The Carolina Panthers plan to play their starters against the Detroit Lions on Friday. Processing Blue breaks down why that’s a smart decision.

By Drew Nantais and Makayla Holder / The Charlotte Observer

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Foreign For another episode of processing blue Uh we got my man Mike K I love the Adidas I'm a three stripes guy myself uh Even though I have an Under Armor today Um where are you Mike though that's That's the question I think if I tell you I'd have to kill You It looks like we like deep undercover Somewhere I'm in I'm in the bowels of Bank of America Stadium which You know if you were gonna make a joke You could say the Panthers were the last Time they were playing on that field so Uh You know uh coming back from Newark Watch them play the Giants we were The major media Outlet there Um And uh you know hopefully hopefully they Have a great preseason finale just a Couple of feet from where I am right now Absolutely absolutely well a little bit Of shocking news uh my grandma McCall Was a starting nose tackle all Pre-season uh started the first game and Something happened with him this week You want to tell the fans yeah sure he Was kind of shockingly released on Monday morning uh Frank Wright Attributed it to an overall fit within The building the the scheme pretty much Everything

Um which was curious because for three Weeks they talked about how he was the Prototypical nose tackle he is a Prototypical nose tackle by the way and Then they talked about or Frank talked About his fit Within Like the group where there's been some Young guys ascending but what's funny About that is McCall has less playing Experience than LeBron Ray or rayquon Williams the two guys that presumably Are going to take his spot at nose Tackle now Frank Reich said that there's More to this scheme than just the Straight 3-4 that is true they're going To play a lot of even fronts and so Perhaps Marquon McCall didn't have the Versatility that they wanted Um you know maybe there was a behind the Scenes thing I don't want to speculate But it does kind of seem weird to have This guy be propped up as a starter for All of your training camp the first Preseason game which he did struggle in By the way if you watch the team he did Not play particularly well against the Jets okay and he basically gets benched I had a flub on in the press conference Where I said to Frank you know Marco McCall was starting and now I didn't Even see him on the field I guess I Missed him while I was taking my notes And he corrected me and said he did play Them

Who knows I mean I just said I didn't Even notice him So yeah they cut him to make room for Troy Hill who I know we'll talk about Later in in the show but yeah when you Watch that Giants game rayquan Williams Was electric he had a huge sack he had Two QB hits he was kind of everywhere And before the game I said I thought he Would have a much bigger role uh had Heard some Rumblings turns out he played The whole first half and played very Very well Speaking of the Giants game Bryce young Didn't play a lot they did have a Touchdown Drive aided by a few penalties But he did finally get in the red zone To finish Um has he played I was a touchdown draft To keep the field goal was he has he Played enough I know he's going to play Friday but do you think he's played Enough and what do you want to see from Him on Friday He hasn't played enough I mean I I never Thought I'd be one of those guys who's Like play the starting quarterback in All three games but here we are and look He's thrown the ball 12 times yeah we Did seven for 56 yards he's like one Scoring Drive I mean I think you have to Give him some momentum I think the Offensive line needs to continue to Build its chemistry I mean it's been

Very clear that there are a lot of Moving Parts this Frank Reich likes to Say and sometimes in order to get those Moving parts to fall into order you have To exercise them right and so you know Matt Corral constantly talks about Needing reps well guess what breishan Needs reps too yeah and because he's Going to be playing quite a bit and so I Think it's the right decision to play on Friday I think he can have a really nice Outing against the Lions who are going To play somewhat similar of a scheme to What the Panthers have been practicing With and I think if you're looking at This from uh from the standpoint of give Him two series he's gonna receive two to Three series every game Um if he can get some extended play That'd be great but I mean if you look At the numbers you want to see a whole Quarter uh yeah I mean I think a quarter Would be logical I would give all four Quarterbacks a quarter Um because here's the thing you can say Look you want to protect him but you're Not protecting him by not allowing him To build chemistry with his team in live Reps and so I think this is the right Move Um he's taken hits very very well can he Is that sustainable well that's not what We want to see Mike we don't want 200 Pound 5-10 quarterback and taking hits

And you coming on telling me he's taking Hits that's a good thing that's not a Good thing no the good thing is that He's taking hits well and he's getting Back up the reality of the situation is He's gonna get hit quite a bit during The season this team was in my opinion Overrated because they ran the ball so Much they weren't pass blocking a ton And I think they've been exposed in that In that aspect you were also without Yours in my opinion the best offensive Player on the entire team last year Austin Corbett their Right Guard so They've got to figure this out they've Got to give Chandler Zavala another Rookie more time to develop It Right Guard he's played lifeguard basically His entire football career right and so I think from now until the end of the Preseason finale we have a lot of Questions and we probably won't get them All answered but we should get some if He plays a lot on Friday the other Question is Corbett going to be on the Pub list because you warned us that Could happen He worked on the field for the first Time like with just like General Trainers and did some a little bit more Of a Reva on Monday he looked good but I Just you know an ACL injury is something That you really need to rev up to and Build up to it would not Shock me if he

Started on the pub list but he is also a Special athlete and if the Panthers feel Like he can be back week two week three They won't put him on the public list And have him miss four games right Um okay this happened during the Giants Game this is going to come out almost be A week ago but the internet went nuts When icky aquanu missed his assignment And it just defender came around the Corner and sacked Bryce uh can you just Give us a little explanation on what Happened on that play Yeah so Um so it was a two-play sequence that Was really uh alarming so on the first Play uh Kayvon Thibodeau uh lined up to His left shoulder and it looked like Icky took inside leverage and came on Just blaze past him icky tried to to Kind of make up for the mistake but he Was too late got uh Bryce nailed by uh Thibodeau and a fellow 2000 era 2022 uh First round pick yeah Um and then on the next play I actually Think was more concerning Thibodaux beat Him straight up Uh and um got him whacked really really Hard Bryce was able to get the ball out But it was called back because of a of a Penalty by the office of line uh by Chandler Zavala so look a lot of people Were frustrated I think that it was a Very clear miscommunication that first

Play and Frank break alluded to as much Um What I liked is iki iguanu took full Responsibility for it said that it was Good that it was actually not a Technical blunder it's something that Can easily be fixed it was a mental Blunder what happened was they made a Line call and they had two line calls That sounded similar and a Quantum Thought he heard a different the Opposite And look that's going to happen in the Heat of the battle Frank Reich said it Only happens every couple years but it's A good perspective to have in the Preseason to know hey these calls need To be changed so there isn't further Mistakes or something catastrophic where Bryce young gets injured which we all Concerned about right right so I I think You know If you're looking for a silver lining They got it out of the way here Bryce Got up and you know hopefully they can Benefit from knowing that that was a Kind of a blunder yeah and well you Talked earlier about the Run games it Depends were running the ball last year They have not run it really effectively In the preseason is that a concern is This offensive line isn't able to push Is Corbett that big a deal in that What a Segway that was you brought up I

Like a Good callback joke but I really Like a Good callback segue anyway Um no I think I think I think they really should run The ball more I think they they Struggled to run the ball against the Giants no it was evident chuba Hubbard Injured his ankle Um miles Sanders and chuba Hubbard have Returned to practice despite both being Injured miles Sanders has been dealing With the groin injury we haven't been Able to see him during the preseason but He took team reps on Monday Um I don't know if he'll play on Friday But I'd like to see him out there he's a Guy who is very Dynamic he can he can Beach outside he can beat you inside uh Uh he's shown very good hands during Training camp which has been a concern Of his since he was in Philadelphia Um he kind of looks like rookie year Miles Sanders who I covered yeah he First came to league in 2019. yeah that Is encouraging and I think if you're if You're hoping that like this groin Injury is just basically a precautionary Measure Um You know and he plays Friday for a Series or two and looks good awesome I Thought I think he's had a pretty decent Training camp I think the running game Would benefit from him being in there

Because he is so Dynamic and offensive Lineman typically wants to run block you Talk to high school offensive alignment All the time I'm sure they tell you that Is is kind of the lifeblood of the Offensive line Nikki kuanu is a great Run blocker Bradley Bozeman's a great Run blocker Um Brady Christensen could be better but He's fit in pretty well and he did Pretty well last year I think Taylor Moten also run blocks relatively well And Chandler zaval if you watch his film Is a pretty good run so I think if they Can build chemistry and they can build Up some momentum in the running game I Think it'll help Bryce young out Significantly I think you know they're Going to be watching the waiver wire for Running back hell especially if they Want to keep four I think they really Like Raheem Blackshear a lot had a Strong training camp Um I'm sorry people played well last year In spots too right yeah and Miles Sanders is obviously the starter but I Think they do need somebody who can kind Of be that bigger back that short Yardage guy and if that's the case they Will be watching the waiver wire yeah Pull back the curtain for me a little Bit I know we've seen vanilla vanilla Vanilla from the Panthers all preseason

Do you think this team is going to be Dramatically better than what we've seen When they're running everything they're Going to run they're going to turn Bryce Loose with more of the Playbook and not Just tell them you know throw safe stuff I don't know about dramatically better But I think definitely better I think You know when DJ Turks playing Five Snaps and Adam thielen's playing Seven Snaps you're not really going to be very Dynamic right I do think you will see a Lot of deep patterns it seems like he's Been Bryce young has been coached to Just take the short to intermediate Route we haven't seen him really push The ball down the field since the Off-season program and so I'm like Waiting for that to happen Um and maybe that's something they want To hold on to maybe they want to hold Down the route tree and not like reveal Too much but I think Bryce Young's a guy Who would benefit from you know taking Regular snaps building up momentum you Know there's momentum Runners but There's also momentum passers and I Think he is a guy who you know has not Been able to show off the special so to Speak during this preseason and I think You know I think there's a danger in Like subverting the talent in the Preseason especially when these are live Reps but I also think there's an

Advantage because you don't really know What he can do in this system yet and so Maybe it's that they're preparing for Week one they do have some early Divisional matchups and maybe they Unleash them against the Falcons in week One Um I do think they will be much more Vertical I do think they will take Advantage of mismatches I do think You'll see more of a rotation of wide Receiver when Terrace Marshall's back in The lineup Um I think Jonathan Mingo is a guy who needs to be More consistent but the town is clearly There I think Adam thielen is going to Be the go-to target same with Hayden Hurst and I think DJ sharks really the One guy who's shown you what he is and He can burn you downfield he can line up At that next spot Yeah he's a guy that I I think our Partner Alex zutlow is extremely excited About and I I say think but I know Because I hear about it all the time so I think if they get the running game Going then they can work some more the The play action fake game which then Leads to big plays down the field I'm excited about Terence Marshall now He's out with the back injury so yeah I Mean look he was having a great Camp It's a shame but I think he'll be okay

Okay Um I love how you talk about releasing The special of Bryce young uh does it Say the Panthers are happy really happy With his practice reps that we've not Seen more in the preseason does that Mean truth to that I think that's a Really astute point I think you know he Has had a really good training camp and We've talked about it several times he Does not make the same mistake twice Very often Um if you look at the six picks he threw In team drills throughout trading I mean Really only through two that were very Similar and that seemed like a Miscommunication between him and the Wide receiver so I think there's a lot Of promise there I think they really Like where he's at mentally Um you know I was listening to uh pro Football talks like podcasts and Chris Sims is like I go to the gym and people Are like that's really the first overall Pick what's special about him you know I Know he can line up the offense and he Can read play and read the defense but Come on well that is special for a Rookie there are a lot of rookies that Fail to do that very well right Um and I think what's special about Bryce is he's put together mentally We've talked about this he's built where It counts history is littered with six

Foot four quarterbacks who have been Terrible frankly I mean Chris Sims not a Very good quarterback himself Um so I I just think when you're looking At this entire puzzle I think Bryce has Really been the standout of the summer In a lot of ways because of how Effortless it's been for him I'm not Saying he's putting up like shockingly Great throws right but everything seems Like it's easy for him or like it's not Like a big deal and I think having Covered the league as long as I have Having been around football as long as You have you know how rare that is yeah Just be as casual he's casual right like He's I mean he's serious about the sport But like everything about his body Language is casual it's almost Effortless the game's not running really Fast for him right he sees everything And what I I loved about him on film is That he always keeps his eyes down field It doesn't matter if 10 guys who are 300 Pounds are barreling in on him he will I Mean that's impossible unless you've got Corners but like you get what I'm saying Like I'm the purchaser he is a guy who When the The like Bombs are going off all around him he Can keep his cool and slow it down and Say look this is the Target and I think That that's really special for a rookie

Absolutely Um one of the areas that Panther fans Are always concerned about defensive Back we saw Dante Jackson go down to the Ankle injury but the passenger bringing Some help this week tell us what Happened yeah they brought in Troy Hill He's a veteran who's kind of a Journeyman he's he had two stints with The Rams where he separately worked with Ichiro evero the defense coordinator who Is his DB coach and John Cooley who is The cornerbacks coach his last hit with The Rams he's an older guy Um I feel like he's representing for the Folks in the 30s Um I believe he's 31. Um he's a guy who's got some versatility He can play outside he can play inside They really only had one nickel Corner That they were really using regularly And that was Jeremy chin and he's not a Natural nickel corner he is a big nickel He's third safety when they go to three Safety looks Hill is more of a natural guy he started His career as an outside corner as kind Of like a like the old school smaller Corner uh on on the boundary now he's More of a a slot guy I think that that's beneficial because You don't want to move around JC horn Too much because he's going to face more Major outside matchups than he is inside

Matchups right I think Dante Jackson you Know he suffered an ankle injury you Know that he is he's coming back from Achilles you don't want to push him too Hard right CJ Henderson's really not a nickel Corner he can play there but you know He's going to be your main backup at Nick or on the outside right which is Good that's a good problem to have right Because he is the starting even if he's A low end starting caliber player he's Still starting Uh and then so you have you can mix Around Hill who's got experience in the System and the scheme and with the Coaches uh who can rotate with uh Jeremy Chin there's also Stanley Thomas Oliver Who's got an injury but he's a guy that They really like on special teams it Would not Shock me if they kept 11 Defensive backs like right now I have Them keeping 27 defensive players and 23 Offensive players just because of the Injuries and situations that they've got Going on Um so I I think if you're looking at This from from a defensive standpoint They just want to have as much insurance As possible this this coaching staff Seems especially on the defensive side Seems to really Pine for veterans it's Not a developmental thing and I think From the standpoint of igrow evro who's

Going to be considered the top head Coaching candidate probably in the next Couple of years Developing is probably not a long-term Thing for him and so I think This defense kind of has to grow quickly And the way you do that is with Justin Houston with Troy Hill with you know Um guys of that that stature and that Experience I don't think this fan base Has much appetite for growing and Developing I think they want right now Just as much as the coaching staff does Um three things Mike you think Panther Fans should watch out for in this last Stress rehearsal coming up on Friday Yeah let's talk about it so obviously Raekwon Williams at nose tackle can he Follow up his great performance against The Giants can he prove that it was Worth letting go of Marcon McCall for Whatever reason yeah Um I think the running game is something That needs to be fixed uh Spencer Brown's a guy who I've had my eye on uh The previous staff loved him Um he kind of bounced on and off the Practice squad the first two years in The league he's a guy who's going to get A lot of opportunity in this game can he Be one of those guys that changes his His fortunes Frank Reich the other day Said the message of the McCall release Is that

You know one preseason game can change Everything and so I think Um Brown's got a really good opportunity Here uh if they keep a fourth running Back he is the closest to the the short Yardage running back style and prototype That you want there and then I would say Look wide receiver is like a really Interesting situation because as we Alluded to earlier Terrace Marshalls Injured uh bird is on IR Chef Smith Yeah shy Smith I apparently get a lot of Heat for saying like shy I mean the Panthers actively went out and tried to Replace it they signed before God I mean They signed and or drafted four guys who Could realistically play in the slot can Do other things they've got Raheem Blackshear returning basically Everything in return yeah are they going To keep a six wide receiver and the two Guys well the three guys that are really Up for that are Javon Williams who's Played pretty well on special teams he's Targeted pretty regularly in the pursuit Preseason games in the second half shy Smith the incumbent Um who has made some big plays he got a Shout out from Frank Wright the other Day and then there's Derek Derek Wright Who is coming off a knee injury he Missed the game against the Giants but Had a great game against the Jets in the Second half

He's fighting you know to uh To show that he deserves to be around All these guys are gonna have to have Really good special teams raps and They're also going to have to deliver Because here's the thing not only are They competing against each other for This Six Wide Receiver spot they're Competing against the waiver wire You know countless times we've seen the Initial 53 comes out try Smith's on There and then they claim a guy off Waivers who's six foot six and uh can be A red zone threat and so shy Smith hits The waiver wire himself and late so I I Think you've got to really plant your Flag if you're one of these three wide Receivers and earn this job yeah uh one Thing I want to see Friday Mike is a Little more verticality with the offense Can it be take Bryce maybe one oh maybe One attempt to take the top off of it Just I don't even want to show much but I think you know Panther fans and myself As reporter would love to see that my Favorite part of the show now I'm like You know what time it is it's time for Case takes let's talk about Matt Corral Okay because we already got to wide Receiver I was going to use wide Receiver for my case takes but I I gave It to you a little early Matt Corral is A guy who I think progressed last week Against the Giants you know there is the

Qb3 rule where you can keep an emergency Quarterback if he's on your 53-man Roster so that means if Bryce young goes Down and Andy Dalton goes down in the First half you can bring in Matt Corral In the second half and he can play a Game you don't have to deal with what The 49ers dealt with in the playoffs but The thing is there is precedent for Cutting third round quarterbacks when There's a new staff in place it happened With Kellen Mund last year the Vikings Drafted him in the third round he spent A year not doing anything then a new Staff came in he was cut at Final Cuts Got claimed by the Browns now he's now He's somewhat in trouble with the Browns Supposedly So there's there's precedent there Ian Book was a fourth round pick same thing Happened to him with the Saints Matt Corral's got to prove it and I Think he's starting to turn a corner I Mean he's a guy who I think is destined To be a long-term backup in the league Well that being Carolina he needs to Prove that he can be that guy well I Will say this Mike I have bad memories Of San Francisco in a championship game With Christian McCaffrey former Panther Playing quarterback because they had Injuries and we have a small quarterback An older back up just saying uh you know If I'm Coach Wright just saying

Yeah you got to make sure you have all Three in place and you can't there's no Scholarship anymore He's got to prove himself I I Appreciated his attitude and his Accountability when he struggled I Appreciate it his transparency when he Said look hey honestly last week was Kind of crazy you know he hadn't played In like 357 days so It'll be interesting to see what he can Do against the Lions absolutely Absolutely well we've come to the end of Processing blue another episode hope you Guys enjoyed it make sure you check us Out on it where you download your Podcast if you're on YouTube like share And subscribe and we'll be back next Week as we get closer and closer Mike to The regular season boss

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