On this week’s episode of “Processing Blue,” Scott Fowler and Langston Wertz Jr. are joined by a special guest: Houston Chronicle Texans beat reporter Jonathan M. Alexander. The trio discuss the showdown between the Panthers and Texans, Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud, keys to the game and more.

By Drew Nantais / The Charlotte Observer

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All right guys we're back for another Episode of processing blue Scott F we Have a special guest uh who might be Familiar to fans of of Charot we do Langston we're thrilled to Have Jonathan Alexander with us today We've uh Jonathan used to work for the Charlotte Observer and covered the Panthers for two straight years and now He covers the Texans for the Houston Chronicles so you really couldn't have a More perfect person to analyze what We're going to see on Sunday let me tell You just a little bit about Jonathan He's a Charlotte native a 2013 graduate Of NC Central an HBC and Durham and he Has since covered not only the NFL but He covered Duke basketball he covered UNCC football and basketball he's Covered some news he is a really Accomplished journalist and Jonathan uh We're thrilled that we can have you here Today I'm glad to be back with you guys Um it's been a long time so uh this was The game I had circled on my calendar And I'm ready to put out that uh that Cam Newton jip that I'm back step back In B Amer shout out to Mal Creek High School Too J Mal Creek grad up in Northeast man We gotta start you out with uh Bryce Young and CJ St I mean Scott and I talk Every week on this show almost every Week on this show and one of the big

Topics is the number one pick versus Number one number two pick they always Going to be you know seen together um Obviously stra 1660 yards nine Touchdowns is off to a much better start Than Bryce and n67 and six just your Opinion of CJ stra so far yeah I think Uh CJ Stout is is the type of guy that You talk to him you talk to people Around him he's the type of guy that he Loves proving people wrong uh a lot of People have doubted him throughout his Life believe it or not and I'm probably Going to report this at some point this Week but you know CJ St and and Bryce Young have known each other since middle School they were they weren't they were Friends they weren't really Rivals but They were kind of rivalers and uh you Know Bryce young was consistently like The guy the number one guy um in that California LA area and CJ St was kind of An afterthought all the way up until his His his senior year of high school when He kind of proved uh the people that he Could compete with those guys so he's Always been kind of thought as the the Guy behind Bryce young and and DJ uh I Can't pronounce his last name at Clemson You c yeah you C all all in that same Class um and CJ was always number three To those guys uh and so he's always been A guy who wants to prove himself prove Other people uh wrong and prove himself

Right he's doing that and it's having a Big time year uh in Houston exceeded Expectations he's top 10 quarterback Right now the way he's playing so I'm Taking that you guys were surprised by How well he was able to come in Immediately and play this way oh Absolutely from the standpoint of the Texas didn't have many pieces um as far As like their offensive line uh they Were down to four third string offensive Lineman those first those first three Games um they only have one starter and They've since gotten those offensive Lin Back we weren't sure about their wide Receivers U they got some new guys and They're relying on a rookie tank Dell as Well but those guys have exceeded the Expectations but a lot of people credit CJ St uh for you know he came in the Beginning of the year he really wanted To make connection with those guys um He's been throwing the ball he's he's Super accurate with the football he uh You know he's a Precision passer and That's ideal for NFL he has he's got a Good arm too and it's great leader Became Captain first year and that was Earned that wasn't giving um and he's Eared to respect his teammates and they Love Him you I've seen Bryce and CJ St around Each other too in Kansas City when I Covered the draft this year and it was

Interesting to see I didn't realize Quite what you said that you know theyve Really known each other since middle School but they have an easy Relationship with each other it seems Like they have uh you can tell their Friends and they've known each other for A long time uh but there are some real Differences in the two uh starting just If you if you line them up next to each Other and and CJ Stroud's height and you Know his just sort of uh Power ful sort Of Look to Him and you talk a little bit More on the field specifically what he Has done well this season and what he Still needs to Improve yeah I would say what he's done Well is really been able to hit he's Been able to make every throw on the Field that you can think of whether it's The Deep pass intermediate he excels in Intermediate pass he hits people in Stride he anticipates throwers and he Hits them at a position where only the Receiver can make to throw and that's Ideally what you want from a from a Quarterback I was talking to Dan Orlowski and he compared him to Joe Burrow he has like joeb like ha seed and And uh you know not many quarterbacks Can say that and and his receivers his Receivers love him compared to what they Were uh dealing with last year and Texans led the league in in turnovers

Last year um this year you know see sh Has only one Interception um so that those are the Things that they're limiting the Stakes Um that they made last year and and that Has allowed them to to stay in games and And win some of these games out right They beat the the Steelers by 24 they Beat the Jaguars by 20 points those are Two playoff caliber Teams uh so he does he he throws an Accurate ball and he's getting better Each week um the thing that he needs to Improve on is holding on to the ball he He tries to extend the play and um That's what you should do but sometimes He takes unnecessary sacks and he did That early in the year he let said the League in sex uh allow sex taken uh Through the first three games since the Offensive line has gotten better he's Got the ball out a little bit quicker But he still has a tendency to hold on To the ball a little bit uh uh L Sometimes and demo Rian mentioned it Ryan BS and I I know Bri bur well he can Wck he can wreck games so um you know There's that opportunity there so CJ th St he definitely has to get the ball out J I have a two-part question um had the Panthers selected CJ St with the Texans Have jumped on Bryce and what was the Evaluation they had of Bryce then and What's the opinion opinion you're

Hearing now from the Houston people About BR yeah I I think um you know based on My reporting the I think BR young was The favorite uh among even the Texans uh Coming into that draft process um Deo Ryan had a knowledge of of Bryce young Uh being that he has a great connection With Alabama he went to Alabama he Thought highly of him um the Texas Really weren't even in on on CJ Str Until late in the process uh United SS Tell me that it was about two weeks Before the draft and they really started Doing more and more research on him when It became a reality that that they want To draft CJ Stout um and then they Eventually kind they they loved his Interview um his top 30 interview and What he said um but I really think it Was kind of like a they got really high On them the last two weeks I think if CJ Stout if Bryce young was there they Definitely would have taken Bryce young They knew they needed a quarterback and Consistently among the teams um maybe a Few teams may have had CZ stra but most Teams have Bryce young with a higher Upside just give it what his ability to Do it was always a concern about the Size but team seemed to be willing to Look past um that size and and go after Um Bryce young if they had that number One pick um I think right now they they

Say that they you know are glad they Have CJ Str not that Bryce young is is Not going to be good because I do think Um you know Bryce Shand does need some More pieces and I think he can Eventually be good but I think CJ straw Has that Swagger and he has that he had He he just has something about him that He can instill confidence in his Teammates and they like that and I think He's even exceeded their Expectations um because even when they Drafted him they were talking about how He has a lot to improve on it and either They talking about him glowingly so uh I Think he's even exceeded the Texans Expectations and I think they wouldn't Have the draft even any any differently Than than how it Went yeah I um it is some uh just Remarkable really how it worked out Isn't it Jonathan because the Texans Were horrible last year um they were 313 And one and had to win that last game And that knocked him out of the r pick Right and hands at the time were were Poed I suppose is that right oh oh they Were they were livid oh they were livid At Lovey Smith and uh because loveby Because they had a chance that like it Would they they scored on a a fluke Touchdown uh David SMS told me and I was The only one to interview David SMS that That that day he said I just do it with

Prayer like he said he prayed and just Threw it up and it kind of f the coach Defender barely missed it and it fell Into the hands of Jordan aens and Instead of one for one the tie of game They decided to go for two lovey put two Fingers up and they went for two and got The two by version in W game at the end And that dropped them down to the number Two pick and uh you at Tom was like Number two number number one and number Two is not gonna be that big of a Difference and fans were livid and they Like you can choose who you want to with The number one pick uh which is true uh But it turned out to work out in their Favor Perfect yeah we we have some players Even say like I'm sure glad loveby went For number two on That right that's one as if they had Stayed at one then they probably would Have ended up with Bryce young unless The Panthers had made the trade of Course with the with the Texans and now The Texans are three and three dord the Panthers can really only dream Of at the moment um you know beyond CJ Stra Jonathan what do you think some of The keys to this game Sunday at 1M yeah I think it's going to Specifically for for both uh teams I Think whoever can get the most pressure Off on the two quarterbacks and disrupt

Them um you know CJ St when he Gets and particularly like when stopping To run like the Texans have an issue With running football they they haven't Figured out their running game it was Their strong suit last year um but Damen Pierce average is below three-point Yards per carry and you know that's how We're g to cut it um you know they they Predicate their offense based on on an Effective running game um and it just Hasn't gone through which is remarkable How CJ Str has been able to overcome it But you could kind of see last week when They didn't have the running game going Um CZ St kind of struggled there in the Second half um so both teams have to Establish the running game um both teams Have to get pressure on the quarterback Um you know I know the Texas is going to Be watching out for Brian Burns ukari CIT in the game um they' protect it Pretty well but CJ stri like I mentioned Earlier has a tendency to hold on to the Ball a little bit longer and I think the Texans really want to get after Bryce Young you know they've struggled when They haven't got pressure on Quarterbacks um and Desmond Ritter which Was the biggest surprise that I've seen Carved the Texans up because they didn't Get any pressure on him at all um he had A career day against the Texans so I I Wouldn't be surprised if Bryce young had

A good day if the Texans can't get Pressure on him um and Def if they can't Stop run they've done a pretty good job Stopping to run uh they're probably Middle of the pack in the NFL right now They were worse in the NFL six worse in NFL history last year so they definitely Improved that um but they've got to get Pressure on the quarterback and they've Got to stop running I think that's for Both Teams you don't you just don't go from 313 and one to three and three and just A short span let p f saying right now Yeah so I think it was a multiple things Like I think you know the fact that he Played there had something to do it he He he entered with a little bit more Credibility than maybe some other people But that only takes you but so far I Think I was talking to Jonathan gard and Some other players and on defense and They were like we knew what he did in San Francisco they're the number one Defense in the league they were dominant There at San Francisco so uh when he Came here you know they were willing to Trust him and Trust his word and Trust Uh what he could do and and Deo Implemented a physical style of play um Here at the Texans they multiple people Mentioned that this was the toughest Training camp most physical training Camp that they have been a part of in

Their career and you could kind of see It because Texans led the league in Coming out of training camp with the Most people on Hing of Reserve they had Had 11 people on inine reserve and that Was I think two or three more than the Next team um but they've got some of Those guys back but you know he Implemented a physical style and that's Permeated uh throughout and he has a lot Of he has a lot of energy and I think They feed off of that you know you can See Deo on the sideline celebra jumping Up and down huge smil on his space um Even ni Caserio said it's Genuine and you it's contagious um you See a lot of guys happy one of the Things that he did and I mentioned this In the story I recently posted today is H one of the first tasks he did was he Decided to change up the locker um like It was tough for the journalist because We knew where guys were they were Usually under the Ley Smith era they Were based on their position groups but He's makes the match guys and and now You have guys offensive guys mland with Defensive guys and they have a great Much greater relationship I think Previously they lended itself to allow Offensive players to blame defensive Players when defense messed up and Offensive players to playing defense When defense messed messed up with rce

Versa um but I think they have a lot of Guys have a much closer relationship and They all mention how they're a closer Team and play for each other I mean it's Easier to play it's easier to play for Each other when you when you feel close To somebody um so I think a lot of small Details that Deo rias implemented along With adding CJ strad and Will Anderson Jr uh helped uh this team put it on the Right path and and it's the reason why They're three and three right Now I got a question okay so sorry go no I was yeah I'm sorry Langston but it is The parallels are interesting because of Course Frank Reich is a first year coach And also played for the team that he's Now coaching now not nearly as long as Deo did but Reich was the very first Panther starting quarterback in 1995 He's also changed some things around in The locker room every coach I've seen Them all and every Panthers coach and Has always changed something in the Locker room pingpong table has come and Then a ping pong table is gone they had A basketball goal in there briefly this Year uh that was used for horse games I Mean a little miniature basketball game And that's gone they used to have a Nerf Basketball thing that they had Tournaments that they would post up on The wall that Ryan khil ran and jam Newton was very into that's gone now but

The the thing that's very different is That the Houston has won three games and The Panthers haven't won any so uh a lot I do like what you're saying Jonathan About the mixing and matching players I Have not seen that much but I get it Because it's sort of like here's the Offensive neighborhood here's the Defensive neighborhood oh you guys Didn't do your part but mixing and Matching seems like a really cool move That uh that he's made in Houston go Ahead Langston I'm sorry oh I I just had A question for both of you guys I I want To hear from Scott why the Panthers Might and you may disagree but why the Panthers might win this game and then a Jing while the Texans might win this Game well vice versa if you guys think Your team's gonna Lose I picked against the Panthers six Weeks in a row and he have so I will I Will pick against them as I as I've said Until proven otherwise but I'll say this Uh there's certainly a chance a better Chance for Carolina Panther fans this Week than there are most weeks uh coming Off a buy they've got Austin Corbett Back I think uh that'll strengthen the Offensive line as Jonathan mentioned you Know Houston they their defense is okay I think but it's not I think the Panthers maybe chuba hover somebody like That is going to have to have a Breakout

Game if they were if they were to win They're probably going to need to rush For 150 yards or something and keep Bryce make the play action stuff work I Think given the Panthers sort of slip Shot defense right now I think the Panthers probably gonna need to score at Least 28 in this game to win but I think That's conceivable I think we could have Maybe Jonathan I don't know if you Disagree but I think we could have a Shootout in this one 30 to 27 or Something like that because I know the Texans can score but I think the Panthers might be able to put it Together and score some points Sunday What do you think John yeah I think it Could be a um a pretty high scoring game I I I think it really depends on whether The tech the Panthers can establish to Run I think that's the biggest thing uh You know um the the Texans are are Pretty good against the pass um for the Most part the Falcons game was the Exception uh which I was quite surprised About but you know the NFL this year has Been weird like teams have been you know Bad teams have been beating good teams Good teams been losing to bad teams you Know C the Cardinals beating the Cowboys Those weird Texans blowing out the Steelers and the Jaguars who were seem To be dominant right now is where yeah I Think the Texans probably win this one

Um something like 27 24 um but uh I I definitely think it'll Be close I don't think it'll be a Blowout I don't think I think the Texans Are are hitting their stride at the Right time I think getting uh tank Dell Back was is going to help him being out Last week um was definitely felt they Didn't really have many deep pass Threats but I think the fact that the Texans are are their healthiest uh will Probably be the healthiest they've been All year um is going to helped them out You know I've seen the the Panthers Playing well they've they've improved in How they got out to I read your story Scott how they got out to that quick Start against the Dolphins uh that would Be helpful against the Texans because Texans don't really have the ability They they can come back but I don't Think they can come back kind of like The Dolphins quite can um they just have A Next Level offense um so um depends on How fast these team starts whether they Can establish whether e either team can Established run to get out the Quarterback will determine who will be The winner but I I say 27 24 that's my Really pred that 14 nothing leader Miami Went by Went Away really really fast Tyreek kills doing flips for the camera In his hand it was just uh went away Pretty fast

Good he's just so amazing I saw him play In um in the preseason they did joint Practices and he was just dominating the Tex So his speeds are really just R by guys Even when you had that bracket in safety Back there I mean on Sunday night he Went right past the cornerback and the Safety in the corner isone there some Type of weird Endzone Dan so he's on his Side I don't know what he's doing but Yeah the phenomenal player um jonan can You just kind of tell Panther fans real Quick like just a couple of the stress Of Houston couple of the weaknesses of Houston things they can kind of look for As they watching the broadcast on Sunday What if they white at the city yeah I Think um the streps of course is their Passing game uh before last week before The by week um CJ St was fourth in the League in passing yards I think the fact That they have different weapons that They can get to helps him out yeah um You know it's not just Nico Collins who Is really good they have tinell they Have Dalton schul um Robert Woods who Didn't practice Monday but I don't think That's going to be too much of a concern I think they have a variety of guys that They can go to who aren't Superstars but They they can get open um so it it helps Um in that aspect um I think they're Also really good against past most times

Um Stephen Nelson is a good quarterback Um he's a veteran who I first saw him When I was covering the Panthers and They played the Eagles and he had two Interceptions um but he's been um their Top quarterback this year and and they Got jayen Petri and Jimmy Ward as Safeties of back there two veteran guys So uh against the pass they're really Good and with the pass they're really Good the weaknesses stopping to run Historically they've been really bad Team stopping to run and even though They've been better they still have a Tendencies to to break to allow a big Game so you know um that's where the Panthers got like chuba Hubbert or is Miles Sanders playing I don't know if Mil He's yeah he he's kind of banged up um Chuba had 88 yards last you know in Their last game without mil Sanders uh He wasn't did not play in that game at All but even so Chupa is averaging like 4.5 and Miles 3.1 mil Sanders's been Disappointing so far this season uh one Of the problems honestly with the Offense so who knows we do expect chuba A little bit more chuba Sunday yeah inting the tech has tend to Struggle more so against bigger um Running backs and I know chuba isn't so Much big um but um and and they struggle Against um offensive lines that that

Block really well um so maybe Austin Corbett coming back helps the Panthers a Lot um but yeah so though I would say Those are the the strengths and Weaknesses um you know they have a lot Of different weapons that they can go to Um and and they have big threat big play Threat ability Nico Collins can take one Deep and think Del well both of you guys are predicting A high scoring game but Scott also on Sunday uh the Panthers are going to put M Muhammad and Julius purpose in the Hall of Honor um I don't know if that's Going to have any emotional appeal to The players but I'm sure it'll get the Fans red up you talk about those two gs Yeah if if nothing else Panther fans Will be able to celebrate uh some greats Of the bygone era that is that's two of The big ones Julius Peppers and musen Mam were stars here for many years and Had some interesting career parallels as Well they both played here for a long Time were drafted High played for a long Time then left for several years and Then at the end came back again you know So they they both kind of did a full Circle uh and they both played in Super Bowls here they were on the 2003 Super Bowl team uh Julius Peppers was probably The single best athlete the Panthers Have ever employed even ahead of Cam Newton and Steve Smith I mean if you

Were going to have that old remember That old Superstars competition yeah mul Stuff I mean peppers I was not old Enough to remember that but I remember That yeah that it was was low I'm dating Myself there but peppers would have been Great in that uh he you know I mean the Guy could do everything good gracious he Played division one basketball as well Played in a final four as well I mean That's that's nutty and then musan of Course was just such a stud I mean he Wasn't the he wasn't as fast as Steve Smith but so physical uh made it is Still what stands as the longest catch In Super Bowl history that 85 y from Delom back in 2003 and uh two fantastic Uh players so I think it will have a Little resonance uh with the you know For the team I mean these are two of the Greats of the of the Panthers history And you'd want to not lay an egg in Front of them as well as in front of a Fan base that's disappointed and wants Something good to happen so that'll be a Neat St you know plan your concessions Accordingly Panther fans if you're in The stadium this won't be shown on TV Much but you'll you want to be there for They'll probably give a brief speech uh And you know during the time of halftime So so stick stick around and half yeah The PS have a new offensive coordinator This week too so we'll see if that makes

A difference Bryce young going against To Texas but Jonathan thanks for joining Us man it was good seeing you um Good Luck Houston follow you at John M Alexander on Twitter Houston Chronicle.com uh on the on the worldwide Web and make sure you follow scottf Scottf follow on Twitter and if you Watch this show on YouTube make sure you Like share and subscribe follow us on Twitter and YouTube and join us next Week on process Hebra Oh

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