:04:25.880 of interesting, especially because look in the off season, if 0:04:25.960 --> 0:04:29.000 ninety players on your roster, that's pretty standard. The Panthers 0:04:29.000 --> 0:04:32.480 have eighty eight right now. So flatly, it just means 0:04:32.520 --> 0:04:34.480 that eight guys are going to lose their jobs without 0:04:34.600 --> 0:04:37.320 ever being able to be on the field for this 0:04:37.400 --> 0:04:41.080 coaching staff. And honestly, that's just kind of stinks, um 0:04:41.120 --> 0:04:44.000 because you never really got to show what you can 0:04:44.040 --> 0:04:48.039 do now later on. There are also these rumors that 0:04:48.080 --> 0:04:50.200 there could be up to sixteen guys on a practice 0:04:50.200 --> 0:04:54.200 squad um, so that could give you basically a little 0:04:54.320 --> 0:04:57.880 roster flexibility to up to about seventy one players between 0:04:58.640 --> 0:05:01.240 fifty three they're on the standard roster, the with this 0:05:01.279 --> 0:05:04.159 new cb A, you basically have two guys, uh that 0:05:04.480 --> 0:05:08.080 are more flex players and usually on the offensive line 0:05:08.120 --> 0:05:09.960 as I understand it, so that gives you kind off 0:05:10.600 --> 0:05:12.919 and then with the sixteen that would take you up 0:05:12.960 --> 0:05:15.320 to seventy one. So I know that's a lot of 0:05:15.360 --> 0:05:17.359 information and I feel like I was talking for a 0:05:17.400 --> 0:05:21.400 really long time. That's sort of where we are in 0:05:21.480 --> 0:05:24.640 terms of what this picture can look like heading into 0:05:24.680 --> 0:05:26.800 the season, and there still is a lot yet to 0:05:26.800 --> 0:05:29.880 be determined. I think he summed it up great. There's 0:05:29.920 --> 0:05:31.880 a lot of information to go through in a lot 0:05:31.920 --> 0:05:35.760 of points that are being negotiated, and I thought you 0:05:35.800 --> 0:05:37.480 did a great job summing it up, and you were 0:05:37.480 --> 0:05:39.400 talking for a while, but I would have gone on 0:05:39.440 --> 0:05:41.960 for ten minutes longer, truly trying to get all those 0:05:41.960 --> 0:05:44.920 points across. So a plus job on that. And then 0:05:45.000 --> 0:05:46.400 of course one of the big things that I did 0:05:46.480 --> 0:05:48.840 want to mention that is still being negotiated as the 0:05:48.920 --> 0:05:52.320 ramp up process. Um, once testing is over, the n 0:05:52.440 --> 0:05:55.640 f l p A wants a longer time in terms 0:05:55.680 --> 0:05:58.839 of strength and conditioning. Um, Myles, you mentioned that the 0:05:58.880 --> 0:06:04.720 no preseason games, but there is a there is right now, um, 0:06:04.800 --> 0:06:07.120 a separation in terms of what they want that schedule 0:06:07.200 --> 0:06:09.320 to look like once we actually get into a real 0:06:09.480 --> 0:06:13.880 training camp. Um, well, what do you make of all this? 0:06:14.000 --> 0:06:16.719 Because you know there are still so many unanswered questions. 0:06:17.000 --> 0:06:19.160 But it does feel like I remember when we recorded 0:06:19.200 --> 0:06:21.599 this last week, there was so much we didn't know. 0:06:21.680 --> 0:06:24.440 It does feel like now the ball is starting to 0:06:24.440 --> 0:06:26.880 get rolling. We really have some some real answers, more 0:06:26.880 --> 0:06:29.800 answers on things than not. You know, I think it's 0:06:29.839 --> 0:06:33.479 it's definitely a fingers crossed scenario. Things feel better this week, 0:06:33.520 --> 0:06:36.560 you know, hopefully we continue to feel even better next week. 0:06:36.600 --> 0:06:38.560 You know, I think as guys start to get tested. 0:06:38.880 --> 0:06:40.760 You're going to start to see all the reports of 0:06:41.040 --> 0:06:43.479 you know, X number of of NFL players, you know, 0:06:43.560 --> 0:06:46.440 test positive. UM. You know that that was the same 0:06:46.480 --> 0:06:49.279 thing that happened when UM NBA players reported down to 0:06:49.680 --> 0:06:53.039 UH to the bubble in Orlando. UM. You know, hopefully 0:06:53.080 --> 0:06:56.120 that that number isn't too big and hopefully everyone's relatively 0:06:56.160 --> 0:06:59.120 safe within it. But those things are going to start happening. 0:06:59.240 --> 0:07:02.920 We're gonna start that. I mean, we all understand this intellectually, 0:07:02.960 --> 0:07:05.920 but I think the term training camp it just is 0:07:05.960 --> 0:07:08.400 so out the window. You know, everyone's so used to 0:07:08.480 --> 0:07:10.960 all right, this week means we're all going down to 0:07:10.960 --> 0:07:14.640 spartanburg By. You know, there's the opening night practice. Everyone's 0:07:14.680 --> 0:07:16.680 got you know, the shelves on and they're going through 0:07:16.720 --> 0:07:19.680 this and you know then you know, pads come on 0:07:19.880 --> 0:07:21.960 three days later and you're on the hill and you're 0:07:22.000 --> 0:07:24.640 watching practice and you know, all we know, we know 0:07:24.760 --> 0:07:26.960 that that's all gone, but until it starts happening and 0:07:26.960 --> 0:07:30.480 they're like, wow, this is really not training camp anymore. 0:07:30.520 --> 0:07:33.240 You know, this is what April was used to be, 0:07:33.280 --> 0:07:36.080 you know, which is conditioning, it's lifting, it's it's all 0:07:36.120 --> 0:07:37.960 of those things in different groups. To try to be 0:07:38.040 --> 0:07:41.400 somewhat socially distant. You know what we're able to talk about. 0:07:41.960 --> 0:07:44.320 These things are different. You know, we're not doing necessarily 0:07:44.480 --> 0:07:48.200 training camp observations or practice reports. Uh, you know, all 0:07:48.320 --> 0:07:50.480 that's going to be different, so at least for the 0:07:50.760 --> 0:07:52.800 first little bit um for the first couple of weeks. 0:07:52.800 --> 0:07:54.760 So it's just it's going to be a shock to 0:07:54.800 --> 0:07:58.600 the system, but at the same time, hopefully things continue 0:07:58.760 --> 0:08:01.680 in a positive direction. The league comes together, the players 0:08:01.720 --> 0:08:04.480 come together. They there's so many things to figure out. 0:08:04.720 --> 0:08:06.800 You know, obviously they figured out some where they seem 0:08:06.880 --> 0:08:09.920 to have right now, but there's there's still a laundry 0:08:09.960 --> 0:08:12.400 list of details they have to start ironing out before 0:08:12.440 --> 0:08:16.440 we get to September, and will certainly be you know, 0:08:16.520 --> 0:08:18.560 keeping an eye on on all of that. I'm sure 0:08:18.640 --> 0:08:20.600 more news will be coming out within the next few 0:08:20.680 --> 0:08:24.040 days as they continue these talks and continue to come 0:08:24.080 --> 0:08:26.679 to an agreement on certain things. But you know, of course, 0:08:26.760 --> 0:08:29.680 the health and safety of the players and their families 0:08:29.840 --> 0:08:32.800 is the most important thing, and so it's it's nice 0:08:32.840 --> 0:08:35.440 to see that we are getting to a place where 0:08:36.120 --> 0:08:39.040 the NFL and NFL p A can agree on training 0:08:39.040 --> 0:08:41.400 measures that the players feel are are safe for them 0:08:41.400 --> 0:08:46.199 to go back in and start this process. Um so, yeah, absolutely, 0:08:46.440 --> 0:08:49.800 um So one thing, like, I want to add one 0:08:49.800 --> 0:08:51.640 thing off what Will was saying. So basically, as our 0:08:51.720 --> 0:08:55.480 understanding is right now, with that ramp up period, that 0:08:55.600 --> 0:08:59.240 would be somewhere in the realm of like ten issue 0:08:59.280 --> 0:09:02.680 to thicken issue days of practice, and the players want 0:09:02.720 --> 0:09:04.160 it to be a little bit longer. They want to 0:09:04.679 --> 0:09:07.280 twenty one days of the ramping up periods. So I 0:09:07.320 --> 0:09:10.240 think it will probably compromise and will fall somewhere in there. 0:09:10.400 --> 0:09:12.720 But at this point, it seems like the first time 0:09:12.760 --> 0:09:16.000 that players will actually really be practicing would be mid August, 0:09:16.000 --> 0:09:18.720 so you're talking like August fifteen or seventeen. So that 0:09:18.880 --> 0:09:21.120 is a significant ramping up period, and they want that 0:09:21.200 --> 0:09:23.520 because of the experience of going through the two thousand 0:09:23.640 --> 0:09:26.839 and eleven lockout when players got back on the field 0:09:26.840 --> 0:09:30.480 after no offseason program, you know, no offseason practices and 0:09:30.520 --> 0:09:32.280 things like that, and there were a lot of a 0:09:32.320 --> 0:09:34.440 c L injuries, there were a lot of achilles injuries. 0:09:34.640 --> 0:09:36.520 And I was talking to Russell King a little bit 0:09:36.559 --> 0:09:38.520 about this because he's one of the few guys. I mean, 0:09:38.520 --> 0:09:40.560 he's going into his eleventh year. He was in the 0:09:40.640 --> 0:09:42.840 league when that happened, and he said that that's one 0:09:42.840 --> 0:09:44.960 of the lessons they learned that health and safety has 0:09:45.000 --> 0:09:47.360 to be paramount, and they need a ramping up period 0:09:47.480 --> 0:09:49.760 like this in order to really make sure that they're 0:09:49.760 --> 0:09:53.120 all going to be healthy. So that's that's another important 0:09:53.160 --> 0:09:55.760 part of where they stand. But I think if they're 0:09:55.800 --> 0:09:58.280 doing the good thing about being in the building and 0:09:58.280 --> 0:09:59.959 being able to strain the conditioning is that they can 0:10:00.000 --> 0:10:03.560 start to do walkthroughs. So that means that finally they're 0:10:03.559 --> 0:10:05.040 going to be able to take what they learned in 0:10:05.080 --> 0:10:07.520 that virtual off season program and put it on the 0:10:07.559 --> 0:10:10.920 field in some limited capacity, and I think that's going 0:10:10.960 --> 0:10:14.240 to be paramount for communication between all of the units 0:10:14.559 --> 0:10:19.240 and really just being able to translate what you learned 0:10:19.280 --> 0:10:22.760 in a book onto the grass. That's going to be 0:10:22.760 --> 0:10:25.600 something that's really significant, and the Panthers really are going 0:10:25.640 --> 0:10:27.559 to need to do that, especially because they have a 0:10:27.559 --> 0:10:31.000 new coaching staff. That's a that's a great point and 0:10:31.040 --> 0:10:33.240 a and a great projection of kind of where will be, 0:10:33.320 --> 0:10:35.000 Like you said, when we get to that mid August, 0:10:35.040 --> 0:10:38.560 because as Will said, it's all called training camp, but 0:10:38.600 --> 0:10:41.720 it feels nothing like a regular training camp. So the 0:10:42.200 --> 0:10:45.040 great point, great point, miles um in terms of what 0:10:45.080 --> 0:10:48.040 we can expect over the next few weeks, hopefully if 0:10:48.040 --> 0:10:51.280 everything pants out. UM, I want to talk about a 0:10:51.280 --> 0:10:55.079 new statu that you two are Is it fair to 0:10:55.120 --> 0:11:00.440 say excited about interested in that's come out from NFL 0:11:00.880 --> 0:11:05.319 next Gen Stats. Um. It's called expected yards per Carry 0:11:05.400 --> 0:11:08.680 and it is designed well, your panther stack guy, so 0:11:08.679 --> 0:11:10.720 so make sure I've got this right. It is designed 0:11:10.720 --> 0:11:15.040 to isolate a little bit more about a running backs performance, 0:11:15.200 --> 0:11:18.200 and not only their performance and how much better they 0:11:18.240 --> 0:11:20.440 are doing than they are expected to do. And it 0:11:20.480 --> 0:11:24.960 takes into accounts positions on the field, um, what the 0:11:24.960 --> 0:11:26.640 line looks like. It's trying to take in a bunch 0:11:26.640 --> 0:11:28.280 of factors to say, Okay, this is what a running 0:11:28.320 --> 0:11:31.400 back should do based on the formation, based on what's 0:11:31.400 --> 0:11:34.120 going on, um, and this is how much better they 0:11:34.160 --> 0:11:36.000 did than they were expected to do. How how did 0:11:36.000 --> 0:11:41.040 I do on that? Okay, passable. I'm going to make it. 0:11:41.280 --> 0:11:44.959 I'm only going to make it way more, way more complicated. 0:11:45.000 --> 0:11:47.160 So this is just gonna I'm gonna go fifteen seconds, 0:11:47.160 --> 0:11:51.079 So I don't like go down my rabbit hole essentially. 0:11:51.280 --> 0:11:56.120 Essentially the problem with this is that it's hard when 0:11:56.160 --> 0:11:58.720 all you're seeing is a number. So there's two numbers 0:11:58.760 --> 0:12:03.280 really involved. Why is again at the expected rushing average? 0:12:03.280 --> 0:12:06.000 So you take a team over the course of the season, 0:12:06.000 --> 0:12:08.640 and let's say the Panthers were expected to average four 0:12:08.679 --> 0:12:12.200 point four yards per carry. That number is based off 0:12:12.240 --> 0:12:14.680 of all these factors that go in you know, the 0:12:14.800 --> 0:12:18.200 um how good the offensive line was, how many times 0:12:18.200 --> 0:12:21.920 the defense put more men in the box versus less, 0:12:21.920 --> 0:12:24.839 how many times you know, what different formations, or how 0:12:24.840 --> 0:12:28.160 many running backs were in the backfield? Are extra blockers, uh, 0:12:28.240 --> 0:12:30.840 those sorts of things. But it's just a number, you know, 0:12:30.920 --> 0:12:33.560 there's it's kind of hard to to really know where 0:12:33.559 --> 0:12:36.920 that number comes from because that's the number you have, UM, 0:12:36.960 --> 0:12:38.920 and then the other part of it is then applying 0:12:38.960 --> 0:12:41.480 to the running back. So based on that number, you 0:12:41.520 --> 0:12:45.720 take how many yards did Christian McCaffrey actually get and 0:12:46.280 --> 0:12:50.120 the yards above expectation is you know the difference between 0:12:50.160 --> 0:12:52.559 those so UM, I think that the stat was that 0:12:52.600 --> 0:12:55.600 he was fourth in the NFL and yards above expectations, 0:12:55.640 --> 0:12:57.959 which means that you know, he got a lot of 0:12:58.040 --> 0:13:00.840 yards and he was really not expect to do based 0:13:00.840 --> 0:13:03.800 on uh, you know, all the different factors both on 0:13:03.880 --> 0:13:06.439 offense and what defenses are trying to do. I mean, 0:13:06.480 --> 0:13:09.640 I think it's good that it takes. It takes teams 0:13:09.640 --> 0:13:13.440 that are trying to establish the run um, you know, 0:13:13.480 --> 0:13:17.160 put more blockers in their defenses that maybe are are 0:13:17.240 --> 0:13:20.120 going against a really good passing offense and so they're 0:13:20.120 --> 0:13:22.240 not putting as many people in the box. So a 0:13:22.360 --> 0:13:25.199 runner that gets a lot of runs on third and seventeen, 0:13:25.520 --> 0:13:27.640 if he gets fifteen yards there, like, what does that 0:13:27.679 --> 0:13:29.880 really mean? You know, is that like a is that 0:13:29.960 --> 0:13:31.760 a good stat Is that not a good stat I 0:13:31.760 --> 0:13:34.360 think it tries to take more of that into account um, 0:13:34.480 --> 0:13:36.200 and you know more the more data points we have 0:13:36.360 --> 0:13:38.560 to to argue over, you know, the better for people 0:13:38.559 --> 0:13:42.280 like us rights. Absolutely, yeah, I like that. I like 0:13:42.400 --> 0:13:46.480 this that basically because I think it helps you understand 0:13:46.600 --> 0:13:49.520 why a running back is good or not good, and 0:13:49.600 --> 0:13:51.640 it puts into context like things that you think you 0:13:51.720 --> 0:13:56.480 might see on the field that you you that don't 0:13:56.520 --> 0:13:59.480 necessarily are that are not necessarily quantifiable, Like I think 0:13:59.559 --> 0:14:01.839 sometimes you know, runs after contact that can be a 0:14:01.880 --> 0:14:04.200 little bit misleading. But if you're talking about expecting yards 0:14:04.200 --> 0:14:06.480 per carry, And I'll just use this example because I 0:14:06.559 --> 0:14:08.800 covered the team last year. The Raiders had a guy 0:14:08.920 --> 0:14:11.600 in Josh Jacobs who some people thought should have been 0:14:11.760 --> 0:14:14.400 Rookie of the Year over Kyler Murray offense perpe the 0:14:14.480 --> 0:14:16.600 Year over Kyler Murray, which I mean, I can go 0:14:16.640 --> 0:14:19.160 back and forth on that. I see the arguments for both. 0:14:19.520 --> 0:14:23.480 But when you look at Josh Jacobs, his expected yards 0:14:23.520 --> 0:14:27.160 per carry was so much lower um than what his 0:14:27.280 --> 0:14:30.520 actual yards per carry were, right so there, and however 0:14:30.560 --> 0:14:34.120 they manage they measure it. So if you look at 0:14:34.160 --> 0:14:36.720 that article, and I think we posted it, both of 0:14:36.800 --> 0:14:39.240 us have posted it on toy will Um. If you 0:14:39.280 --> 0:14:41.480 look at that article, you can see exactly why he 0:14:41.600 --> 0:14:43.880 was that much more effective. And so we were watching 0:14:43.960 --> 0:14:47.400 him last year and it always seemed like Josh Jacobs 0:14:47.440 --> 0:14:50.240 was breaking a tackle and making things look better than 0:14:50.320 --> 0:14:52.640 they really should have looked, or falling to get that 0:14:52.760 --> 0:14:55.040 extra yard and you know, lowering a shoulder doing things 0:14:55.080 --> 0:14:57.600 like that. That's where that value comes in. And it 0:14:57.720 --> 0:15:00.520 also comes in through somebody like Christian McCaw free, which 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:02.680 is part of why I'm so excited to get to 0:15:02.720 --> 0:15:08.040 see him played this year. Yeah. Absolutely. Um, it's a 0:15:08.120 --> 0:15:10.640 it's a great list. I would highly recommend everyone reading 0:15:10.680 --> 0:15:14.240 about it. Um, it's as you said, Josh, so, Christian 0:15:14.320 --> 0:15:17.520 mcaffrey's fourth. Um, the only guys ahead of him are 0:15:17.600 --> 0:15:21.480 Josh Jacobs, as you mentioned too, was third, Miles Nick 0:15:21.560 --> 0:15:26.480 Chubb came in second, and then Derrick Henry was first. UM. 0:15:27.040 --> 0:15:28.960 I like it. It's like you said, Well, we're always 0:15:28.960 --> 0:15:30.720 trying to get more data points. We're always trying to 0:15:30.800 --> 0:15:33.680 isolate kind of the thing that we see, you know, 0:15:33.720 --> 0:15:36.000 we're trying to quantify the thing that we see. Um, 0:15:36.080 --> 0:15:37.960 when we're watching the game, like Wow, how did he 0:15:38.000 --> 0:15:39.720 do that? Wow he really fought for that. Wow, that 0:15:39.800 --> 0:15:43.400 was awesome kind of that, And this this stat kind 0:15:43.440 --> 0:15:46.320 of gives data points to that feeling of of what 0:15:46.400 --> 0:15:50.520 you see when you watch someone like cmc um. Also, 0:15:50.600 --> 0:15:52.400 did you guys read in that article. I just wanted 0:15:52.400 --> 0:15:55.320 to point this out where they we're talking about, of course, 0:15:55.320 --> 0:15:59.120 how explosive he is. He registered fifty runs over fifteen 0:15:59.120 --> 0:16:02.160 plus miles per hour, which is just insane. So I 0:16:02.200 --> 0:16:07.760 just wanted to point that out. Yeah, that mean is fast. Yeah, 0:16:08.720 --> 0:16:12.720 he does not get caught in the open fields. No, kidding. 0:16:12.760 --> 0:16:14.960 That reminds me of that that social distancing video that 0:16:14.960 --> 0:16:16.920 the Panthers put out a few a few months ago 0:16:17.000 --> 0:16:18.960 with CMC. I love that one. That's one of my 0:16:19.000 --> 0:16:21.640 all time favorites. All Right, we are gonna put football 0:16:21.640 --> 0:16:24.320 on the back burner for just a minute because we 0:16:24.400 --> 0:16:27.560 got to talk about the MLS brand launched. Charlotte awarded 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:30.320 the franchise, and this is a big moment because it's us. 0:16:31.040 --> 0:16:32.800 This is going to tie this ship it together. It's 0:16:32.800 --> 0:16:35.479 gonna be new Charlotte. We're gonna have one big party. 0:16:35.520 --> 0:16:41.800 Every game you edit a party. Our name is Charlotte 0:16:41.840 --> 0:16:45.280 Football Club, but we are bigger than one city. We 0:16:45.280 --> 0:16:48.880 were born expansion team. We don't believe in starting small. 0:16:49.360 --> 0:16:51.960 We only know how to go big. So Miles and 0:16:52.000 --> 0:16:55.480 I found out about it with everyone else earlier today 0:16:55.960 --> 0:16:59.400 at eleven. But Will, this is something that you and 0:16:59.760 --> 0:17:02.320 a lot of our co workers have been working on. 0:17:02.400 --> 0:17:04.439 Have put a lot of heart and soul into a 0:17:04.440 --> 0:17:07.440 lot of sweat and tears, I would imagine, And now 0:17:07.480 --> 0:17:10.520 we finally know that the MLS team you're in Charlotte 0:17:10.520 --> 0:17:13.800 will be the Charlotte Football Club. We've got the blue 0:17:13.840 --> 0:17:17.199 and black colors we've got the crest with the crown 0:17:17.280 --> 0:17:20.840 on it. I love that it says minted on the 0:17:20.880 --> 0:17:23.919 sides of the crest. I really I love everything about it. 0:17:23.960 --> 0:17:27.040 I can't wait to get my merch Um so well, 0:17:27.080 --> 0:17:29.160 I just want to say congratulations to you and all 0:17:29.160 --> 0:17:30.880 of our other co workers that have worked so hard 0:17:30.920 --> 0:17:34.080 on this. Thank you, thank you. Yeah. It was um, 0:17:34.119 --> 0:17:36.000 you know, it was definitely one of those things where 0:17:36.040 --> 0:17:37.919 you know, just like everything, you know, Covid kind of 0:17:37.920 --> 0:17:40.159 threw this off a little bit. Um. I think the 0:17:40.160 --> 0:17:41.720 initial idea was that this was going to go a 0:17:41.760 --> 0:17:44.320 little bit earlier in the spring, but um, because of 0:17:44.359 --> 0:17:47.040 all the things that change with COVID, and then obviously 0:17:47.200 --> 0:17:50.680 last Friday, UM MLS announcing that they were pushing back, 0:17:50.920 --> 0:17:54.119 uh the seasons. Um Or initially it was one that 0:17:54.119 --> 0:17:56.879 they were going to play first and now it's just 0:17:56.920 --> 0:17:59.479 so that MLS because you know, they're just now playing 0:17:59.520 --> 0:18:01.800 twenty team, you know, so they're they're already a little 0:18:01.800 --> 0:18:04.480 behind schedule, and you know what what COVID has done 0:18:04.520 --> 0:18:07.359 to kind of all these things. But it's it was 0:18:07.520 --> 0:18:09.359 it was really great to to kind of see this 0:18:09.400 --> 0:18:12.120 going today. It's hard, it's it's really nice to hear 0:18:12.240 --> 0:18:14.800 from you guys, because you know, when you're kind of 0:18:14.840 --> 0:18:17.200 in the middle of the forest and you know, sometimes 0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:19.440 some trees burned down right on top of you, which 0:18:19.560 --> 0:18:24.360 happened at eight today. Um. You know, it's just it's 0:18:24.359 --> 0:18:27.000 hard to really kind of to to see to see 0:18:27.000 --> 0:18:29.800 how everyone else can see it. Um. So that that's been. 0:18:29.920 --> 0:18:33.000 That's been nice to kind of hear and feel bad. Absolutely, 0:18:33.040 --> 0:18:35.000 And like I said, I found out with everyone else, Miles, 0:18:35.000 --> 0:18:39.359 I have a question for you. Did you try to slip? 0:18:39.480 --> 0:18:41.639 Did you try to ask anybody like, hey, can you 0:18:41.680 --> 0:18:43.400 give me a hint? Because I'll admit it, I did 0:18:43.520 --> 0:18:46.000 no one time, you guys, will you and everybody else 0:18:46.000 --> 0:18:49.040 who knew it locked it down? Um? And I tried 0:18:49.040 --> 0:18:50.600 to just like once or twice. I was like, so, 0:18:50.640 --> 0:18:53.280 what's the what's the deal, what's the latest? I didn't 0:18:53.280 --> 0:18:55.520 ask well, but I asked a couple of my other coworkers, 0:18:55.600 --> 0:18:58.879 and there was no there was no chance that I 0:18:58.920 --> 0:19:01.080 was going to even get a hint. Miles. Did you 0:19:01.080 --> 0:19:02.840 do that too or were you just excited to find 0:19:02.840 --> 0:19:05.560 out with everybody else? I did not. I was excited 0:19:05.600 --> 0:19:08.000 to find out with everybody else, Like you know, It's 0:19:08.160 --> 0:19:10.480 It's one of those weird things where if we were 0:19:10.520 --> 0:19:12.879 in the office, I probably would have had one of 0:19:12.920 --> 0:19:16.800 those side conversations. But since we're not. I I'm I'm 0:19:16.840 --> 0:19:20.800 an awkward enough human being anyway, Like trying to do 0:19:20.920 --> 0:19:23.400 that over virtual interaction just I don't think it would 0:19:23.440 --> 0:19:26.439 have gone well for me. You were in the office 0:19:26.440 --> 0:19:28.240 of Miles, I would have just had to like take 0:19:28.320 --> 0:19:31.439 every call like back in the bathroom, just because you 0:19:31.480 --> 0:19:34.040 could have just heard from across the room. It's like, oh, well, 0:19:34.160 --> 0:19:38.800 can you imagine to talk about soccer again? I just 0:19:38.880 --> 0:19:40.840 I mean, I didn't, you know, I just had someone 0:19:40.880 --> 0:19:43.760 would mention if I were working with someone else, they woulday, 0:19:43.760 --> 0:19:45.000 oh yeah, you know. The brand launched, I was like, 0:19:45.200 --> 0:19:47.520 how's that going? Like any hints? You know, come on, 0:19:47.760 --> 0:19:50.040 you sure you don't want to tell me? Really? I 0:19:50.040 --> 0:19:53.560 mean it was like for Knox I and I'm very impressed. Um, 0:19:53.600 --> 0:19:54.840 but it was great to see, you know, I was 0:19:54.880 --> 0:19:57.480 definitely the kid that went snooping for my Christmas presents, 0:19:57.480 --> 0:20:00.359