December 30, 2025 • 50 mins
Willie P & Fitty, who are filling in for Mac & Bone, start the show talking about the Hornets' loss last night to the Bucks, they turn their attention to the Panthers, who are resetting after the Seahawks loss ahead of Saturday's showdown, and they address the Clemson staff changes and set the scene for the CFP quarterfinals.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
Allow me to reinroduce myself.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
My name is I'm will Pelagic. This is Josh Fitty
Marlow trying to start out on the right foot today.
Good morning and welcome. This is the Mac and Bone
Show Sands Mac and Sans Bone on Sports Radio ninety
(00:30):
two seven WFNZ. Willie p in for the boys alongside
Josh Fitty Marlow. We are locked in a room for
four hours. This is something that for whatever reason, every
one of our coworkers has wanted to hear this since
it was announced, because it feels like one might only
walk out alive. But at the same point in time,
(00:50):
they forget that we do have a very long standing
friendship on and off the air, and that when we
do come in on the air, we make some pretty
dawn good radio.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
So we will put.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Whatever bitter happenings that may have happened in the very
recent past or even the far begone past aside well
right to be able to do some good radio and
be together on this penultimate day of twenty twenty five.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Good morning, Josh Fitty Marlowe, how are you, my friend?
Speaker 3 (01:21):
Good morning Willie. I can say that once the holiday
schedule was announced, I.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
Was excited, geeked as it were. You know, I.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Always want to know how many how many Willy days
do I get?
Speaker 1 (01:33):
How many days do I get to kick it old school?
Speaker 3 (01:35):
We spent about six weeks together MAC after Nick Wilson
left and they were trying to figure out the midday lineup,
and it's still some of the most fun I've had
at the station to this day.
Speaker 2 (01:46):
Let's be real, the powers that be are trying to
keep the Willy from you.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
Yes, and there's a good reason why, because we do bicker,
we do argue.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
But you say, I would say it's not bickering. I say,
we have constructive arguments that sometimes can be combustible, and.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
Sometimes it's just because I'm an annoying pain in the butt. Well, yes,
and I can't help myself. And that's probably gonna happen
at some point today. But I'm no excited to do
the show because we actually for it to be the
time of the year that it is a lot on
the menu. There's a lot to talk about with the
Carolina Panthers. The Hornets drop a game last night, but
(02:26):
you could see something with a lot of guys on
the court. Acc basketball gets underway.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
This week.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
The CFP, which I know you love, is about to
get started with your with your wife's Hoosiers playing in
the Rose Bowls favors against Alabama, which still seems weird.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Talking about very much.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
So.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
So that's the beauty is.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
That we're getting to do radio during the time of
the year where it could be hard in some regions
of the world, but it's not hard here.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Baby.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
It's incredibly refreshing to see that. Normally, when we have
this time of year, we are talking about a god
awful Week eighteen game that we don't want to see happen,
a game of no consequence, a game of okay, how
do we get to ourselves the draft picks selection we
want or the draft slot that we want. I'm glad
(03:15):
that that's not part of it this year. And again
I heard you guys talking yesterday about how I might
have reacted on Sunday. I do feel like I owe
it to people to react to the game in front
of me, not necessarily devoid of the perspective. But again,
there will be time for perspective throughout the week, and
(03:37):
you guys on the Monday Show have the benefit of
number one, a night of sleep and Number two, the
ability to kind of step away from the moment and say, Okay,
you know, we saw the car crash that was Sunday,
but we can at least say, hey, you know what,
it's all still in front of us. I was not
absent that feeling on Sunday, and I think I even
got by the end of the show to the point
(03:59):
where I'd say, hey, you know what, Yes, this sucked. Yes,
it felt like another opportunity that the vision was handed
to us.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
We dissed it up.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
But it does at least come back to the fact
that I want to say all is forgiven with a
win on Sunday, but a lot of it is forgotten
with a win on Sunday against Tampa Bay.
Speaker 1 (04:18):
Well it's on Saturday, I should say. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:20):
I think, like, look what you're doing. It's the most
difficult thing to do. You're reacting in real time to
a sport where fans are the most maniacal because we
only get seventeen of these sure, so it's it's literally
it's literally as from a fans perspective, it's a life
for death scenario because we only get so many of them.
(04:42):
And look, there are sometimes when you're I'm hearing your
postgame when you're here. Maybe okay, I'm not where you
are in terms of reacting to where they are after
a loss, but also you are reacting to what the
text line is saying to you. Sure what the phone
line is is calling in to say to There's no
way to hide what happened at the bank on Sunday
(05:04):
was just an utter disappointment.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
I'm sure you were sitting there in the stands like
I was, and just kind of Hannah Hanah and everybody
when it came to everything we saw. We'll get into it,
of course throughout the program. We'll reset the Seahawks and
Panther game, put it to bed, and get you ready
for again a short week against Tampa Bay.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
Although when you think.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
About it, this game that felt like it has all
the consequence in the world might at the end of
the day not made a darn thing because of who
our friends to the southwest of us, the Atlanta Falcons,
our dearly beloved friends of I eighty five, once again
(05:46):
did us as solid second time. By the way they've
done us as solid they did one earlier by beating
Tampa Bay.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Head to head.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
They did one last night by almost blowing it. They
had a twenty one to zering lead that they blew.
Rams come back to tie it. They get a big
field goal from Zan Gonzalez. Gave them a couple of
what I thought were tailor made passing opportunities that Matthew
Stafford either missed the Cooper cup catch that wasn't I
(06:13):
don't know if you stayed up late enough to see
this fitty, but how number one he almost caught it
and number two ultimately did not catch it. Everybody in
America thought that, uh, I'm sorry. Pooka Nakua caught this
ball on the sideline on the far side. I thought,
I said, Cooper coming book and a Coup had caught
this ball on the far sideline. But the ball comes
(06:33):
out of his hands at the last second on the
one angle. How the referee saw that. I have no
idea number one in live action because it was one
of those things where if it had been called a
catch on the field, maybe the same thing happens.
Speaker 1 (06:48):
They say.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
The ruling on the field stands. There was a clearer
action and clear look that said that the ball and
the hand were aside from each other. But man, oh man,
the Rams came so close to trying that not back
up at twenty seven apiece, they could not, and Atlanta
pulls it out over the Rams twenty seven to twenty four,
ensuring that that Week eighteen Sunday game could potentially play
(07:13):
into a Panther divisional title if Carolina cannot win over
Tampa on Saturday, needing that Tampa needs both a victory
over Carolina and an Atlanta lost to the New Orleans
Saints in order to secure their spot in the NFC
South and in the playoffs, which is just the most
incredible way for this thing to finish if the Panthers
(07:33):
can't get it done by their own sort.
Speaker 3 (07:35):
Yeah, look, Carolina now has room for error. Hopefully it
doesn't come to that. Hopefully they take care of business
on Saturday. There are two things I think to talk
about with what happened last a Monday Night football. The
Rams now two and three of their last five games.
I think this was a team that I thought when
they came to Carolina as the number one seed a
(07:57):
few weeks ago, I thought that was the best team
in I thought that was the favorite to come out
of this conference, and maybe my pick to win to
win the Lombardi Trophy when it was all said and done.
I don't know if I have that same belief now
after I lost to the Panthers. They blew the double
digit lead to Seattle on Thursday Football, they lose last
(08:18):
night to an Atlanta team on My Night Football. You
look at from the Atlanta perspective, Willie, I mean, maybe
this is an overreaction, underreaction, no reaction. If Kirk Cousins
is playing quarterback from week one to week eighteen, is
that team maybe in the position that we're in, that
Tampa Bay's in, or they're playing for a division title.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Listen, I'm not going to sit here and tell you
that what they did in the moment wasn't sound. But
I think it's very easy to surmise that they might
have picked wrong when it comes to the quarterback position there.
And I know that Atlanta fans don't want to hear
it because I think they want Pennix to work. It's
(09:02):
just not working, and he's been very inconsistent. I think again,
there are times where he looks great and then there
are other times he looks not so great, and he's
been injury prone, and I think that's something that you know,
a lot of people will say sounds like the guy
that they had in Carolina too, But I think you
(09:23):
don't have those other situations in other parts. I think
we've seen more good Bryce than maybe we've seen more
good Penis and the other part of this too, to
add insult to injury, the Falcons do not control their
first round pick. The Rams do, and by the Falcons
beating the Rams, it means that that pick gets worse
(09:45):
by how much the Falcons move up in the draft slots.
So there's a lot to react to from that perspective. Again,
it does kind of feel like Gallows humor in a way,
because it would feel like the ultimate entrance to the postseason,
a three way tie at eight and nine, and you
win despite losing in the final week of the season,
(10:08):
when you had basically two opportunities in week seventeen and
eighteen to control your own destiny and can't do so.
I go kind of with the philosophy that John Ellis had.
He was waxing poetic about this on Twitter last night,
trying to say, look, man, it's been eight years. I
think you don't care how you get in. If you
get into the tournament, you're in the tournament. They don't
(10:29):
exactly put an asterix around your NFC South title to say, hey,
you backed in. But at the same point in time,
give given the choice, I want to be able to
do it with a win head to head over Tampa.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Well, if they do with the win, even though the
last ten weeks would suggest that they would lose in
the first round, at least you're going in with hope
that you can upset whoever is coming here from the
NFC West. Where if you literally lose back to back
games and you're back dooring your way into a playoff spot,
even though you're going to be at home, it's not
(11:00):
gonna be like it was in twenty thirteen, where that
team won four straight games to get into the playoffs
with the losing record and they had a battered Cardinals
team that came here. It's not gonna be the same scenario.
And I think the Panthers would tell you, hey, look,
they wouldn't apologize if they were to get beat by
Tampa Bay. But then the Falcons beat you know, New
Orleans on Sunday and they still get to go to
(11:21):
the dance. But I think this is a team that
wants to earn their way in because that's how you
get the respect that this young team, the young this
is not the young franchise, but this this core is
looking to earn one other thing. From last night, Willie,
and I hope that you're in the same agreement with me.
Why on God's green Earth did Atlanta leave that uniform look?
Speaker 1 (11:46):
No idea, it's not.
Speaker 3 (11:48):
Is it as good as the you know, some other
throwbacks the NFL.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
I don't know. I don't know if I go that far,
but that's a clean look, man.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
The red helmets are earth. It's a nice touch it too.
And I'll have this conversation with Wes Bryant yesterday. We're
kind of talking because you know, the Niners wore their
throwbacks on Sunday Night, the jerseys from the and the nineties,
So the.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Ninety four Niners throwbacks are very clean.
Speaker 3 (12:13):
They there's so much better than what we have today.
Like every time a team rebrands their uniform, it gets worse.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
Like it's why I'm glad like I was signed up.
A lot of Panther fans want a rebrand.
Speaker 3 (12:25):
I don't want to rebrand because it could it could
get worse from where it is.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
The only thing that I want. I want the black
helmet to be the primary for the Panthers in my opinion,
and I think the the only thing that I would
want is if if that didn't come the way, I
want to go back to the old Panther logo. Yeah,
oh my gosh, yes, the old like the old Panther logo.
Speaker 3 (12:51):
With the outline it just if I think it looks
better at midfield. I think the helmet decal looked better.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I mean, I mean the the the throat back end
zones the last two weeks of incredible.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
Yes, those need to be the permanent end zone.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
So where we walk when I walk into the stadium
to do an FC game, we walk behind where the
visiting locker room is, and there is a painted basically
that logo, the old Panther logo and the way the
end zones look where it says Carolina and Panthers. I
(13:25):
see that every time before I walk up to the
press box. It is it just makes me long for
seeing that on a more permanent basis, and I feel
like I've been somewhat brainwashed into that. And I'm with you.
I think those things need to be in a greater circulation.
There also needs to be more peril. I think that
has that stuff on it too as well. Not that
the people over there listen to me heavily, although I
(13:47):
do at least have one connection away from the person
who runs apparel for Panthers and FC, so maybe that
can get into the cerebellum here.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
You mentioned the Hornets.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
They lose last night to the Bucks one twenty three,
one thirteen, adding insult to injury, injury to insul, I
should say after the Hornets did not have Conk nipple
available to them last night. They lose Miles Bridges late
in the first quarter to an injury, and while they
hung with the Bucks a lot, it just came down
to the fact that they ran out of what I
would call able bodies. Third quarter offense was very, very
(14:18):
hard to come by. Even in the non Giannis minutes.
They had some trouble trying to really connect things. T
John Salam was having to play that four spot, and
I think he did alright rebounding of the basketball, but
didn't have as good of a shooting day as he's
had here recently. They had to kind of piece meal
their lineup. They had to go eleven deep. Colin Sexton
had a good day off the bench sixteen points. LaMelo
didn't shoot it the best from inside the two point line,
(14:42):
but I had a good three point shooting day twenty
six points. Bradon Miller had thirty one. A lot of
that coming though with the free throw line and inside
the two point line. Hornets could not get the victory
over Milwaukee. They fall to one and two had to
head against them this season. The record is now eleven
and twenty one ahead of a matchup on Wednesday with
the Fighting War Day else.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Yeah, I'll kind of echo what Eric Collins said as
the game was going to halftime. It felt like the
Hornets had missed an opportunity to really seize control of
the game. You're up, You're up twelve, I think with
a little over two two minutes to go, and they
clut it. They cut it to what a three point
game I think it was at the at the break.
(15:21):
And look, you know, Milwaukee has Giannis. Maybe you you
expect that, but it just really I think complicated things
and for them in the second half, and.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
Once Giannis wasn't as dominant last night as he had
been in recent games against the hornets.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
No, but he had he had an and one which
was his five hundredth and one of his career. Yeah,
where he picks the ball up and in two steps
he's at the front of the rim and he stopped
dribbling out the.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Three point line. He sees incredible.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
Like it's still just like, I know, we got Wimby now,
but I think it's still just crazy to watch what
Giannis does.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
But I think you.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Saw Wemby's just so lanky man Like, that's the thing
with Wemby. He's just so just he's just so slender,
like Giannis has got a body.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Yeah, but you know, you just you see what they
can be when they're healthy. But you lose bridges, you
don't have canipple last night.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
And Bobby Portis was annoying, Yeah, twenty five off the
bench and he's been annoying now.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
It feels like for a while there.
Speaker 2 (16:23):
I looked up his head to head against the hornets.
It's it's not pretty. It's not pretty from a horn
it's perspective.
Speaker 3 (16:30):
But I think, man, we kind of starting to credit
what this staff does when they send guys to Greensboro.
Sure t Jon Salon actually looks like a functioning basketball player.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
Mcneely's come back to and looked alright.
Speaker 3 (16:44):
So whatever they're doing there, I think is a sign
of things to come for the growth and development of
this Hornet's core because it's working. Whenever they send guys
there and they bring them back, they do come back
better basketball players, and that hasn't always been the case
with his friend.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Credit to DJ Baker's squad definitely and that whole staff.
Do you still claim Caleb Love by the way.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
I mean, he said he was a tar heel forever.
Why would I quit claiming him?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
I just wanted to know, because he got the better
at Cooper Flag last night twenty four point six threes
in the late basketball won twenty five one T two
Blazers over the Mavericks. Also, Nikola Jokic hurt last night
in Denver's lost to Miami. A terrible tragedy again in
the NASCAR world, Denny Hamlin's father dies after a house fire.
His mother hospitalized uh in a fire in Gaston County
(17:35):
home near Stanley. Basically, they were found outside the home
his mother and father. His father, if you remember, had
also been kind of dealing with a serious health issue,
but basically two three weeks of really just terrible things
involving people, involving NASCAR. So our heart's out to the
Hamlin family definitely in terms of that tragedy. Also Clemson
(17:55):
in the news yesterday, they make they make the the
acts of Riley and Mickey Kahn. I think the con
one more of a of a firing for show as
opposed to something that actually is going to give you
more substance. Mickey was more of it, what was very
much a dabbo guy. The Garrett Rilly thing, I think
is the more punitive thing. We'll get to do it
a little bit later on as we go throughout our
(18:17):
opening hour and our four hours together. Pandaled text Lin's
open seven, four, five, seven, nine sixty ten, will he
pee and Fitty with you and for back and Bone,
we'll come back. How do you reconcile the Panther's troubling
trends with the optimism knowing that they still can win
the division outright by their own sword, by the falcon sword.
Coming up next, Sports Radio ninety two seven, WFNZ.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Sports Radio ninety two seven wfn C.
Speaker 2 (19:17):
William Fiddy in for Mac and Bone Hope you're doing
yourself a solid by listening to us for all four hours,
but if you don't do so, you can catch up
as always via the Mac and Bone podcast, available wherever
you get your podcasts. Today we'll talk Greg Almand's going
to join us. Third hour of the program from Fox
Sports covers the NFC South. He was a Bucks beat
(19:40):
reporter but now covers the entire South or Fox Sports
still tip of Base, so we'll get some thoughts about
the Buccaneers since we last saw them, and also just
his thoughts over all on the division and the fact
that it has come down to this one game or
one doomsday scenario thanks to what the Falcons did last
night with their then football victory. Again a Falcon went
(20:02):
over the Saints, makes Saturday's game immateial not the Panthers
get still with their first opportunity win the South via
their own Merits big news yesterday from what Dave Canalis
had to say again, we'll do a full Dave Canalis
rehash segment coming up at seven o'clock about thirty five
(20:22):
minutes from now. But the big news from yesterday we
found out JT Sanders again surgery done for the year.
You know that was kind of something we found out
also after the game on Sunday, So nothing really that
is earth shattering. Still feels like maybe a little too
optimistic to think that Robert Hunt is back this week
too as well. Even though he is on the field
(20:43):
for Carolina, it does feel like if anything is going
to happen with him.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
It would be not until the postseason.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
Having the Saturday game helps Carolina from that perspective because
it does give them a full week of prep before
the playoff game. But you kind of take your lump
this week having to play on the show week, and
it kind of brings me to the point that I
wanted to make, and we'll do this a couple of
times today, because while there were a lot of people
I talked to on Sunday that were very much in
(21:11):
the moment ticked off, there were a lot of people
I talked to that had the measured approach and the
perspective of knowing that, hey, while this game in Week
seventeen was very much house money, still does not take
away the fact that you still have everything in front
of you in Week eighteen against a very reeling opponent.
I think I think part of where the Panther fan
(21:32):
confidence comes in is the notion that number one, you've
already beaten this team not too long ago, and number two,
they have been reeling seven of.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Eight I think now in a lost column for them.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
So Tampa, and not just that, it seems like they're
you know, from the reports that are coming out of there,
feels like this is mutiny in the locker room. They
don't like the head coach, they don't like the environment.
It is bad juju the fan base once everybody gone.
And so part of me is looking at this and saying,
you're approaching a wounded animal. Problem is we've given him hope,
(22:08):
and that's the part of it that kind of has
me still somewhat in my feelings about what we saw
on Sunday.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
And their quarterback, you know, is gonna lay it all
on the line, because that's who Baker Mayfield is. That's
what Baker Mayfield does. And if there's a guy that could,
you know, rise above what's what's been happening in the
last two months, it's Baker. Because this whole career has
been been about overcoming adversity. With that being said, with
(22:36):
what's being said, you know, with what Brookie Irving is
tweeting about the head coach and that sweet is still up.
He is not deleted that Sweet. I believe as of
this morning, you're looking at a locker room that I
feel like has quit on their head coach. And that
was most evident by how they lost to Miami on Sunday.
And I think that was, like the kicker, It wasn't
that Carolina got beat by Seattle. It was the fact
(22:59):
that you could you could have clinched the division on
Sunday and had a chance to really rest get healthy
for a playoff game. I don't even know if losing
the game is losing the game in the same week
that Tampa.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
Lost is why I'm mad. That's how it looked.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
It's it's the fact that they looked like in one
particular phase they laid an egg on a day where
the defense gave you everything. They gave you everything they could.
The fan base was incredible. I mean, you and I
were both in the stands on Sunday. It was as
loud there as I had heard.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
Any game there.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
And I know I wasn't here during the playoff years,
but man, oh man, it was.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
It was loud.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
It was lit it for the first time in a
very very long time, absent that Detroit game in twenty two,
which I was also a fan of the stands for
and still trying to get feeling back in my toes
and my fingers from that. That was as loud as
I had heard that building for a Panther game. Yeah,
and so that thing that was part of it.
Speaker 3 (23:59):
I think what in all so did was it probably
dampened the spirit and belief that if this team does
get in, they could make some sort of a run.
I do think it's harder to envision that being the
case now because you know one of these NFC West
teams are coming here. Sure now, if you get LA
because you beat LA at home, maybe you have that
same feeling.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
And LA did not look good yesterday either. They did not.
Speaker 3 (24:21):
But you know, Seattle might be top to bottom of
the best team in football when they played the way
they played on Sunday, and then the Niners are you know,
maybe they're right there in the same breath of Seattle.
We're gonna find out when those two teams meet on
Saturday nights. So it's just when it goes bad, it
goes bad. Like Stroppy said, it yesterday. We haven't had
(24:45):
a fun loss all year, Like it's either been blowout,
which was what was the beginning of the year, Jacksonville.
You were down twenty six to Arizona, New England. Close
losses to teams you shouldn't lose too, like New Orleans,
and when that happened, they're not they're not shootout losses.
They're not games that you're losing thirty five, thirty one,
(25:06):
twenty eight, twenty seven, you're losing seventeen to seven.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
Well, that's the thing, is we The weird thing about
last year is you had those moments. You had those games,
You had the Kansas City game, and those games were
more defined by brain lock moments or things like the
Xavierly get you know, drop, or Cuba's fumble.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
Or Mahomes making a play.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
Exactly like things that again in the moment you're frustrated by,
but you can live with them because you got there
basically via other means, and and you played well enough
outside of those moments to win the football game. And again,
we could we could debate which one hurts worse and
which one feels better. The fact of the matter remains
(25:53):
is that they're in this position. Yep, I'm looking at
the playoff picture. I don't think and I might be
wrong on this, I don't think we can see the Rams.
I think we can only see San Francisco or Seattle.
And that's based on if Seattle's got to beat there's
(26:13):
gonna be is it to beat Seattle outright in order
to win the division? I think because I think the Rams,
Rams and Niners. If it ends up being Rams versus Niners,
I think the Niners have the tiebreaker against the Rams.
So as much as I'd want to see La, like
you said, I think after last night, last night knocked
them out of an opportunity for us to see them.
So it's either gonna be Seattle or San Francisco in
(26:35):
the playoffs if the Panthers make it that far, right,
So uh, the NFL dot Com playoff probability as the Panthers'
seventy seventy and I don't know if that's them factoring
in the Falcon game now too. Again, I'm not gonna
sit here and discount what New Orleans has done lately either,
(26:57):
because as much as it does feel nice to have
that last game cushion, the Orleans is playing rather hot
right now. Four wins in a row, including two over.
Speaker 3 (27:07):
Us SO, and Shugs emerged as a legitimate candidate. I
don't think he's gonna get it, but he's gonna get
some Rookie of the Year.
Speaker 1 (27:17):
Voting.
Speaker 3 (27:17):
So annoying, but because the way I mean he someday
he was, I mean he was clinical and I was
in twenty two of twenty six for over three hundred
yards a couple scores. So I think, like, you know,
you said a few weeks ago, and this is what
it led to one of your disagreements, and this was
the rare time you were disagreeing with Mac and not me,
(27:40):
that you would be disappointed if the Panthers didn't make
the postseason. And that was when they were at I
think seven and seven and six, I think at the.
Speaker 1 (27:50):
Time, trying to remember what week it was, and that.
Speaker 3 (27:53):
Led to, you know, a back and forth to where
you actually confronted Mac and got very very close to
him in person here in the studio, and and now
now that I would still be like disappointed.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
I think it was after the Monday Night game. Maybe
was that after the Monday Night game or oh no,
it was after the RAM win MS it was because
of the bye week.
Speaker 1 (28:17):
It was the bye week. That's right, You're right. I
would still be disappointed.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
But even if they don't get this thing done, whether
it's because they they don't went on Saturday or Atlanta
doesn't win on Sunday, they still took the step we
asked them to take all off season long, and because
we never thought they would be in this position when
Tampa was five and one.
Speaker 1 (28:40):
Because when Tampa was five and one, felt like they
were running away with it and Baker.
Speaker 3 (28:43):
Mayfield was going throw for throw with Sam Darnold out
there in Seattle, we were talking about as Tampa Bay
the best team in the conference. Like that was a
discussion point around the NFL. And then we've seen them
backslide back to where they are now, but they they're
still then progress. They've still taken that step.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
Listen. But it's like Jake Delum told Mac.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Can't you can't preach next year in the NFL, No,
because next year may not happen. Now, I think it's
your opportunity with the opportunities there, and this team still
has an opportunity.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
That That's kind of where I'm at, Like I can
be happy they took a positive step in the right direction.
Eight wins is nothing to sneeze at given how much
bad football we've seen. I have not lost the forest
for the trees there number one, period stop. But is
(29:38):
this the best opportunity they're going to have to take
that jump to the next level? Because you had multiple
opportunities to have the division handed to you New Orleans
in week fifteen, Seattle, this past weekend, this upcoming opportunity.
If if you do not cash in on three opportunities
(30:00):
to win a standalone football game, basically buy your own sword,
controlling your own destiny, that has me with severe questions.
And I'm not saying that anything punitive has to happen.
There are people who you were on Sunday were trying
to call for Canalis's job, But I thought that was
absolutely lousy and critical and dumb. That people who were
trying to call J. C. Horn a non pro Bowl quarterback,
(30:21):
a cornerback. I think that's I think that's dumb. They
people who want Bryce out because of the way he
looked on Sunday. I think there were a lot of
contributing factors as to why I think he had no
room to throw. I think he had no time. I
think the offensive line was getting blown up at the spot.
Dave Canallis seems to disagree. We'll talk about that coming
up in twenty five minutes. I also think the wire
(30:41):
preceers did not have a lot of separation, and on
the rare time that he had opportunities to throw, he
didn't make the throws. So you can call Bryce out
one hundred percent justified. I think there are other contributing factors.
I'd say on seventy five percent of his dropbacks he
had either somebody in his face or didn't have anybody
to throw to, And at that point you're forcing a
(31:03):
ball in like he did a t MAC And for
whatever reason, whether it's his decision making, whether it's what
he's been instructed to do by Dave Canalis, he is
somewhat risk averse against man coverage in that regard, and
Seattle had a perfect game plan. To give them credit,
I didn't like how much it seemed like Dave Canellis
(31:23):
gave them credit because it felt like number one that
is setting the tone for a blueprint for what other
teams can do against US Number one and number two.
It also shows me he didn't have a plan B.
And that's the part of it that's most discouraging, and
it's part of the reason why I come back to
the At some point we have to have a discussion
(31:44):
about Dave Canalis as a play caller and whether or
not it's the best modus operendi for the Panthers moving forward,
because there are certain coaches who can do both. I'm
not saying that Dave Canalis didn't earn his way here
by being somebody who was good as a coordinator and
is one year in Tampa Bay, but you have to
understand it was one year as a coordinator. The reason
(32:06):
he got this job wasn't because of the job he
did as a coordinator. It was because of the job
he had mentoring quarterbacks and resuscitating quarterbacks like Gino and Baker,
and a lot of that did not come as a coordinator.
So he can still do that while not being the
guy who calls the plays. I think you have to
(32:27):
have an emotional distance as the head coach from the
play calling aspect of it, to have the global view
of the game, because so many times you can be
very reactionary and lose the moment and number two. You
could also be so hard headed in your game plan thinking, oh, guys.
Speaker 1 (32:46):
You know what, this is the drive.
Speaker 2 (32:47):
It gets right, this is the drive that all this
is everything that we'd planned about, it all gets right.
You have to have the ability to overrule somebody if
you're the head coach, because that's the thing. If he
becomes a head coach without being a play caller, that
doesn't mean that he completely devoids himself from the offense.
It means that he can overrule now the offensive coordinator.
(33:09):
If he feels that the offensive coordinator is not doing
a solid not doing the right job. Nobody can overrule him.
He has autonomy. I think he has too much for
somebody who is still very very young in his NFL
coaching career.
Speaker 3 (33:24):
And look, he's been very upfront, very honest about that,
maybe too honest at times whenever he gets behind the
microphone where he'll tell you, hey, I'm still learning, I'm
still trying to find myself as a play caller in
this league. Look, it's it's an imperfect science. It's not
an easy thing to do. Like, we can sit here
and be critical of it, and I have been very critical.
(33:45):
Like there's still not been a game this year where
I have watched Bryce Young look like he has looked
like in these losses and.
Speaker 1 (33:51):
Thought he was the biggest issue.
Speaker 3 (33:53):
And maybe at some point I've got to take my
Bryce Young defending glasses off and and maybe try to
evaluate him from the different standpoint. But I do come
back to where, yes, he's bad. I think he's bad
because of the play calling. Here's what I think is
on the table for the Panthers if they don't, if
they don't get this done, I do think it opens
(34:13):
the door for even in a year where they took
a step, there are still changes made within the walls
that organization, that that are that that maybe you don't
that you don't make if you go eight and nine,
if you go nine and eight, but Tampa Bay runs
away with the division, Like I do think there's a scenario,
Willie where if they don't, if they lose on Saturday,
(34:34):
or if they lose on Saturday and New Orleans wins
on on on Sunday, that maybe Dave Canalis does revisit
his play calling duties told and maybe it is is
that's a conversation I don't know if I want to have,
because is that is that coming from Dan Morgan or
(34:56):
is or is is is Dave Temper showing up and saying, Hey,
pretty boy, I brought you in to run the offense
and put points up on the board. You had the
twentieth eighth highest scoring offenses past year. We gotta do
some week because that's the thing. For as much as
Canalysis to blame, he says much to give credit for
(35:18):
because when you look at the foundation of the culture
changees we've seen take over at the Bank, I think
he's the biggest reason for it.
Speaker 1 (35:27):
And I'm not discounting that part of it.
Speaker 3 (35:29):
And I think that's what I think that's what makes
the conversation around Dave so difficult is he had the
players love him, the players play for him.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
You see that in the victory speeches.
Speaker 3 (35:40):
JJ Test told us at time and time again that hey,
who you see Dave on on camera and the quirky
work Wednesday.
Speaker 1 (35:48):
And that's who Dave is.
Speaker 3 (35:50):
It's not some facade like Matt Rule, who was coming
into a coming into a Bowl game festivity point on
a zip line the other day, Like everyone could tell
that Matt Rules a pony.
Speaker 1 (36:01):
Dave Canalis isn't that.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
But for as much as he's brought this team to
where they are now and a lot of in a
lot of ways, he's also held them back from the
things they could potentially achieve this season.
Speaker 2 (36:12):
I'll say this, the the thing that I keep coming
back to. I think your model has to be the
Philadelphia Eagles because I think there's a lot of Sirianni
and Canalis, there's a lot of there's a lot of similarities.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
I don't I don't. I don't want to. I don't
want to agree with that. Why is that I don't
like that? Because I don't like Nick Sirianni. Can you
argue with the success? I can't argue with this success.
Speaker 3 (36:42):
I can, But I want my I would like to
watch my locker room respect it's head coach, right, and
the the the Eagles are the epitome of a team
that wins despite respecting their like they are. And maybe
it's not the same level they give me Barry Switzer
cowboy vibes, where they're winning in spite of their head coach,
(37:03):
in their head coach because they've just got so much
Dagham talent.
Speaker 1 (37:07):
I mean.
Speaker 2 (37:08):
But here's the thing. Sirianni offensive mind had the play
calling right away? What does he do gives up the
play calling? They won a Super Bowl.
Speaker 1 (37:16):
You're not wrong.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
I'm not saying that that's what necessarily poortends for the Panthers.
But what I'm saying is he understood that it's a
very hard thing to do both, and there are not
many who do it both.
Speaker 1 (37:31):
Well.
Speaker 2 (37:33):
Mcvay's one of them. I go through this list about,
you know, once a week now. Mcvay's one of them,
reads one of them, Shanahan's one of them, O'Connell's another.
Speaker 3 (37:44):
And those last two named Shanahan o went to the
Super Bowls, and Kevin O'Connell's yet to win a playoff game,
and and and and their wizards at their craft. Sure,
so it's it's not it's not an easy thing to
do to manage game timeouts all sud that's on the
(38:04):
head coaches plate, and then be the play caller. That's
why you see so few and far between in the NFL.
But it's, like Max said yesterday, most of the time,
especially with the offensive guys, they don't give up their
play calling duties.
Speaker 2 (38:20):
You can maybe give Harbaugh an ancillary role in that
maybe as well. Ben Johnson unproven obviously, but again another
one who who could be one of those guys?
Speaker 1 (38:32):
Yeah so, But again it's it's a non.
Speaker 2 (38:36):
Zero number, less than a half dozen or right out
a half dozen of the thirty coaches in the league
as a reason why not a lot of them do
it in terms of that, well so, and and that's
the other part of this. Is there a guy on
this coaching staff that I look at and say deserves
the call plays over Dave Canals.
Speaker 3 (38:54):
No, no, because if you turn to the offensive coordinator,
I guess what he is.
Speaker 1 (38:57):
He's an unproven guy called me at first time play caller.
Speaker 2 (39:00):
And Caldwell's on the staff too, But again that's one
I don't know if you necessarily want to go back
to from a retread standpoint, I think you bring into
proven oc. But again I think a lot of that
determines on how they get the one thing I don't
want this is the last thing I want to put
a button on it. I don't want them winning the
division to delude any things they want to do. From
a punitive standpoint in the offseason, I think you still
owe it to the organization to take a very fine
(39:22):
tooth comb on everything that happened this year, positive, negative.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
And otherwise.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
I'm not saying I'm rooting against them for that reason,
because I think that would be stupid, but I do
you also think again, you know, if you win the division,
that's great.
Speaker 1 (39:35):
If you win a playoff game, incredible, But there are.
Speaker 2 (39:39):
Things you have to look at and say, I think
you have to take a long look at those in
terms of those things. And Bryce is a part of
that too, and we'll get into that a little bit later.
We'll come back. We do a little college football first
look at the playoff games, and Clemson makes a big
move as well to try and signify what might be
their future. Sportraity ninety to seven WFNZ. Lots of good
(40:07):
thoughts on the FanDuel text line here sports Ready on
ninety two to seven wfn Z shown from charlot We've
improved as a team, but lack consistency. They've can't improve
next year might be on the acts and the losses
were also because we weren't prepared, couldn't adjust mid game.
Veteran OC would help a lot. He says he thinks
that Vero should switch back to a four to three.
(40:27):
I don't know if that's happening. Also, our good friend
Gooch Grundleman very very angry that there wasn't a breakfast
exchange between Fiddy and me earlier today, which again a
little bit disappointed there. A little bit disappointed there. Panther
Boat with a good point. Kevin o'connall Nott standing up
for Darnold is something that definitely is a strike against
(40:51):
him and getting Punks says, we want the Saints to
go away, they still have to control. They still have
control of Carolina as destiny of the season. Carolina cannot
let that happen. I'm one hund percent with you and
English Paul also a good point when it comes to
having good aerial support or good organizational support. Ron Rivera
was capable of calling defense, but how much did he
benefit from having Sean McDermott. That's an excellent point, and
(41:14):
of course we've seen how good McDermott is in Buffalo
seven four to five, seven O nine to six ten.
Found out yesterday Clemson head coach Dabo Sweeney saying that
he has relieved both offensive coordinator Garrett Riley and defensive
back coach Mickey Kahn of their duties going into twenty
twenty six, Dabos saying in a statement, it was a
very difficult decision to make the change at our offensive coordinator.
(41:36):
I deeply love and care for Garrett Riley and his family.
At the end of the day, we just did not
get the production and results we needed, and I just
feel it's time for a change. So we're moving a
different direction with a new offensive coordinator. The Mickey conn
one I think is incredibly personal for him because they
go back aways, saying that he I think they know
each other since nineteen ninety and been with them ten years.
(41:58):
So from the standpoint of where he sits, that probably
is one that hurt him a lot more to have
to do. But again, that was something that from a
defensive standpoint, Clemson had some definite trouble, you know, with
balls over the top, things of that nature. And they're
a team that, look, you know, this is a crossroads
moment right now for Clemson, knowing that the ACC isn't
(42:22):
exactly you know, gangbusters right now, and they've been passed
up by a couple of teams, you know, Miami, smu
et cetera. And it felt like an opportunity a year
for them to really try to go and make that happen.
Speaker 1 (42:38):
They could not.
Speaker 2 (42:39):
They finished seventieth in the country in points per contest
on offense, and when it comes to the defensive side
of the football, one hundred and thirty basically one hundred
and thirty fifth in the country on a posing pass
play percentage. That means that of the teams that are
basically against them, they are having more success throwing the football,
(43:00):
not picked the ball off a lot this year, and
also one hundred and eighteenth in the country and passing
yards allowed per game. They allowed two hundred to five
yards per contest, So easy to see why those defensive
numbers were made the way that they were again offensively
in total, just did not get enough yards or points.
And in a lot of games too, it felt like
(43:20):
they just looked very lost in terms of play calling.
If you talk to any Clemson fan, they very much said, hey,
you know what, it was a situation that they very
much knew could have been coming Bibop from Rock Thrill.
By the way, we'll get to his comments coming up
at seven o'clock on Bryce, because folks need to be
(43:41):
examined the issue that I have now coming forward now
from where that looks and where Clemson is is that
this is a big year for DEVO, big big year
for Devo. And I'm not going to sit here and
say it's a make or break year that they have
to win the ACC year, have to get that to
the playoff. But I think there is that intense pressure
(44:03):
and that intensifying pressure that's coming up for him in
terms of where the playoffs it turns of where the
playoffs sit and their spot in it. Of course, the
playoff begins tomorrow. We've got the cotton ball between Miami
and in a very very tough matchup that they will have.
(44:24):
And I look at this with their game coming up,
and really, I'm so into all these games. You know,
Ohio State Miami is obviously one you look at and
say Miami is a decided underdog. But I look at
(44:44):
this and say their defense could keep them in this
game against Ohio State. I just think Ohio State will
put up more points in Miami. You can't put up
enough points against the Ohio State defense to make it work.
Oregon Texas Tech is one you look at and you
say might end up being the closest of the four games.
(45:05):
But the one that I don't know if the champion
can come from this group because I think where I think.
I think the way that it looks after this, you're
thinking that maybe the champion maybe comes from the other
three games, the winner of one of the other three games.
I feel like that the champion is least likely to
come from those games, from that particular game, watch it
(45:27):
be Oregon or Texas Deck. But I think it's gonna
be a good game. I think, I think a lot
of talent on both sides, but I just don't know
if if either of those two teams is better than
the winner that comes out of the other three games.
Indiana and Malma is gonna be a soberknocker. Rose Bowls
always great. I was actually talking about this, you know,
(45:48):
with with my wife, the Indiana fan. Last time the
Indiana got the de Rose Bowl again back in the sixties.
Only third time they've won the Big ten out right,
and it's a big moment for Indiana. I think they're
the most complete team. I'm not saying that because I
have invested interest in it, but I think all three
phases they're very very good. They've got a kicker who
has not missed other than the one he missed in
(46:09):
the Big Ten Championship game. They've got a great, great defense,
and they've got the Highs and Tree winner quarterback who's
got two great receivers to throw to.
Speaker 1 (46:18):
Omar Cooper is going to be okay.
Speaker 2 (46:19):
According to reports earlier this week, looks like he's gonna
play U sarat is incredible, and they've got.
Speaker 1 (46:25):
A great running attack too.
Speaker 2 (46:26):
They they get a twoited monster at running back, very
very few flaws, if any, and not very many holes.
The defensive ends situation is a little bit concerning for them,
but I think they can handle it. I just also
think that Bama, while they showed a lot of resilience
in their matchup the first round matchup against Oklahoma, I
(46:47):
just I just don't think was that good this year.
I think Ty Simpsons is very inconsistent. I mean, I
saw them play against you know, Mile Matter, and we
had ball in hand chance to beat him in our building.
And I'm not saying that I base all of my
opinions and based on how they look there, but I've
also seen them play a very up and down finish
of the season. Georgia Ole Miss is intriguing because of
(47:09):
their rematch factor and revenge factor. It's weird fitty looking
at this game, you almost want them, so you almost
want ole Miss to win it despite Lane, But then
you know that Lane is going to get paid if
they win that game. So it's like it's the weirdest
feeling to be in from a neutral standpoint, if you
(47:30):
have no dog in that fight. Pardon the pun, it's
it's odd knowing that, Hey, while sent the mentality maybe
makes you want root for the rebels, it also means
that that Lane's pocket gets more lined as a result
of it.
Speaker 3 (47:43):
Yeah, but look, that's that's not that's that's l s
Hu's problem. Ole Miss can't be worried about him getting
paid if they go out there and win more football
games during the CFP run. I think Georgia is the
team to be in this thing. With what happened with
the injury to you know, the best defensive line for Indiana.
I do think that's maybe a chink in their armor.
(48:04):
What's going for them? Will he they got the best coach?
Speaker 1 (48:07):
Sure? Like you know, does he have two national titles?
No he doesn't. Kirby Smart does, But.
Speaker 3 (48:12):
There's no denying with what he's done at Indiana in
his two years. Kurt Signett, he's the best coach right
now in college football, and I think he'll have his
team ready to play, and I don't think they'll be
overwhelmed by the moment that the Rose Bowl delivers creates
to generate.
Speaker 2 (48:31):
Think.
Speaker 1 (48:31):
I think it's gonna be Indiana Georgia for the championship.
Speaker 3 (48:36):
I wasn't buying into the whole Oregon Texas Tech winner
having a path. No, I think that winner gets to
the national championship game. Really, and I mean Texas, I
mean the Texas Tech. They have the best front seven
in the sport. Quarterbacks good too, and the quarterback when
he's if he's if they could keep him healthy, is
really really good.
Speaker 1 (48:57):
And Oregon just looked different.
Speaker 3 (48:58):
I know it's against James Madison, but they looked a
step quicker in their first round game. They did all
during the regular season. But I wouldn't be surprised if
we get in Indiana and Georgia. Those have been the
two best teams I've thought for it, the most finished.
Speaker 2 (49:15):
They've been the most consistent throughout the season. Now, again,
this comes back to the whole Joel Klatt thing. Do
we care about who won over the entirety of the season,
or do we care about who wins a tournament because
the think again it could be again hard to look
at a one true champion if you know that, hey,
(49:37):
if a certain team gets hot at a certain time.
There's a momentum part about Oregon. We talked about earlier
that that the teams that had buys last year all
lost because of the rust factor. It's almost an advantage
to play in the first round now because you have
that momentum going forward. Could that play into Oregon's strength
and a potential semifinal, But of course they all have
(49:57):
to get it done coming up here to as well
as on Thursday, it is the Mack and Bone Show.
Willy p and Fitty in for Mac and Bone on
Sports Radio ninety two seven WFZ, will come back Sounds
of the Dave if you will Dave Canalys's comments from yesterday.
Uh he said something that irked Panther fans greatly. Will
(50:20):
dissect how and why and whether or not you think
he's right. Sports Radio ninety two seven WFNZ
Allow me to reinroduce myself.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
My name is I'm will Pelagic. This is Josh Fitty
Marlow trying to start out on the right foot today.
Good morning and welcome. This is the Mac and Bone
Show Sands Mac and Sans Bone on Sports Radio ninety
(00:30):
two seven WFNZ. Willie p in for the boys alongside
Josh Fitty Marlow. We are locked in a room for
four hours. This is something that for whatever reason, every
one of our coworkers has wanted to hear this since
it was announced, because it feels like one might only
walk out alive. But at the same point in time,
(00:50):
they forget that we do have a very long standing
friendship on and off the air, and that when we
do come in on the air, we make some pretty
dawn good radio.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
So we will put.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Whatever bitter happenings that may have happened in the very
recent past or even the far begone past aside well
right to be able to do some good radio and
be together on this penultimate day of twenty twenty five.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Good morning, Josh Fitty Marlowe, how are you, my friend?
Speaker 3 (01:21):
Good morning Willie. I can say that once the holiday
schedule was announced, I.
Speaker 1 (01:27):
Was excited, geeked as it were. You know, I.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Always want to know how many how many Willy days
do I get?
Speaker 1 (01:33):
How many days do I get to kick it old school?
Speaker 3 (01:35):
We spent about six weeks together MAC after Nick Wilson
left and they were trying to figure out the midday lineup,
and it's still some of the most fun I've had
at the station to this day.
Speaker 2 (01:46):
Let's be real, the powers that be are trying to
keep the Willy from you.
Speaker 3 (01:51):
Yes, and there's a good reason why, because we do bicker,
we do argue.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
But you say, I would say it's not bickering. I say,
we have constructive arguments that sometimes can be combustible, and.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
Sometimes it's just because I'm an annoying pain in the butt. Well, yes,
and I can't help myself. And that's probably gonna happen
at some point today. But I'm no excited to do
the show because we actually for it to be the
time of the year that it is a lot on
the menu. There's a lot to talk about with the
Carolina Panthers. The Hornets drop a game last night, but
(02:26):
you could see something with a lot of guys on
the court. Acc basketball gets underway.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
This week.
Speaker 3 (02:32):
The CFP, which I know you love, is about to
get started with your with your wife's Hoosiers playing in
the Rose Bowls favors against Alabama, which still seems weird.
Speaker 1 (02:43):
Talking about very much.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
So.
Speaker 1 (02:45):
So that's the beauty is.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
That we're getting to do radio during the time of
the year where it could be hard in some regions
of the world, but it's not hard here.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Baby.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
It's incredibly refreshing to see that. Normally, when we have
this time of year, we are talking about a god
awful Week eighteen game that we don't want to see happen,
a game of no consequence, a game of okay, how
do we get to ourselves the draft picks selection we
want or the draft slot that we want. I'm glad
(03:15):
that that's not part of it this year. And again
I heard you guys talking yesterday about how I might
have reacted on Sunday. I do feel like I owe
it to people to react to the game in front
of me, not necessarily devoid of the perspective. But again,
there will be time for perspective throughout the week, and
(03:37):
you guys on the Monday Show have the benefit of
number one, a night of sleep and Number two, the
ability to kind of step away from the moment and say, Okay,
you know, we saw the car crash that was Sunday,
but we can at least say, hey, you know what,
it's all still in front of us. I was not
absent that feeling on Sunday, and I think I even
got by the end of the show to the point
(03:59):
where I'd say, hey, you know what, Yes, this sucked. Yes,
it felt like another opportunity that the vision was handed
to us.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
We dissed it up.
Speaker 2 (04:06):
But it does at least come back to the fact
that I want to say all is forgiven with a
win on Sunday, but a lot of it is forgotten
with a win on Sunday against Tampa Bay.
Speaker 1 (04:18):
Well it's on Saturday, I should say. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:20):
I think, like, look what you're doing. It's the most
difficult thing to do. You're reacting in real time to
a sport where fans are the most maniacal because we
only get seventeen of these sure, so it's it's literally
it's literally as from a fans perspective, it's a life
for death scenario because we only get so many of them.
(04:42):
And look, there are sometimes when you're I'm hearing your
postgame when you're here. Maybe okay, I'm not where you
are in terms of reacting to where they are after
a loss, but also you are reacting to what the
text line is saying to you. Sure what the phone
line is is calling in to say to There's no
way to hide what happened at the bank on Sunday
(05:04):
was just an utter disappointment.
Speaker 2 (05:07):
I'm sure you were sitting there in the stands like
I was, and just kind of Hannah Hanah and everybody
when it came to everything we saw. We'll get into it,
of course throughout the program. We'll reset the Seahawks and
Panther game, put it to bed, and get you ready
for again a short week against Tampa Bay.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
Although when you think.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
About it, this game that felt like it has all
the consequence in the world might at the end of
the day not made a darn thing because of who
our friends to the southwest of us, the Atlanta Falcons,
our dearly beloved friends of I eighty five, once again
(05:46):
did us as solid second time. By the way they've
done us as solid they did one earlier by beating
Tampa Bay.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Head to head.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
They did one last night by almost blowing it. They
had a twenty one to zering lead that they blew.
Rams come back to tie it. They get a big
field goal from Zan Gonzalez. Gave them a couple of
what I thought were tailor made passing opportunities that Matthew
Stafford either missed the Cooper cup catch that wasn't I
(06:13):
don't know if you stayed up late enough to see
this fitty, but how number one he almost caught it
and number two ultimately did not catch it. Everybody in
America thought that, uh, I'm sorry. Pooka Nakua caught this
ball on the sideline on the far side. I thought,
I said, Cooper coming book and a Coup had caught
this ball on the far sideline. But the ball comes
(06:33):
out of his hands at the last second on the
one angle. How the referee saw that. I have no
idea number one in live action because it was one
of those things where if it had been called a
catch on the field, maybe the same thing happens.
Speaker 1 (06:48):
They say.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
The ruling on the field stands. There was a clearer
action and clear look that said that the ball and
the hand were aside from each other. But man, oh man,
the Rams came so close to trying that not back
up at twenty seven apiece, they could not, and Atlanta
pulls it out over the Rams twenty seven to twenty four,
ensuring that that Week eighteen Sunday game could potentially play
(07:13):
into a Panther divisional title if Carolina cannot win over
Tampa on Saturday, needing that Tampa needs both a victory
over Carolina and an Atlanta lost to the New Orleans
Saints in order to secure their spot in the NFC
South and in the playoffs, which is just the most
incredible way for this thing to finish if the Panthers
(07:33):
can't get it done by their own sort.
Speaker 3 (07:35):
Yeah, look, Carolina now has room for error. Hopefully it
doesn't come to that. Hopefully they take care of business
on Saturday. There are two things I think to talk
about with what happened last a Monday Night football. The
Rams now two and three of their last five games.
I think this was a team that I thought when
they came to Carolina as the number one seed a
(07:57):
few weeks ago, I thought that was the best team
in I thought that was the favorite to come out
of this conference, and maybe my pick to win to
win the Lombardi Trophy when it was all said and done.
I don't know if I have that same belief now
after I lost to the Panthers. They blew the double
digit lead to Seattle on Thursday Football, they lose last
(08:18):
night to an Atlanta team on My Night Football. You
look at from the Atlanta perspective, Willie, I mean, maybe
this is an overreaction, underreaction, no reaction. If Kirk Cousins
is playing quarterback from week one to week eighteen, is
that team maybe in the position that we're in, that
Tampa Bay's in, or they're playing for a division title.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
Listen, I'm not going to sit here and tell you
that what they did in the moment wasn't sound. But
I think it's very easy to surmise that they might
have picked wrong when it comes to the quarterback position there.
And I know that Atlanta fans don't want to hear
it because I think they want Pennix to work. It's
(09:02):
just not working, and he's been very inconsistent. I think again,
there are times where he looks great and then there
are other times he looks not so great, and he's
been injury prone, and I think that's something that you know,
a lot of people will say sounds like the guy
that they had in Carolina too, But I think you
(09:23):
don't have those other situations in other parts. I think
we've seen more good Bryce than maybe we've seen more
good Penis and the other part of this too, to
add insult to injury, the Falcons do not control their
first round pick. The Rams do, and by the Falcons
beating the Rams, it means that that pick gets worse
(09:45):
by how much the Falcons move up in the draft slots.
So there's a lot to react to from that perspective. Again,
it does kind of feel like Gallows humor in a way,
because it would feel like the ultimate entrance to the postseason,
a three way tie at eight and nine, and you
win despite losing in the final week of the season,
(10:08):
when you had basically two opportunities in week seventeen and
eighteen to control your own destiny and can't do so.
I go kind of with the philosophy that John Ellis had.
He was waxing poetic about this on Twitter last night,
trying to say, look, man, it's been eight years. I
think you don't care how you get in. If you
get into the tournament, you're in the tournament. They don't
(10:29):
exactly put an asterix around your NFC South title to say, hey,
you backed in. But at the same point in time,
give given the choice, I want to be able to
do it with a win head to head over Tampa.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Well, if they do with the win, even though the
last ten weeks would suggest that they would lose in
the first round, at least you're going in with hope
that you can upset whoever is coming here from the
NFC West. Where if you literally lose back to back
games and you're back dooring your way into a playoff spot,
even though you're going to be at home, it's not
(11:00):
gonna be like it was in twenty thirteen, where that
team won four straight games to get into the playoffs
with the losing record and they had a battered Cardinals
team that came here. It's not gonna be the same scenario.
And I think the Panthers would tell you, hey, look,
they wouldn't apologize if they were to get beat by
Tampa Bay. But then the Falcons beat you know, New
Orleans on Sunday and they still get to go to
(11:21):
the dance. But I think this is a team that
wants to earn their way in because that's how you
get the respect that this young team, the young this
is not the young franchise, but this this core is
looking to earn one other thing. From last night, Willie,
and I hope that you're in the same agreement with me.
Why on God's green Earth did Atlanta leave that uniform look?
Speaker 1 (11:46):
No idea, it's not.
Speaker 3 (11:48):
Is it as good as the you know, some other
throwbacks the NFL.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
I don't know. I don't know if I go that far,
but that's a clean look, man.
Speaker 3 (11:57):
The red helmets are earth. It's a nice touch it too.
And I'll have this conversation with Wes Bryant yesterday. We're
kind of talking because you know, the Niners wore their
throwbacks on Sunday Night, the jerseys from the and the nineties,
So the.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Ninety four Niners throwbacks are very clean.
Speaker 3 (12:13):
They there's so much better than what we have today.
Like every time a team rebrands their uniform, it gets worse.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
Like it's why I'm glad like I was signed up.
A lot of Panther fans want a rebrand.
Speaker 3 (12:25):
I don't want to rebrand because it could it could
get worse from where it is.
Speaker 2 (12:30):
The only thing that I want. I want the black
helmet to be the primary for the Panthers in my opinion,
and I think the the only thing that I would
want is if if that didn't come the way, I
want to go back to the old Panther logo. Yeah,
oh my gosh, yes, the old like the old Panther logo.
Speaker 3 (12:51):
With the outline it just if I think it looks
better at midfield. I think the helmet decal looked better.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I mean, I mean the the the throat back end
zones the last two weeks of incredible.
Speaker 1 (13:01):
Yes, those need to be the permanent end zone.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
So where we walk when I walk into the stadium
to do an FC game, we walk behind where the
visiting locker room is, and there is a painted basically
that logo, the old Panther logo and the way the
end zones look where it says Carolina and Panthers. I
(13:25):
see that every time before I walk up to the
press box. It is it just makes me long for
seeing that on a more permanent basis, and I feel
like I've been somewhat brainwashed into that. And I'm with you.
I think those things need to be in a greater circulation.
There also needs to be more peril. I think that
has that stuff on it too as well. Not that
the people over there listen to me heavily, although I
(13:47):
do at least have one connection away from the person
who runs apparel for Panthers and FC, so maybe that
can get into the cerebellum here.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
You mentioned the Hornets.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
They lose last night to the Bucks one twenty three,
one thirteen, adding insult to injury, injury to insul, I
should say after the Hornets did not have Conk nipple
available to them last night. They lose Miles Bridges late
in the first quarter to an injury, and while they
hung with the Bucks a lot, it just came down
to the fact that they ran out of what I
would call able bodies. Third quarter offense was very, very
(14:18):
hard to come by. Even in the non Giannis minutes.
They had some trouble trying to really connect things. T
John Salam was having to play that four spot, and
I think he did alright rebounding of the basketball, but
didn't have as good of a shooting day as he's
had here recently. They had to kind of piece meal
their lineup. They had to go eleven deep. Colin Sexton
had a good day off the bench sixteen points. LaMelo
didn't shoot it the best from inside the two point line,
(14:42):
but I had a good three point shooting day twenty
six points. Bradon Miller had thirty one. A lot of
that coming though with the free throw line and inside
the two point line. Hornets could not get the victory
over Milwaukee. They fall to one and two had to
head against them this season. The record is now eleven
and twenty one ahead of a matchup on Wednesday with
the Fighting War Day else.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Yeah, I'll kind of echo what Eric Collins said as
the game was going to halftime. It felt like the
Hornets had missed an opportunity to really seize control of
the game. You're up, You're up twelve, I think with
a little over two two minutes to go, and they
clut it. They cut it to what a three point
game I think it was at the at the break.
(15:21):
And look, you know, Milwaukee has Giannis. Maybe you you
expect that, but it just really I think complicated things
and for them in the second half, and.
Speaker 2 (15:32):
Once Giannis wasn't as dominant last night as he had
been in recent games against the hornets.
Speaker 3 (15:38):
No, but he had he had an and one which
was his five hundredth and one of his career. Yeah,
where he picks the ball up and in two steps
he's at the front of the rim and he stopped
dribbling out the.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Three point line. He sees incredible.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
Like it's still just like, I know, we got Wimby now,
but I think it's still just crazy to watch what
Giannis does.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
But I think you.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Saw Wemby's just so lanky man Like, that's the thing
with Wemby. He's just so just he's just so slender,
like Giannis has got a body.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
Yeah, but you know, you just you see what they
can be when they're healthy. But you lose bridges, you
don't have canipple last night.
Speaker 2 (16:17):
And Bobby Portis was annoying, Yeah, twenty five off the
bench and he's been annoying now.
Speaker 1 (16:21):
It feels like for a while there.
Speaker 2 (16:23):
I looked up his head to head against the hornets.
It's it's not pretty. It's not pretty from a horn
it's perspective.
Speaker 3 (16:30):
But I think, man, we kind of starting to credit
what this staff does when they send guys to Greensboro.
Sure t Jon Salon actually looks like a functioning basketball player.
Speaker 1 (16:42):
Mcneely's come back to and looked alright.
Speaker 3 (16:44):
So whatever they're doing there, I think is a sign
of things to come for the growth and development of
this Hornet's core because it's working. Whenever they send guys
there and they bring them back, they do come back
better basketball players, and that hasn't always been the case
with his friend.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Credit to DJ Baker's squad definitely and that whole staff.
Do you still claim Caleb Love by the way.
Speaker 3 (17:07):
I mean, he said he was a tar heel forever.
Why would I quit claiming him?
Speaker 2 (17:12):
I just wanted to know, because he got the better
at Cooper Flag last night twenty four point six threes
in the late basketball won twenty five one T two
Blazers over the Mavericks. Also, Nikola Jokic hurt last night
in Denver's lost to Miami. A terrible tragedy again in
the NASCAR world, Denny Hamlin's father dies after a house fire.
His mother hospitalized uh in a fire in Gaston County
(17:35):
home near Stanley. Basically, they were found outside the home
his mother and father. His father, if you remember, had
also been kind of dealing with a serious health issue,
but basically two three weeks of really just terrible things
involving people, involving NASCAR. So our heart's out to the
Hamlin family definitely in terms of that tragedy. Also Clemson
(17:55):
in the news yesterday, they make they make the the
acts of Riley and Mickey Kahn. I think the con
one more of a of a firing for show as
opposed to something that actually is going to give you
more substance. Mickey was more of it, what was very
much a dabbo guy. The Garrett Rilly thing, I think
is the more punitive thing. We'll get to do it
a little bit later on as we go throughout our
(18:17):
opening hour and our four hours together. Pandaled text Lin's
open seven, four, five, seven, nine sixty ten, will he
pee and Fitty with you and for back and Bone,
we'll come back. How do you reconcile the Panther's troubling
trends with the optimism knowing that they still can win
the division outright by their own sword, by the falcon sword.
Coming up next, Sports Radio ninety two seven, WFNZ.
Speaker 1 (19:13):
Sports Radio ninety two seven wfn C.
Speaker 2 (19:17):
William Fiddy in for Mac and Bone Hope you're doing
yourself a solid by listening to us for all four hours,
but if you don't do so, you can catch up
as always via the Mac and Bone podcast, available wherever
you get your podcasts. Today we'll talk Greg Almand's going
to join us. Third hour of the program from Fox
Sports covers the NFC South. He was a Bucks beat
(19:40):
reporter but now covers the entire South or Fox Sports
still tip of Base, so we'll get some thoughts about
the Buccaneers since we last saw them, and also just
his thoughts over all on the division and the fact
that it has come down to this one game or
one doomsday scenario thanks to what the Falcons did last
night with their then football victory. Again a Falcon went
(20:02):
over the Saints, makes Saturday's game immateial not the Panthers
get still with their first opportunity win the South via
their own Merits big news yesterday from what Dave Canalis
had to say again, we'll do a full Dave Canalis
rehash segment coming up at seven o'clock about thirty five
(20:22):
minutes from now. But the big news from yesterday we
found out JT Sanders again surgery done for the year.
You know that was kind of something we found out
also after the game on Sunday, So nothing really that
is earth shattering. Still feels like maybe a little too
optimistic to think that Robert Hunt is back this week
too as well. Even though he is on the field
(20:43):
for Carolina, it does feel like if anything is going
to happen with him.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
It would be not until the postseason.
Speaker 2 (20:49):
Having the Saturday game helps Carolina from that perspective because
it does give them a full week of prep before
the playoff game. But you kind of take your lump
this week having to play on the show week, and
it kind of brings me to the point that I
wanted to make, and we'll do this a couple of
times today, because while there were a lot of people
I talked to on Sunday that were very much in
(21:11):
the moment ticked off, there were a lot of people
I talked to that had the measured approach and the
perspective of knowing that, hey, while this game in Week
seventeen was very much house money, still does not take
away the fact that you still have everything in front
of you in Week eighteen against a very reeling opponent.
I think I think part of where the Panther fan
(21:32):
confidence comes in is the notion that number one, you've
already beaten this team not too long ago, and number two,
they have been reeling seven of.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Eight I think now in a lost column for them.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
So Tampa, and not just that, it seems like they're
you know, from the reports that are coming out of there,
feels like this is mutiny in the locker room. They
don't like the head coach, they don't like the environment.
It is bad juju the fan base once everybody gone.
And so part of me is looking at this and saying,
you're approaching a wounded animal. Problem is we've given him hope,
(22:08):
and that's the part of it that kind of has
me still somewhat in my feelings about what we saw
on Sunday.
Speaker 3 (22:15):
And their quarterback, you know, is gonna lay it all
on the line, because that's who Baker Mayfield is. That's
what Baker Mayfield does. And if there's a guy that could,
you know, rise above what's what's been happening in the
last two months, it's Baker. Because this whole career has
been been about overcoming adversity. With that being said, with
(22:36):
what's being said, you know, with what Brookie Irving is
tweeting about the head coach and that sweet is still up.
He is not deleted that Sweet. I believe as of
this morning, you're looking at a locker room that I
feel like has quit on their head coach. And that
was most evident by how they lost to Miami on Sunday.
And I think that was, like the kicker, It wasn't
that Carolina got beat by Seattle. It was the fact
(22:59):
that you could you could have clinched the division on
Sunday and had a chance to really rest get healthy
for a playoff game. I don't even know if losing
the game is losing the game in the same week
that Tampa.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
Lost is why I'm mad. That's how it looked.
Speaker 2 (23:15):
It's it's the fact that they looked like in one
particular phase they laid an egg on a day where
the defense gave you everything. They gave you everything they could.
The fan base was incredible. I mean, you and I
were both in the stands on Sunday. It was as
loud there as I had heard.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
Any game there.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
And I know I wasn't here during the playoff years,
but man, oh man, it was.
Speaker 1 (23:37):
It was loud.
Speaker 2 (23:38):
It was lit it for the first time in a
very very long time, absent that Detroit game in twenty two,
which I was also a fan of the stands for
and still trying to get feeling back in my toes
and my fingers from that. That was as loud as
I had heard that building for a Panther game. Yeah,
and so that thing that was part of it.
Speaker 3 (23:59):
I think what in all so did was it probably
dampened the spirit and belief that if this team does
get in, they could make some sort of a run.
I do think it's harder to envision that being the
case now because you know one of these NFC West
teams are coming here. Sure now, if you get LA
because you beat LA at home, maybe you have that
same feeling.
Speaker 1 (24:19):
And LA did not look good yesterday either. They did not.
Speaker 3 (24:21):
But you know, Seattle might be top to bottom of
the best team in football when they played the way
they played on Sunday, and then the Niners are you know,
maybe they're right there in the same breath of Seattle.
We're gonna find out when those two teams meet on
Saturday nights. So it's just when it goes bad, it
goes bad. Like Stroppy said, it yesterday. We haven't had
(24:45):
a fun loss all year, Like it's either been blowout,
which was what was the beginning of the year, Jacksonville.
You were down twenty six to Arizona, New England. Close
losses to teams you shouldn't lose too, like New Orleans,
and when that happened, they're not they're not shootout losses.
They're not games that you're losing thirty five, thirty one,
(25:06):
twenty eight, twenty seven, you're losing seventeen to seven.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
Well, that's the thing, is we The weird thing about
last year is you had those moments. You had those games,
You had the Kansas City game, and those games were
more defined by brain lock moments or things like the
Xavierly get you know, drop, or Cuba's fumble.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
Or Mahomes making a play.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
Exactly like things that again in the moment you're frustrated by,
but you can live with them because you got there
basically via other means, and and you played well enough
outside of those moments to win the football game. And again,
we could we could debate which one hurts worse and
which one feels better. The fact of the matter remains
(25:53):
is that they're in this position. Yep, I'm looking at
the playoff picture. I don't think and I might be
wrong on this, I don't think we can see the Rams.
I think we can only see San Francisco or Seattle.
And that's based on if Seattle's got to beat there's
(26:13):
gonna be is it to beat Seattle outright in order
to win the division? I think because I think the Rams,
Rams and Niners. If it ends up being Rams versus Niners,
I think the Niners have the tiebreaker against the Rams.
So as much as I'd want to see La, like
you said, I think after last night, last night knocked
them out of an opportunity for us to see them.
So it's either gonna be Seattle or San Francisco in
(26:35):
the playoffs if the Panthers make it that far, right,
So uh, the NFL dot Com playoff probability as the Panthers'
seventy seventy and I don't know if that's them factoring
in the Falcon game now too. Again, I'm not gonna
sit here and discount what New Orleans has done lately either,
(26:57):
because as much as it does feel nice to have
that last game cushion, the Orleans is playing rather hot
right now. Four wins in a row, including two over.
Speaker 3 (27:07):
Us SO, and Shugs emerged as a legitimate candidate. I
don't think he's gonna get it, but he's gonna get
some Rookie of the Year.
Speaker 1 (27:17):
Voting.
Speaker 3 (27:17):
So annoying, but because the way I mean he someday
he was, I mean he was clinical and I was
in twenty two of twenty six for over three hundred
yards a couple scores. So I think, like, you know,
you said a few weeks ago, and this is what
it led to one of your disagreements, and this was
the rare time you were disagreeing with Mac and not me,
(27:40):
that you would be disappointed if the Panthers didn't make
the postseason. And that was when they were at I
think seven and seven and six, I think at the.
Speaker 1 (27:50):
Time, trying to remember what week it was, and that.
Speaker 3 (27:53):
Led to, you know, a back and forth to where
you actually confronted Mac and got very very close to
him in person here in the studio, and and now
now that I would still be like disappointed.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
I think it was after the Monday Night game. Maybe
was that after the Monday Night game or oh no,
it was after the RAM win MS it was because
of the bye week.
Speaker 1 (28:17):
It was the bye week. That's right, You're right. I
would still be disappointed.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
But even if they don't get this thing done, whether
it's because they they don't went on Saturday or Atlanta
doesn't win on Sunday, they still took the step we
asked them to take all off season long, and because
we never thought they would be in this position when
Tampa was five and one.
Speaker 1 (28:40):
Because when Tampa was five and one, felt like they
were running away with it and Baker.
Speaker 3 (28:43):
Mayfield was going throw for throw with Sam Darnold out
there in Seattle, we were talking about as Tampa Bay
the best team in the conference. Like that was a
discussion point around the NFL. And then we've seen them
backslide back to where they are now, but they they're
still then progress. They've still taken that step.
Speaker 1 (29:03):
Listen. But it's like Jake Delum told Mac.
Speaker 3 (29:07):
Can't you can't preach next year in the NFL, No,
because next year may not happen. Now, I think it's
your opportunity with the opportunities there, and this team still
has an opportunity.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
That That's kind of where I'm at, Like I can
be happy they took a positive step in the right direction.
Eight wins is nothing to sneeze at given how much
bad football we've seen. I have not lost the forest
for the trees there number one, period stop. But is
(29:38):
this the best opportunity they're going to have to take
that jump to the next level? Because you had multiple
opportunities to have the division handed to you New Orleans
in week fifteen, Seattle, this past weekend, this upcoming opportunity.
If if you do not cash in on three opportunities
(30:00):
to win a standalone football game, basically buy your own sword,
controlling your own destiny, that has me with severe questions.
And I'm not saying that anything punitive has to happen.
There are people who you were on Sunday were trying
to call for Canalis's job, But I thought that was
absolutely lousy and critical and dumb. That people who were
trying to call J. C. Horn a non pro Bowl quarterback,
(30:21):
a cornerback. I think that's I think that's dumb. They
people who want Bryce out because of the way he
looked on Sunday. I think there were a lot of
contributing factors as to why I think he had no
room to throw. I think he had no time. I
think the offensive line was getting blown up at the spot.
Dave Canallis seems to disagree. We'll talk about that coming
up in twenty five minutes. I also think the wire
(30:41):
preceers did not have a lot of separation, and on
the rare time that he had opportunities to throw, he
didn't make the throws. So you can call Bryce out
one hundred percent justified. I think there are other contributing factors.
I'd say on seventy five percent of his dropbacks he
had either somebody in his face or didn't have anybody
to throw to, And at that point you're forcing a
(31:03):
ball in like he did a t MAC And for
whatever reason, whether it's his decision making, whether it's what
he's been instructed to do by Dave Canalis, he is
somewhat risk averse against man coverage in that regard, and
Seattle had a perfect game plan. To give them credit,
I didn't like how much it seemed like Dave Canellis
(31:23):
gave them credit because it felt like number one that
is setting the tone for a blueprint for what other
teams can do against US Number one and number two.
It also shows me he didn't have a plan B.
And that's the part of it that's most discouraging, and
it's part of the reason why I come back to
the At some point we have to have a discussion
(31:44):
about Dave Canalis as a play caller and whether or
not it's the best modus operendi for the Panthers moving forward,
because there are certain coaches who can do both. I'm
not saying that Dave Canalis didn't earn his way here
by being somebody who was good as a coordinator and
is one year in Tampa Bay, but you have to
understand it was one year as a coordinator. The reason
(32:06):
he got this job wasn't because of the job he
did as a coordinator. It was because of the job
he had mentoring quarterbacks and resuscitating quarterbacks like Gino and Baker,
and a lot of that did not come as a coordinator.
So he can still do that while not being the
guy who calls the plays. I think you have to
(32:27):
have an emotional distance as the head coach from the
play calling aspect of it, to have the global view
of the game, because so many times you can be
very reactionary and lose the moment and number two. You
could also be so hard headed in your game plan thinking, oh, guys.
Speaker 1 (32:46):
You know what, this is the drive.
Speaker 2 (32:47):
It gets right, this is the drive that all this
is everything that we'd planned about, it all gets right.
You have to have the ability to overrule somebody if
you're the head coach, because that's the thing. If he
becomes a head coach without being a play caller, that
doesn't mean that he completely devoids himself from the offense.
It means that he can overrule now the offensive coordinator.
(33:09):
If he feels that the offensive coordinator is not doing
a solid not doing the right job. Nobody can overrule him.
He has autonomy. I think he has too much for
somebody who is still very very young in his NFL
coaching career.
Speaker 3 (33:24):
And look, he's been very upfront, very honest about that,
maybe too honest at times whenever he gets behind the
microphone where he'll tell you, hey, I'm still learning, I'm
still trying to find myself as a play caller in
this league. Look, it's it's an imperfect science. It's not
an easy thing to do. Like, we can sit here
and be critical of it, and I have been very critical.
(33:45):
Like there's still not been a game this year where
I have watched Bryce Young look like he has looked
like in these losses and.
Speaker 1 (33:51):
Thought he was the biggest issue.
Speaker 3 (33:53):
And maybe at some point I've got to take my
Bryce Young defending glasses off and and maybe try to
evaluate him from the different standpoint. But I do come
back to where, yes, he's bad. I think he's bad
because of the play calling. Here's what I think is
on the table for the Panthers if they don't, if
they don't get this done, I do think it opens
(34:13):
the door for even in a year where they took
a step, there are still changes made within the walls
that organization, that that are that that maybe you don't
that you don't make if you go eight and nine,
if you go nine and eight, but Tampa Bay runs
away with the division, Like I do think there's a scenario,
Willie where if they don't, if they lose on Saturday,
(34:34):
or if they lose on Saturday and New Orleans wins
on on on Sunday, that maybe Dave Canalis does revisit
his play calling duties told and maybe it is is
that's a conversation I don't know if I want to have,
because is that is that coming from Dan Morgan or
(34:56):
is or is is is Dave Temper showing up and saying, Hey,
pretty boy, I brought you in to run the offense
and put points up on the board. You had the
twentieth eighth highest scoring offenses past year. We gotta do
some week because that's the thing. For as much as
Canalysis to blame, he says much to give credit for
(35:18):
because when you look at the foundation of the culture
changees we've seen take over at the Bank, I think
he's the biggest reason for it.
Speaker 1 (35:27):
And I'm not discounting that part of it.
Speaker 3 (35:29):
And I think that's what I think that's what makes
the conversation around Dave so difficult is he had the
players love him, the players play for him.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
You see that in the victory speeches.
Speaker 3 (35:40):
JJ Test told us at time and time again that hey,
who you see Dave on on camera and the quirky
work Wednesday.
Speaker 1 (35:48):
And that's who Dave is.
Speaker 3 (35:50):
It's not some facade like Matt Rule, who was coming
into a coming into a Bowl game festivity point on
a zip line the other day, Like everyone could tell
that Matt Rules a pony.
Speaker 1 (36:01):
Dave Canalis isn't that.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
But for as much as he's brought this team to
where they are now and a lot of in a
lot of ways, he's also held them back from the
things they could potentially achieve this season.
Speaker 2 (36:12):
I'll say this, the the thing that I keep coming
back to. I think your model has to be the
Philadelphia Eagles because I think there's a lot of Sirianni
and Canalis, there's a lot of there's a lot of similarities.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
I don't I don't. I don't want to. I don't
want to agree with that. Why is that I don't
like that? Because I don't like Nick Sirianni. Can you
argue with the success? I can't argue with this success.
Speaker 3 (36:42):
I can, But I want my I would like to
watch my locker room respect it's head coach, right, and
the the the Eagles are the epitome of a team
that wins despite respecting their like they are. And maybe
it's not the same level they give me Barry Switzer
cowboy vibes, where they're winning in spite of their head coach,
(37:03):
in their head coach because they've just got so much
Dagham talent.
Speaker 1 (37:07):
I mean.
Speaker 2 (37:08):
But here's the thing. Sirianni offensive mind had the play
calling right away? What does he do gives up the
play calling? They won a Super Bowl.
Speaker 1 (37:16):
You're not wrong.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
I'm not saying that that's what necessarily poortends for the Panthers.
But what I'm saying is he understood that it's a
very hard thing to do both, and there are not
many who do it both.
Speaker 1 (37:31):
Well.
Speaker 2 (37:33):
Mcvay's one of them. I go through this list about,
you know, once a week now. Mcvay's one of them,
reads one of them, Shanahan's one of them, O'Connell's another.
Speaker 3 (37:44):
And those last two named Shanahan o went to the
Super Bowls, and Kevin O'Connell's yet to win a playoff game,
and and and and their wizards at their craft. Sure,
so it's it's not it's not an easy thing to
do to manage game timeouts all sud that's on the
(38:04):
head coaches plate, and then be the play caller. That's
why you see so few and far between in the NFL.
But it's, like Max said yesterday, most of the time,
especially with the offensive guys, they don't give up their
play calling duties.
Speaker 2 (38:20):
You can maybe give Harbaugh an ancillary role in that
maybe as well. Ben Johnson unproven obviously, but again another
one who who could be one of those guys?
Speaker 1 (38:32):
Yeah so, But again it's it's a non.
Speaker 2 (38:36):
Zero number, less than a half dozen or right out
a half dozen of the thirty coaches in the league
as a reason why not a lot of them do
it in terms of that, well so, and and that's
the other part of this. Is there a guy on
this coaching staff that I look at and say deserves
the call plays over Dave Canals.
Speaker 3 (38:54):
No, no, because if you turn to the offensive coordinator,
I guess what he is.
Speaker 1 (38:57):
He's an unproven guy called me at first time play caller.
Speaker 2 (39:00):
And Caldwell's on the staff too, But again that's one
I don't know if you necessarily want to go back
to from a retread standpoint, I think you bring into
proven oc. But again I think a lot of that
determines on how they get the one thing I don't
want this is the last thing I want to put
a button on it. I don't want them winning the
division to delude any things they want to do. From
a punitive standpoint in the offseason, I think you still
owe it to the organization to take a very fine
(39:22):
tooth comb on everything that happened this year, positive, negative.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
And otherwise.
Speaker 2 (39:28):
I'm not saying I'm rooting against them for that reason,
because I think that would be stupid, but I do
you also think again, you know, if you win the division,
that's great.
Speaker 1 (39:35):
If you win a playoff game, incredible, But there are.
Speaker 2 (39:39):
Things you have to look at and say, I think
you have to take a long look at those in
terms of those things. And Bryce is a part of
that too, and we'll get into that a little bit later.
We'll come back. We do a little college football first
look at the playoff games, and Clemson makes a big
move as well to try and signify what might be
their future. Sportraity ninety to seven WFNZ. Lots of good
(40:07):
thoughts on the FanDuel text line here sports Ready on
ninety two to seven wfn Z shown from charlot We've
improved as a team, but lack consistency. They've can't improve
next year might be on the acts and the losses
were also because we weren't prepared, couldn't adjust mid game.
Veteran OC would help a lot. He says he thinks
that Vero should switch back to a four to three.
(40:27):
I don't know if that's happening. Also, our good friend
Gooch Grundleman very very angry that there wasn't a breakfast
exchange between Fiddy and me earlier today, which again a
little bit disappointed there. A little bit disappointed there. Panther
Boat with a good point. Kevin o'connall Nott standing up
for Darnold is something that definitely is a strike against
(40:51):
him and getting Punks says, we want the Saints to
go away, they still have to control. They still have
control of Carolina as destiny of the season. Carolina cannot
let that happen. I'm one hund percent with you and
English Paul also a good point when it comes to
having good aerial support or good organizational support. Ron Rivera
was capable of calling defense, but how much did he
benefit from having Sean McDermott. That's an excellent point, and
(41:14):
of course we've seen how good McDermott is in Buffalo
seven four to five, seven O nine to six ten.
Found out yesterday Clemson head coach Dabo Sweeney saying that
he has relieved both offensive coordinator Garrett Riley and defensive
back coach Mickey Kahn of their duties going into twenty
twenty six, Dabos saying in a statement, it was a
very difficult decision to make the change at our offensive coordinator.
(41:36):
I deeply love and care for Garrett Riley and his family.
At the end of the day, we just did not
get the production and results we needed, and I just
feel it's time for a change. So we're moving a
different direction with a new offensive coordinator. The Mickey conn
one I think is incredibly personal for him because they
go back aways, saying that he I think they know
each other since nineteen ninety and been with them ten years.
(41:58):
So from the standpoint of where he sits, that probably
is one that hurt him a lot more to have
to do. But again, that was something that from a
defensive standpoint, Clemson had some definite trouble, you know, with
balls over the top, things of that nature. And they're
a team that, look, you know, this is a crossroads
moment right now for Clemson, knowing that the ACC isn't
(42:22):
exactly you know, gangbusters right now, and they've been passed
up by a couple of teams, you know, Miami, smu
et cetera. And it felt like an opportunity a year
for them to really try to go and make that happen.
Speaker 1 (42:38):
They could not.
Speaker 2 (42:39):
They finished seventieth in the country in points per contest
on offense, and when it comes to the defensive side
of the football, one hundred and thirty basically one hundred
and thirty fifth in the country on a posing pass
play percentage. That means that of the teams that are
basically against them, they are having more success throwing the football,
(43:00):
not picked the ball off a lot this year, and
also one hundred and eighteenth in the country and passing
yards allowed per game. They allowed two hundred to five
yards per contest, So easy to see why those defensive
numbers were made the way that they were again offensively
in total, just did not get enough yards or points.
And in a lot of games too, it felt like
(43:20):
they just looked very lost in terms of play calling.
If you talk to any Clemson fan, they very much said, hey,
you know what, it was a situation that they very
much knew could have been coming Bibop from Rock Thrill.
By the way, we'll get to his comments coming up
at seven o'clock on Bryce, because folks need to be
(43:41):
examined the issue that I have now coming forward now
from where that looks and where Clemson is is that
this is a big year for DEVO, big big year
for Devo. And I'm not going to sit here and
say it's a make or break year that they have
to win the ACC year, have to get that to
the playoff. But I think there is that intense pressure
(44:03):
and that intensifying pressure that's coming up for him in
terms of where the playoffs it turns of where the
playoffs sit and their spot in it. Of course, the
playoff begins tomorrow. We've got the cotton ball between Miami
and in a very very tough matchup that they will have.
(44:24):
And I look at this with their game coming up,
and really, I'm so into all these games. You know,
Ohio State Miami is obviously one you look at and
say Miami is a decided underdog. But I look at
(44:44):
this and say their defense could keep them in this
game against Ohio State. I just think Ohio State will
put up more points in Miami. You can't put up
enough points against the Ohio State defense to make it work.
Oregon Texas Tech is one you look at and you
say might end up being the closest of the four games.
(45:05):
But the one that I don't know if the champion
can come from this group because I think where I think.
I think the way that it looks after this, you're
thinking that maybe the champion maybe comes from the other
three games, the winner of one of the other three games.
I feel like that the champion is least likely to
come from those games, from that particular game, watch it
(45:27):
be Oregon or Texas Deck. But I think it's gonna
be a good game. I think, I think a lot
of talent on both sides, but I just don't know
if if either of those two teams is better than
the winner that comes out of the other three games.
Indiana and Malma is gonna be a soberknocker. Rose Bowls
always great. I was actually talking about this, you know,
(45:48):
with with my wife, the Indiana fan. Last time the
Indiana got the de Rose Bowl again back in the sixties.
Only third time they've won the Big ten out right,
and it's a big moment for Indiana. I think they're
the most complete team. I'm not saying that because I
have invested interest in it, but I think all three
phases they're very very good. They've got a kicker who
has not missed other than the one he missed in
(46:09):
the Big Ten Championship game. They've got a great, great defense,
and they've got the Highs and Tree winner quarterback who's
got two great receivers to throw to.
Speaker 1 (46:18):
Omar Cooper is going to be okay.
Speaker 2 (46:19):
According to reports earlier this week, looks like he's gonna
play U sarat is incredible, and they've got.
Speaker 1 (46:25):
A great running attack too.
Speaker 2 (46:26):
They they get a twoited monster at running back, very
very few flaws, if any, and not very many holes.
The defensive ends situation is a little bit concerning for them,
but I think they can handle it. I just also
think that Bama, while they showed a lot of resilience
in their matchup the first round matchup against Oklahoma, I
(46:47):
just I just don't think was that good this year.
I think Ty Simpsons is very inconsistent. I mean, I
saw them play against you know, Mile Matter, and we
had ball in hand chance to beat him in our building.
And I'm not saying that I base all of my
opinions and based on how they look there, but I've
also seen them play a very up and down finish
of the season. Georgia Ole Miss is intriguing because of
(47:09):
their rematch factor and revenge factor. It's weird fitty looking
at this game, you almost want them, so you almost
want ole Miss to win it despite Lane, But then
you know that Lane is going to get paid if
they win that game. So it's like it's the weirdest
feeling to be in from a neutral standpoint, if you
(47:30):
have no dog in that fight. Pardon the pun, it's
it's odd knowing that, Hey, while sent the mentality maybe
makes you want root for the rebels, it also means
that that Lane's pocket gets more lined as a result
of it.
Speaker 3 (47:43):
Yeah, but look, that's that's not that's that's l s
Hu's problem. Ole Miss can't be worried about him getting
paid if they go out there and win more football
games during the CFP run. I think Georgia is the
team to be in this thing. With what happened with
the injury to you know, the best defensive line for Indiana.
I do think that's maybe a chink in their armor.
(48:04):
What's going for them? Will he they got the best coach?
Speaker 1 (48:07):
Sure? Like you know, does he have two national titles?
No he doesn't. Kirby Smart does, But.
Speaker 3 (48:12):
There's no denying with what he's done at Indiana in
his two years. Kurt Signett, he's the best coach right
now in college football, and I think he'll have his
team ready to play, and I don't think they'll be
overwhelmed by the moment that the Rose Bowl delivers creates
to generate.
Speaker 2 (48:31):
Think.
Speaker 1 (48:31):
I think it's gonna be Indiana Georgia for the championship.
Speaker 3 (48:36):
I wasn't buying into the whole Oregon Texas Tech winner
having a path. No, I think that winner gets to
the national championship game. Really, and I mean Texas, I
mean the Texas Tech. They have the best front seven
in the sport. Quarterbacks good too, and the quarterback when
he's if he's if they could keep him healthy, is
really really good.
Speaker 1 (48:57):
And Oregon just looked different.
Speaker 3 (48:58):
I know it's against James Madison, but they looked a
step quicker in their first round game. They did all
during the regular season. But I wouldn't be surprised if
we get in Indiana and Georgia. Those have been the
two best teams I've thought for it, the most finished.
Speaker 2 (49:15):
They've been the most consistent throughout the season. Now, again,
this comes back to the whole Joel Klatt thing. Do
we care about who won over the entirety of the season,
or do we care about who wins a tournament because
the think again it could be again hard to look
at a one true champion if you know that, hey,
(49:37):
if a certain team gets hot at a certain time.
There's a momentum part about Oregon. We talked about earlier
that that the teams that had buys last year all
lost because of the rust factor. It's almost an advantage
to play in the first round now because you have
that momentum going forward. Could that play into Oregon's strength
and a potential semifinal, But of course they all have
(49:57):
to get it done coming up here to as well
as on Thursday, it is the Mack and Bone Show.
Willy p and Fitty in for Mac and Bone on
Sports Radio ninety two seven WFZ, will come back Sounds
of the Dave if you will Dave Canalys's comments from yesterday.
Uh he said something that irked Panther fans greatly. Will
(50:20):
dissect how and why and whether or not you think
he's right. Sports Radio ninety two seven WFNZ
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