December 29, 2025 • 45 mins
In the final hour of the show, the guys play a round of keep, re-gift or return with presents that the Panthers might have gotten for Christmas, react to some of the best audio from Dave Canales' postgame yesterday and walk it off with 'What's on Tap' for tonight.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You're listening to the Wes and Walker Show. After the
latest College footballlayoff rankings. Which team do we think would
fare the best in the college football playoffs? It's Wes
SMU Miamis and Walker. My Dog going Wow, my dog
going through it. Only on Sports Radio ninety two point
seven FM WFNZ.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
We're gonna pick you up. Man, We're gonna pick you up.
One more hour to go on Western Walker Sports Radio
ninety two to seven WFNZ. We're broadcasting live from the
channel Vaulta Studios Cvinjurylaw dot Com, CV Injurylaw dot Com.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
One call. That's all the.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Carolinas personal injury lawyers. We've been reading a lot of
text messages on the world famous WFNZ FanDuel text line
seven oh four five seven oh ninety six to ten. Again,
the Fandel text line number is seven oh four five
seven oh ninety six ten. The people writing about the Panthers,
And here we are talking about some of the Panthers'
gifts that they've given us or they have the potential
(01:06):
to give us. At the end of the season, and
as we often do around the holiday break, you got
to figure out what gifts are worth keeping. What gifts
are you just going to regift and what gifts are
you just going to return? And it's awkward. You never
really want to talk about it with the gift giver,
so to speak. But everybody has these experiences. And I
do want to bring Flounder in on the conversation. I've
(01:27):
already checked during the break he said we could talk
about it. But Flounder, Man, I feel bad for you,
and I know you talk about first world problems. There
are plenty of other people that have at worse than you.
This is your first world problem. Because we had Carl
Wright in what is it for you? It is this
is your first world problem. But also it might be
a little frustrating because I ask you a typical question
(01:48):
when everybody comes back from their holiday break. What'd you get?
What's the most important thing you got, the coolest thing
you got? Just be bopping around and what normal holiday
conversation is. And man, I just did not get a
lot of excitement with what you got. You didn't get
some of the stuff that was on your list. In fact,
I don't think you got anything that was on your list.
Am I cre shirt okay? By Jackson dart t shirt.
(02:11):
So I ask him, just for the people back at home,
to give you a peek behind the curtain. I ask
Flounder in the side studio, what's your favorite thing that
you received? Probably this Jackson Dart T shirt that I'm
wearing as we speak. Okay, was it the biggest, No,
it wasn't the most expensive. Oh, but it was the
most exciting. Yeah, it was the thing that I liked
the most. If you want to explain to the people
(02:32):
what it is that you receive this Christmas and all
the lackluster things, Oh I got.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
I got a sweet, sweet, gigantic box underneath the tree,
and I'm saying, man, this has to be something real special.
Open it up. It's some luggage. Oh no, I get
and I get it. I need luggage. You know. Whenever
I go on trips, I usually have to use the parents'
luggage that they have, which which allows me to store
(02:59):
more stuff in it. I get it. Could we not
save that for a birthday? That's all I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (03:05):
You feel like Christmas you need to get something that
you want, and birthdays might be reserved for something that
you need.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Yeah, that's I mean, that's kind of how I feel.
But you know what.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Look, they put a lot of thought into this stuff
as well, So I'm not I'm not. I want to
make sure that they realize I am very thankful for
my gifts. But at the same time, I was a
little bit disappointed when I opened some of these stuff
under the tree and I did not get any tar
heel gear or which they would say I probably have
too much, or any Drake may gear. I mean, come on,
(03:37):
you didn't get it in the middle of an MVP
race right now.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
Facts, and you had a jersey on your list, correct,
a jersey. I did not have a jersey.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
I did not.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
I had a couple of T shirts from Breaking Tea
for uh for Drake, not the one that's on barstool
that's making the rounds, which I will not say which
shirt it is, but it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
Interesting. Yeah, I know exactly what shirt it is. Man, interesting,
I know exactly what shirt it is. Yeah. Perhaps we
leave there real quick. I was gonna say, we need
to show love since he brought up jerseys for the
jerseys that we got today about you go ahead, man,
go ahead and give him a shout out. I did
forget the uh yeah mineo Dan shout out to you.
Salute to you. Man sent I come in this one
(04:19):
and say, hey, you got a package. I was like
a package. You know what. Some of the people you
see on the computer up here, you gotta be careful
what type of packages you might be getting you out.
But no, I'll send the people that they put on
the computer screen that you aren't allowed here anymore. So
But anyway, man, yeah, manhal Dan sent us some jerseys.
He sent me a D White Clark forty nine ers
throwback in the style that I love sat Walker mellow
(04:41):
JJ Janssen jersey. So salute to you, man, Thank you
so much for those gifts. Shout out to JJ.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
I might tweet it out too, but I got a
JJ Jansen jersey, which, by the way, I just love
because the jersey rules for me are I don't want
to go after the Star. Everybody has the Bryce Young jersey,
the Team Mac jersey, as much as I love them,
Team May.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
I can get a tailor Moton jersey, that's what you need.
That would have been a perfect because it's also under
the radar. It's not Star's Star. There's not a bunch
of tailor Moton jerseys out there. But I also see
probably even fewer JJ Jansen jerseys out there. So I
love that I got it and shout out to JJ
America's long snapper, our long snapper, a man who maybe
(05:21):
once upon a time his job was threatened to be
taken away from him. And no, no, no, All I
do is provide accurate snap upon accurate snap. And so
I got that man's jersey, all right. I would have
gotten you Taylor Moton jersey. I appreciate that. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (05:36):
I would wear it. I would wear a Temo jersey.
So I don't want to return Temo. I wouldn't return
your gift that you gave to me. But there are
some things that I would possibly return. And so here's
the way that the game works. We can either keep
a Panther storyline. We can regift it, which means maybe
you hold on to it and then you give it
away at a later date because it might come to fruition,
(05:58):
or you can just return it because this thing is
never gonna work. It's a terrible gift. I don't agree
with this gift. I'm bringing it right back to Macy's.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
Here we go.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Dave Canalis Coach of the Year Candidacy are you keeping
this idea that he could win Coach of the Year.
Are you regifting it? Maybe he wins it. I don't know,
a year from now, two years from now, maybe there's
a shot and you just want to hold on to
it for a little bit. Or are you returning it
because there's just no way? What is this? This is
socks on Christmas. I don't want socks. This thing is terrible.
(06:26):
I'm going to return into the story.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
I would keep this gift because he has the Panther's
in a position A lot of people didn't think that
they would be in a winning your in scenario, and
if he wins it, even more so. Not to say
that he should be a front runner or get it,
but yeah, his candidacy, no doubt about it, is deserved
because of where he has his team. Yeah he's got
some flaws, but also you have to remember that this
is still a second year head coach.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
I'm regifting in I think it's a good gift, possibly
for somebody else, but for me, it just doesn't fit
quite right. There are too many other things that do
fit better with me, like Mike McDonald winning Coach of
the Year. I don't think anybody expected Seattle to beat
the number one seed in the So you're saying winning
it or just his candidacy in it, Well, I would
go winning it. But also, if you just wanted to
(07:08):
go candidacy, what is a legit chance at winning Coach
of the Year Top five?
Speaker 1 (07:14):
Is that fair? Yeah? I don't think he's top five.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
So if you want to go down the list of
top five, I think it would be Kyle Shanahan, Ben Johnson,
Mike McDonald, Jeff Rickard. Shout out to Jeff Listening to
the show, he texted as Sean Payton. As much as
I can't stand Sean Payton, I don't feel like the
Denver Broncos talent on their roster is an AFC number
one seed, and yet here they are. So I'd put
Sean Payton up there, and Mike rabel Is up there.
(07:40):
I would think all those guys probably deserve it more
than Dave Canalis. Would you agree?
Speaker 1 (07:44):
I would say so. I just felt like his candidacy.
I think there's a case. I think he has a
case to be made to be top five just because
of where he has this team. Now, him winning it,
no doubt about it, I would regive that for sure,
that definitely ok to go to some but candidacy, I
would keep it because I think that's a case you
could slide him in there at five if you wanted
(08:05):
two or four because of the way he has this
Panthers team.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
Yeah, I'm not returning this idea. I think it's decent
enough for somebody to try this on and it might
fit and it works out for them. It does not
work out for me. Real quickly regifting pro or anti regifting?
Are you okay with receiving something that you don't love
and just regifting it to somebody else, or if you're
giving a gift, the thought counts a lot to you
(08:30):
and so you just got to go ahead and hold
on to it even if you don't love it.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
I'm a pretty straightforward guys, so there's not really a
lot of punch pulling with me. But if somebody gives
me a gift and it's thoughtful and it's from the
goodness in their heart, I'm not going to regift it.
I'll keep it, you know, I'll find someone. Now, they
might find it somewhere if they don't like at one point,
I gave you this, but I'm not gonna regift it
because I think that's kind of rude. Uh. Yeah, No,
I'm not gonna regift it.
Speaker 3 (08:54):
I'm definitely not going to return it because they went
through how much to get whatever item that they ended
up get.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
It's going to be one of those things where they're going.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
To say, hey, I haven't seen that shirt A why,
I don't know word.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
Yeah, I don't know where that went. I'll look for
it later.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
Yeah, it depends on if I can regift it to
somebody in a completely different pocket of my life. I
can't tell you that I have ever regifted anything. In fact,
I don't think I have, But I'm just thinking about
the ethics of it. If I have family in Indiana
that gives me a gift and it's just that I'm
going to say to them, I really appreciate this, thank
(09:30):
you very much. And then if I don't use it,
wear it, or whatever within the next calendar year or two,
then I might just regift it to somebody in a
completely different pocket of my life.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yeah, so you'd have got it when they come to
visit and you forget about it, I say, hey, that
looks just like that shirt that I got to you last year.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Maybe, well, if I regifted to a friend, then that
friend just ain't gonna hang out with me. That's just
how it is. Next one on the list, Bryce Young
receiving a contract extension this offseason. Okay, so you're given
this gift and it's Bryce Young agreeing to a term,
a long term deal. Let's just say for something forty
five fifty whatever it is that makes sense to you,
(10:07):
not the fifth year option.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
Because I'm keeping that gift. I think we all would clearly.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
But if I'm giving you a Bryce Young contract extension,
are you keeping it? Are you regifting it? Are you
returning it immediately? Because what are we talking about here?
He just threw for fifty four yards.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
All right? Because I was gonna also ask for extra caveat?
Is this saying that he plays well against him, but
they win and win the division? Are we going just today?
Where we are at today? His agent walks in the
office today. That's what I work. I do, toll right.
So today, if I'm the Panthers, I keep it because
of the fact that we know how quarterback contracts go.
I feel like that this is the cheapest you'll get
(10:45):
him because if he plays really well next year or
let's just say he goes out and balls out in
this next game and the playoffs, this is the cheapest
you'll be able to get him, because if he plays better,
it's only going to get worse. We know how quarterback
contracts go, So let's just say he got four forty five,
which could probably be in arrange that you would want
him at right now forty to forty five. So if
(11:05):
he were to take a deal like that right now,
you know that for one, that's already not going to
put him close to the top anyway. But in another
two years, if you got him playing at Pro Bowl
level and you're paying him that as a bar again,
so I would keep it. I'm not going to return it.
I'll say that, Okay.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
The real conversation for me is holding on to the
gift and just accepting it for what it is, or
holding on to the gift with in with intention of
possibly giving it to somebody else. But maybe it does
end up fitting. Maybe you gain a little weight, maybe
you lose a little weight, and it ends up and
ends up fitting you exactly to your taste.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
I would say, I'm going to hold on to it now.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
But really this fits the regifting category for me, because
really what I want to do with Bryce is hold
on to the fifth year option. Just have him play
on that ands If he balls out next year and
he forces your hand and you have to pay more money,
it's going to sting a little little bit. But think
about what the quote unquote issue is there. He plays
really well and now you have to play it. Pay
a quarterback a decent amount more money because he's earned it.
(12:09):
I'm cool with losing that, with losing that game, if
you will, so I'm gonna hold on to it. I'll
possibly regift it to somebody else right now, but I
do want it to be in existence. I'm not returning
it and allowing it to sit on the shelf for
years and years to you.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
If you paid him forty five, just for you panthon
fans enough, you gave him forty five, I would put
him fourteenth in the league. He'd be tied with Kirk Cousins.
So are you okay with making him anywhere between the
tenth and fourteenth highest paid quarterback? All right, we'll just
make it round numbers tenth and fifteenth. What I'll say
here is forty five. I would do it.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
The problem is, I know I just threw it out there,
so it's my own fault for doing it. I don't
think he's forty five ain't gonna do it. No, I
don't think so either. He'll probably gamble on himself forty five.
I would forty five. I would keep that okay, and
I would be just find a dandy with that present.
Last one here before we move on Temac winning Offensive
Rookie of the Year, I can start first because I
(13:06):
already know the answer here, absolutely keeping it. Part of
the reason here is my god A Mecca Buka is
not doing anything. Yeah, he's fallen off a cliff a
little bit since the guys have come back. It's not
even that Mike Evans and Chris Godwin is back. It's
that Jalen McMillan is back. It's that Tess Johnson has
actually given them more production in terms of what you
(13:27):
would expect, like the kind of impact that your receiver
might have on the game. Man, A Mecca Buka isn't
doing anything. Grizzard, the offensive coordinator hilarious last name. I
think it was Ryan Grizzard. The OC told us that
they're going to try to feed a Mecca Abuka early
in this game, and they just refused to do it.
I don't think I had to catch in the first half.
Eventually ended up with three catches for twenty yards. It's
all at the line of scrimmage. I don't think they
(13:47):
are comfortable with him and him getting separation downfield like
and he was known as this route runner anyway, so
buka out of it. Like I just he did a
lot of his work early on, but man, he's just
it's been so he hasn't provided a whole lot in
the last half of or whatever. And then Trayon Henderson,
I saw Ramandre Stevenson play a better game than him.
(14:09):
Like to me, Yes, I'm gonna keep this gift and
give t mac offensive Rookie of the Year.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Okay, I'm going to regift that to Travion Henderson who
went over one thousand scrimma's yards this week. He did
have eighty two yards yesterday coming off of a concussion,
so he came back and did that. But for Ted McMillan,
since his eight catch, one hundred and thirty yard two
touchdown performance, he's got one hundred and eighty one yards
total in five games, and so you know he's hit
(14:37):
his stretch where the production hasn't been as plentiful. He's
got a twenty five yard game, a thirty five yard game,
and then a five yard game yesterday on one catch.
I know he was sick, but listen, you know how
fans are. Yeah, that's the suit up to come out
there on the field you're playing, So yeah, I would
regift that to Travion Henderson.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
What are you doing, Flander? Do you agree with these gifts?
Keeps regifts? I don't know if you've been paying attention
or he's just getting dreaming about.
Speaker 3 (15:00):
Interesting one is the one at the very end. I
think that you could regift it. And I think there's
a good chance that a guy that we haven't talked
about all the year, Tyler shook.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
He stretch at the end.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
Here he's playing pretty well because they get situated with
the quarterbacks.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
I'm with Walker here in that I know that his
case when he was saying with Travon, he feels like
he's only had a good half of year. But now
for a quarterback and that limited of a sample size,
I couldn't give it to him. But I mean, you know,
he's playing.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Well, and love quarterbacks man, and love quarterbacks for these awards.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
They do so.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
And look, this game didn't help Tmac, no doubt. He
had a great game against Tampa Bay and I think
that put him back on top. And he didn't have
a good game against the Seattle Seahawks and that probably
brought him back a peg. So that's just what it is,
Live Wire. Maybe a couple of other keep, regift or
return items coming up next. Western Walker Sports Radio ninety
two seven WFZ. Welcome back to Wes and Walker. You're
(16:06):
listening to Sports Radio ninety two to seven WFNZ, and
we are recapping the holiday season. We're keeping some of
the gifts, we're regifting them. Some of them were returning,
just saying hey, we don't want this, nobody should have this.
I'm not even going to regifted it's so bad. I'm
going to return this. No thank you. So we've gone
through Dave Canalis Coach of the Year, Candidacy, Bryce Young
receiving a contract extension this offseason, and Temac winning offensive
(16:29):
Rookie of the Year. Now Flounder brought up Tyler Shuck,
who has been baldin man. He's been very, very good
and it has been prolonged at this point where it's
not even just a couple of games, it's not even
just three. Tyler Shuck has looked very good for a
while now, and we saw it up close and personal
a couple of times against the Panthers where it did
feel like the Panthers were almost the launching pad, which
(16:50):
is not a great feeling. But he had early on
his best games against Carolina. Now he's just having a
good outing pretty much every single time that he plays.
There are people that feel good about his candidacy and
not so good about it. On the FanDuel text line,
Bagel Guy says, don't give t mac excuses. Four of
his last five games, he doesn't have any more than
(17:11):
two catches, and then he also says no love for
Tyler Shuck. That's your rookie of the year. JP and
Moresville says shuck stop. Okay, well stop. Backyard Legend says
love t Mac. Love the pick at the time. Brother
needs to stick with two hands though, Yeah, the one
handed grabs, I could deal with it a little bit
(17:31):
early on.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
It needs to stop. Yeah, what's he got like one
of those this year?
Speaker 2 (17:34):
One or two grabs actually with one hand? The ones
that I think he's had with the one hand, I
think they've been called back. Was it a game against
Jacksonville where I think that might have happened, or it
was just a crazy catch. I mean, he's come up
with some impressive catches that have counted, but he's done
this too many times, and like, I get the frustration,
(17:55):
what are we doing here? He looked lost. It looked
like there could have been a better effort. I went
back and watched it. I mean, his left arm is
pinned against the defensive back. Like I don't know if
sometimes he's too smooth where it looks lazy and he's
not putting up enough effort. Because there are some basketball
players that look like this. I was listening to somebody
talk about this with Jalen Johnson, who's just so smooth
and he's destroying everybody, but it doesn't look like he's
(18:17):
trying very hard. I wonder how much of that is
with t Mak if he really needs to go at
it with one hand. But either way, I watched it,
and I thought, real time and even going back, I'd like,
probably a better effort here. Yeah, but what's going on?
Let's go, Let's go out this football with two hands.
So anyways, that's what some of the feelings are on
Team MAC winning Offensive Rookie of the Year. Jac Horn
(18:38):
Pro Bowl not You'll be surprised to know that I
didn't put this here.
Speaker 1 (18:42):
We go back. Yeah, I was laughing this morning when
I'm putting in cause you you. I saw you type
and you had it and I said, I know he's
going to get a kick out of this. And I
went down and Dan, why you were doing it?
Speaker 2 (18:54):
So we have two more. This is Wes's contribution. Jac
Horns Pro Bowl nod. Are you gonna do anything but
returning this West, I'm regifting it. I'm going to go
over there. I'm gonna pack it up. I'm going to
put it in a nice little package, and I'm going
to walk over to the locker of one Mike Jackson.
He can hear or whatever he wants to do once
(19:15):
I bring it over there. But yes, man, I'm going
to take it over there to him, because, like I said,
this young man is having a really good year. He's
got now I believe he has eleven passport because I'm
trying to hunt it down because I had it over
there for me just now, as a matter of fact,
I got it right here.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
Yeah. I mean, you know, he had a career high
tackles yesterday, but he leaves the NFL with nineteen passes defended.
That's the third most enfranchise history. He's also got a
career highe four interceptions. He's number three analytically with PFF
right now. So yeah, I'm going to walk right over
there and hand it to its rightful owner.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
Mike Jackson. The big plays have been an issue. He's
had big mistakes and that's been the problem all year long,
and he's had really good games. San Francisco and the
New York Jets come to mind. I don't think it
was a real big issue the way that he was
playing in the first what maybe six weeks, five weeks
of the season. I thought he was having a really,
really nice year. And then we've seen some of those
mistakes really come back to bite him in Monster games.
(20:13):
I mean, we're look, I'm never one thing I'm going
to do is I'm never going to blame a loss
on the refs. There's just too many other plays that
happened to the game for you to make up for it.
And I'm never really going to put the loss all
on one player. At the same time, I saw a
lot of people on Twitter saying, man, that mistake really
(20:34):
could have costed the Panthers the division and there was
a lot of football to be played after that. The
Panthers could have gotten off of the field on the
third down opportunity and they did not.
Speaker 1 (20:44):
This is part of what football is.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
It's picking up your teammate when they make mistakes, and
there are going to be a lot of mistakes made
throughout the course of a game. At the same time, Buddy,
that's a bad one. It's a real bad one. And
you had the dropped interception as well. What would I do?
I might regive that as well.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
I think j C.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
Horn is a Pro Bowl level player. It's all about
how much do you weigh the mistakes to some of
the things that he was compared to the things that
he's accomplished this season. This is what I do get,
This is what I do want to defend when we
discuss JC. So, Mike Jack has had a very good year.
(21:25):
If you care about the grades, if you care about
whatever the advanced metrics are on him, they've been pretty good.
There is something too, quarterbacks not trying j C.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
Horn.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
That's a thing, And it doesn't mean that they never
throw his way, because every once in a while people
to throw Derel Reeves's way. JAC Horn ain't Darrel Reeves.
But I'm going with the exaggeration to bring you the point.
Speaker 3 (21:46):
J C.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Horn, with all of the cornerbacks that have played at
least even just twenty percent, let's go even fifty percent
of the snaps this year at cornerback, Jac Horn is
one of the least targeted cornerbacks in all of football.
In fact, he's fiftieth among all of the people that
have played that amount of snaps. They don't target him,
So I think what happens here is when they don't,
(22:09):
they don't target JC Horn and instead they target Mike Jack. Well,
now you're trying to target what has been largely considered
the second best corner on this team, and you might
be targeting Mike Jack and putting him at advantageous situations
because you don't want to attack the other side of
the field, which is the idea. Right we see they
play zone coverage. We've seen the age old debate should
(22:30):
they have j C. Horn follow all of these wide
receivers and in reality of Arrow has been sticking to
the script. No, we're gonna have him play one side.
We're gonna have Mike Jack play one side. So we're
gonna throw it to this side, and it takes away
in large part a large portion of the field. That
is because jac Horn is out there. That's been a
thing for him for quite some time, and that they're
always going to attack the other corner, even when Mike
(22:50):
Jack has had a good year. You look at all
the most targeted corners, there's something in common that the
Panthers have with those top corners.
Speaker 1 (22:58):
Right.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
You know who else is the most targeted corner in
all of football? It's Riley Moss. Why are they targeting
Riley Moss because they don't want to throw passer Tan's way?
Why are they targeting the other cornerback for Cleveland because
they don't want to throw Denzel wardsway? Why are they
targeting all of these other Kamari Lassiter is another name
that comes to mind, good corner, but they're gonna target
him over Derek Stingley. So you could look at the
(23:19):
grades and you could see all the mistakes and they're
clearly bad. I just told you I was going to
regift it, but with the J. C. Horn hate that
is overwhelming today because he made a big time mistake
yesterday and I get it right, recency bias, we're gonna
hold a lot to that. At the same time, are
all of these offensive coordinators and all of these quarterbacks
and all of these decision makers for other football teams
(23:40):
just wrong every single week? I don't think that's the
case either. So I think he's a Pro Bowl level player.
I do, but he's also had some big time mistakes
that have cost the Panthers games in large part with
a lot of other mistakes that have been there.
Speaker 1 (23:53):
Yeah, and you know, I think offensive coordinators, you know
football one on one, they're always going to go with
what they proceed to be the better matchup and they're
gonna go at that more likely than not. So there's
no question about that there. But we do see when
teams have receivers that they feel like, you know, of
that Ilk, that they will make sure to you know,
they target him. And I mean he's given up fifteen
(24:13):
yards a catch, which is eighth in the league. And
you know, we've seen olive A and when he plays
with Mike Evans or different guys like that, the teams
will target him, so I think that that plays into
it too. But I mean, you're right, he doesn't get
targeted as much. And Panthers, you know, their opponents, dude,
decide to go over to the other matchup more times
than not. I mean when he played with Action Jackson yet,
(24:35):
I mean I was an easy target right there to
go at him because you knew that you were going
to be able to get some big plays on him,
no doubt about it. It's funny too. He's he's sitting
right there, a number twenty one right now. I know, Dante, Yeah,
hey man, this is not a Stellia. I mean, he's
got a seventy one point seven.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
But still, my Dante Jackson takes are looking better and
better as nobody cares about him anymore.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
But that's what's happened. So J C. Horn pro bow nod.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
We're going to regift it or return it out right,
last one here before we go to the live wire,
because I do have some sound I want to play
with Floundy Rico Dawbell contract extension this offseason, that was
a thing that was large that was talked about quite
a bit. Are we doing that anymore? Do you want
to keep returning that? You returning it?
Speaker 1 (25:17):
Just not with it? Like I said, I you know,
I felt from the jump that the production he had well,
I do think he's a you know, he's a good back,
but I thought that Chuba Hubbard would have put up
similar numbers in those games. And I feel like that
really ever since that Package Gang, you know, he hasn't
really been much of a factor at all. I think
he's a really good player. I do. So we know
what's coming. You think the opposite of this is coming?
(25:41):
When you start with that preface, I'm like, yeah, it's coming.
It comes to hammer. I it depends on what the
deal would be and what the deal is, and I
ultimately I'm probably with you. I mean, the Jonathan Brooks
thing is so weird. I just don't know what to
do with that right now. How healthy is he going
to be? I don't think you can make decisions based
off of his health anymore, because he's proven that he
(26:01):
can't stay healthy right now. But if they're gonna know
more about him than I do, all about his rehabilitation,
and if he is rehabbing quite well, then maybe you
just decide we can save money here, We're gonna stick
with Cuba. They use him in passing situations anyway. Like
I Cuba has a case of the dropsies and it's
been bad this year, but over the last few games
they've been using him a lot on these swing routes
(26:23):
and he's bright shung by the way the accuracy on
those checkdowns, that's impeccable for him, Like he just puts
it right in the spot where Cuba can keep running.
But I'm kind of with you, Wes. I think ultimately,
with all the other things you need to address, maybe
you just go ahead and return the contract extension for
Rico flown. You got some sound ready for us?
Speaker 2 (26:39):
Mm hmm, Okay, let's give the people with some sound
with flounds in the.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
West, with the West the sound down.
Speaker 3 (26:50):
Connect a right, and let's start with the head coach
of the Carolina Panthers talking yesterday after the loss to
the Seahawks, Dave, did you feel the loss out there?
Speaker 1 (27:03):
Did the group feel the loss as a whole?
Speaker 4 (27:05):
Yeah, we definitely feel the missed opportunity, But at the
same time, we know it's in front of us.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
It's clearly defined.
Speaker 4 (27:09):
It was going to come down to this game, us
handling our business and facing the Bucks one more time
on the last game of the season. Couldn't ask for
a better situation for this. The guys are excited and
fired up about that, and you know, we got to
get over the fact that we missed an opportunity, you know,
with the Bucks losing that game. So but our focus
has to go to the next one really quickly.
Speaker 3 (27:27):
All right, So, how do you guys feel like Panther
fan should be feeling? My explanation for this is we
had a Robert Hunt fan yesterday. He was in a
Robert Hunt jersey walking back to a similar area that
we were, and he was saying, how Panther fans should
be looking up.
Speaker 1 (27:42):
They still got a chance next week.
Speaker 3 (27:44):
Even if they don't end up winning, this is still
a season, a step in the right direction. How do
you feel like they should be feeling about their team
after a twenty seven to ten loss yesterday?
Speaker 1 (27:56):
It was tough because, like you said, that is one
of those games that the final result you don't like it,
But the game did flip on his head once that
penalty occurred. What would have happened after that? You were
hanging in with the Seattle Seahawks after that, and I
feel like that after that penalty, that the air was
just kind of let out of the team and the building.
To be frank, but I think if you come out
(28:16):
of it, you're a little worried because this team I
don't believe has earned the trust of their fan base,
and a spot like this, it's like, Okay, if you
lose a Seattle thirty four to twenty seven, you come
out of it like, well, you know, we feel confident
about this and that going in the next week. I
feel like we should be good here or there. But
as we said, things kind of got exposed. You got
(28:37):
dominated up front on both sides of the ball. Not
that Tampa has Seattle's personnel, but it's like they lose
this game, and that just puts just a little bit
of doubt in your head to where you say, all
right now, we felt like that they passed the tests
finally in a big spot when they beat Tampa the
first time, But it's still a little bit of doubt
there to yourself to say, can they do this again
(29:00):
on Tampa's tart, because that would really make a statement
to go in there and take everything in their building
Tampa has been on an all time crash out. They have.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
Nothing is going right for them. Their loan win in
the second half of the season came against the Arizona Cardinals,
and the Cardinals have been absolutely terrible. They beat them
by a field goal. They beat them twenty to seventeen
despite that passing defense. Is that a historically bad passing defense,
just like what the Panthers rushing defense was, because they're
giving up yards left and right, and it takes ja
(29:31):
Kobe Brissett to throw for three hundred just to only
lose by fourteen to all of these teams. That's the
loan win Tampa has. They have all the signs of
crash out. Coach going to the public to call everybody out.
They lose immediately after that call out. Oh, there's no
way they're going to lose to Miami with Quinn you
were starting at quarterback. Except that's exactly what happened in
(29:52):
Miami handled them pretty well. Baker Mayfield's throwing for all
of these interceptions. Bucky Irving is barking back and forth
with their the best left tackle, one of the best
left tackles in the league, and Tristan Wurfs every single thing.
Everything they show us is they're not a good football
team anymore. You go back all the way to the
bye week, they have one win. They are one and
(30:14):
seven in their last eight mm hm. Can Carolina be
what has been wes the worst team in the league
since that point? And that's the thing I would ask
you too, Does that make it? Because I know the
optimism you say, it's a step in the right direction
and all that stuff, and.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
You should feel that way. But if you lost this
game in this spot to this team the way that
they're playing, like, how much more does that add insult
to injury? I think it's bad. I know I'm with
you think so too.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
No, it's because Tampa Bay they are so bad right
now and they lose to the I've gone through all
the losses and you get the idea. Some of them
are one score games. So if you wanted to subscribe
to the theory that things are going to regress to
the mean, I do understand that all the one score games,
it's tough to keep that going. At some point they're
gonna have to win. But I would argue they're already
(31:00):
regressing right Think about the games that they want at
the beginning of the season, they won the one score games.
Now they're losing them, and they're even getting beat down
in some of these scenarios against all the good teams,
like the Buffalo Bills they lost by double digits. Against
the Rams they lost by double digits. Yeah, I think
you're right about that. Like, it's a good point to
(31:20):
bring up. So if they lose to Tampa, it's going
to look bad for this coaching staff and company. And
I think Carolina can still get it done. We'll give
our official predictions later on in the week, but yeah,
I think they have a great opportunity in front of him.
Speaker 3 (31:33):
All right, let's stick with Dave talking about excels off
sides penalty.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Yeah, the official tried to try to warn him. He
was trying. He was telling him he's had his foot there.
Speaker 4 (31:40):
He was trying to let him know, and you know,
Xavier kind of didn't didn't see what he was doing
and thought he was okay on that.
Speaker 1 (31:45):
So we got to clean that up. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (31:47):
Not great with lines on the field, even the invisible ones.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
He has absolutely no idea where he's supposed to be going. Uh.
Speaker 3 (31:53):
When you look at Xel, you know, we saw yesterday.
I noticed it throughout the game, started seeing a little
less of him, little more Jimmy Horn, he was out
there a little bit more. Do you think we're maybe
seeing the final days of Excel as a part of
this starting receiving core, the starting trio that they have.
Speaker 1 (32:12):
Yeah, because I think that you know cannounces, he can
say whatever he wants about. You know, they're still with
him this, that and the third. But like you said,
things like that, and also just the mistakes that we
see where you know that they see it, and it's
been repetitive mistakes. People talking about his situational awareness and
different things like that, and we're seeing it over and
over again. And it's like, dude, like sometimes you get
(32:33):
frustated because you like due that you're a pro receiver
like that all because you feel like some of the
things like toad drags, keeping both feet in, you feel
like that's receiver one on one of the NFL. If
you want a chance to make a roster, you need
to be able to do those things. And he has
not mastered those things, man, And like you said, with him,
just the optics, it's just so bad. He couldn't have
asked for worse here, And I'm not going to say
I predicted it anything like that, but I just felt
(32:55):
like it was just too much focus on all the
wrong things for him, and his season has gone according
to what his off season looked like, and so for him,
he is just in a lot of trouble right now.
With Jimmy Harnt, I'm like, hey, I'll throw him a
dog on pass and quit treating him like. I know
he's a bit of a gadget player. He's small, but
good lord, can't throw them something past a line of scrimmage.
Speaker 2 (33:16):
They didn't throw anybody pass passed the line of scrimmage.
Gener me, it's always a reverse. Yeah, that's fair. I
think they're just trying to get the ball in his hands.
But I'm one hundred percent with you. I'd like to
see some go balls here for anybody. And look, I
guess that's when Xcel has had most of his success.
I go back to that Atlanta game when he had
the go ball, had the touchdown since then where it
felt like, hey, maybe Xcel is finally starting to contribute
(33:37):
at a higher level.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
He has not.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
Twenty two thirty nine are the biggest receiving totals that
he's posted, and even still, we just see so many
of these mistakes and the off season, as much as
we talked about it going back and forth, I would say,
if if you feel like the off season contributed to this,
that means you still feel like he has the ability
to put it all together. And I just don't know
if that's true. I I just don't he makes too
(34:01):
many mistakes all the time. Point because he's he is,
he's playing in the season right now. Like he's not
doing any of the music videos in the last month,
the last two months, the last three months, that was
all in the off season. So what's happening at practice
right now? Like if you thought that then it's all right,
Well he's got all the ability now that he's with
Dave Canalis and Bryce Young every day. Now he's going
(34:21):
to start figuring it out. And we're still seeing the
same bone headed mistakes. And the other thing I'll mention
is they have another offseason to acquire different wide receivers
through free agency or the draft. That's a position where
you can just keep reloading because of how many wide
receivers you keep on a roster man. At some point
you just start to get pushed down the spot like
you're just going to be the third right now, fourth, fifth.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
And now you just might not even be on the roster.
Maybe there's I'm in the same position as Tariss Marshall
next year. I feel like and I think to one
thing that you know, I don't know his training habits.
I'm not gonna, you know, pretend to know. And I'm
not talking about work ethic. I'm just talking about the
way he's going about things. Yeah, because of the situation,
win and stuff. Like I said, I mean, get what
a to or get with some of these big bodied
(35:04):
retired receivers that can help because when you do see
some of the training, like they said Cam Newton brought
it up in one of his things. You see him
doing all this stuff that does not, for one, translate
to the game on the field, and then you're training
like a little guy. It's like, man, you need to
you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (35:21):
It's no hate to the Route God, go put out
your hustle. The problem with the Route God is I've
seen two Panthers receivers work with him and get a
lot of hype during the offseason, and those guys have
flamed out. Miserably so, Deontay Johnson being the first the
guys that have worked with the Route God here in Carolina,
Deontay Johnson and Excel. Maybe we just don't work out
(35:43):
with him anyfo.
Speaker 1 (35:43):
You think the last thing I actually do before we
go to break, do you think he's too nice? Because
he's got such a personality. He's such a nice guy,
and there's nothing wrong with that. But as I said, man,
you are two thirty. You should just be exerting your
will on guys and just physically dominated cats, blocking and
catching the ball. And I just feel like what his personality.
(36:04):
I'm like, is it Daddy's too Now? I don't know.
This is all speculating, No, And I get the question too.
I mean, I can't help but go back to the
preseason when he fought some dudes against Cleveland, like he
wasn't putting up with anything there. I wish you would
have put up with a little more so you could
have played that right and I got kicked out, but
it did show some aggression. You're right, you would think
that he would be great at attacking. He did attack
(36:26):
the football downfield at South Carolina. That happened.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
It's a different level, though, and right now we're just
not seeing a lot.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
I hate it.
Speaker 2 (36:32):
I wanted to work out for him, but every time
we watch him play football, it just doesn't work out.
We have one more segment to go. It's the walk
off coming up next. Sports Radio ninety two seven WFZ.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
Are you a challenge for me to walk off? Oh? Yeah,
that's a walk off challenge, my friend. It's a walk off.
It's a walk off. One one segment to go on.
Speaker 2 (37:06):
Weston Walker broadcasting live from the Chandler Vault to studios
at CV Injury Law dot com. CV Injury Law dot Com.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
One call.
Speaker 2 (37:13):
That's all the Carolinas personal injury lawyers. Dave Canalis speaking
with media just a little while ago, probably within the
last hour, and he spoke about the pressure Bryce Young
might be facing versus the Seahawks, the actual in game pressure,
not the proverbial on the shoulders.
Speaker 1 (37:29):
How do you perform under pressure?
Speaker 2 (37:31):
No, I mean there was actual pass rushing pressure that
he had to deal with. That's life in the big leagues.
Dave said, I didn't see the offensive line as a
limiting factor of what we could do yesterday, which to
me is interesting because it does run in direct contrast
with what he was talking about to some degree yesterday.
Speaker 1 (37:46):
I guess with Dave.
Speaker 2 (37:47):
Canalis discussing the lack of deep shot opportunities, and he's
addressed this a couple of times this season. Maybe he's
putting that more on the defense, the way they were
playing and the wide receivers not getting separations, not getting open,
and Bryce Young not wanting to throw where the defense
was more so than he puts it on the offensive line.
If you were to put his comments from yesterday and
(38:08):
today together, it feels like he doesn't blame the old
line as much as he does pretty much everything else surround.
Speaker 1 (38:14):
Again, Yeah, which is interesting. I think that you know
the offensive line, as I said, I pointed out the
run game being kind of ineffective. They had their moments,
and you felt like that Bryce was under pressure a lot.
But coach, he also is watching the tape. He knows
what he calls, he knows how things should look. So
maybe there was a bit of that.
Speaker 2 (38:30):
And if you care about pass blocking grains, Ikey Kwanu
had an eighty one, Timo had a seventy three. Then
you go down to Cade Mays who had a sixty
four point eight. It's not bad. It was the guards West.
It was the guards an interior pass rush.
Speaker 1 (38:46):
That Damien Lewis he was not he was not up the.
Speaker 2 (38:50):
Paw Yes and Austin Corbett gave up quite a bit.
And in true pass sets if you care about that
sort of thing too. It was the interior offensive line.
So really on the outside outside of one of the games,
close to the end of the game here one of
the plays there, Icky quantity did give up a pressure,
but really it was from the inside. And as quarterbacks
(39:10):
will say constantly, interior pass rush is king. It's really hard.
You can't step up in the pocket. Now you've got
to roll out. It cuts the field in half. You
can't throw across your body. Now you're asking only the
defense to cover however many yards on that side, and.
Speaker 1 (39:22):
They put some more press on a tackle and make
you give up sack.
Speaker 2 (39:24):
No doubt, no doubt. So interior pass rush, if you
can provide it, then it's going to hurt the offense.
Speaker 1 (39:30):
I know.
Speaker 2 (39:31):
Look, we try to give him love and they just
didn't do it here. That's a tough assignment though, no doubt.
Some more comments coming in from Dave Canalis, as reported
by some of the people over there. With Dave's media availability,
Dave did say that they're considering playing guard Rob Hunt
and wide receiver David Moore this week versus Tampa Bay
the end of the regular season, possibly getting I would
(39:54):
still think one of their two best guards.
Speaker 1 (39:55):
I think David Moore is going to really help them
stretch the field. Maybe he's a guy those system. He
will catch the football, he can get open. I think
he's going to help immensely if he comes back.
Speaker 2 (40:05):
Maybe some rust stuff there, hopefully not as much just
going back from injury, the blown out elbow, as he
described it, it seems like you would rather be one
hundred percent before you get out there on the football
field and you know, not have to deal with any
other lingering injuries there with the blown out elbow. Let's
tell you what's on tap, presented by Twin Peaks. Twin
Peaks has locations in Concord and Fort Mill. Twin Peaks
(40:28):
is your local sports lodge you can come in from,
made from scratch food and signature twenty nine degree draft beers.
We have Monday night football rams at Falcons eight point
fifteen on ESPN. I will tell you for yours truly.
I am in two Fantasy Football championship games.
Speaker 1 (40:46):
Oh, sweating out of Monday Night. Monday Night Mail.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
We are one hundred percent sweating out a Monday Night
because in both of those games I am a fifty
one percent favorite in each of those leagues. I mean,
it is neck and neck, and I do have Puka
Nakua in both of these matchess. Okay, that's good. Who
you going up against, that's the key. Though in one
league I'm going up against Drake London, so not great.
(41:11):
But I again, I have Puka's still feeling good. In
one league, Okay, I'm down, I don't know, thirty or whatever,
but I have Matthew Stafford and Puka, so I get
to double tip that's been helping me get to the championship.
And I'm also starting Blake Krum. Okay, he's been productive,
but that's a lot of trust in the Rams offense.
And then in the other league it's just Puka and Blake.
(41:33):
But again, I've called the Atlanta defense fraudulent all season long.
I'm hoping that one more Hayton, one more piece of
Hayton from your boy in Atlanta can get me a
championship game. I'm putting my money where my mouth is.
Quite literally, I've got the Rams to win. And by
the way, if the Rams win, it would get rid
of this weird scenario where if Atlanta wins out, the
(41:56):
Panthers would actually still find themselves as NFC South champions.
Speaker 1 (41:59):
Because true enough, Panther fan, that's what I'm hearing.
Speaker 2 (42:01):
Yeah, I think the Rams are gonna take care of
business here tonight. So if they do that, then that
scenario goes out the window, and then we really just
have to focus on the Panthers beating Tampa Bay. I
do think that's eventually gonna happen. Yeah, I'll go with
the Rams here, man. But man, you saying that definitely
brings me back.
Speaker 1 (42:17):
It brings some bad memories sweating out of Monday night
game when you feel like something is a short thing.
You think, sure though, you think Stafford's gonna come in
and ball out. He throws two or three pigs, sack fumble,
Well it was Luca pulls a hammy. They don't want
to risk it in the first Drave like, oh man,
but I'm gonna go with the Rams and I'm gonna
go walk them out to take them two championships.
Speaker 3 (42:38):
This is tough because, in one light, if the Falcons win,
it keeps your hopes alive to make the playoffs, but
it also sort of devalues your biggest win of the
season against the Rams. At the same time, if the
Rams win that that win is validated. But at the
(42:59):
same time, you're looking at a scenario where you absolutely
cannot lose next week. The Falcons, man, they're a weird team, right,
They've been on Prime time a lot this year. They
have some weird wins. I mean, somehow be Buffalo. I think, yeah,
I'm gonna go with the Rams. I think they'll win
this one, but it'll be close. I think the Falcons
(43:21):
will keep up, but I do think LA eventually wins
the game.
Speaker 2 (43:24):
All right, we're all going Rams. And again, if the
Rams do win, that would mean the Panthers only shot
at winning the division would be straight up by beating
in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this weekend. Last thing, app State.
They're playing Georgia Southern right now in the Birmingham Bowl.
It feels like app State. It really feels like the
Birmingham Bowl is the Appalachian State Invitational.
Speaker 1 (43:44):
APP State. They are down.
Speaker 2 (43:45):
George Southern is up ten to nothing as it currently stands,
George Southern just hit a field goal to extend their
lead to ten nothing. There's nine minutes left to go
in the second quarter a rivalry bowl game, and I
would expect George Southern to continue to hold on. Remember
app State made a bowl game as a five win team,
so George Southern I would expect them to hold on
(44:05):
with a ten point difference already.
Speaker 1 (44:08):
You think the Mountaineers can make it a game. Uh No,
I'll stick with Georgia Southern. You know, no love for
apple over here?
Speaker 2 (44:12):
Yeah, I know the fake black and goals, right right? Okay,
what you got of it there?
Speaker 3 (44:16):
Okay, Well, I'll say that I believe that app State
probably loses this game, but mainly because of the fact
that they don't have either of their quarterbacks as far
as I know, I think maybe AJ Swant's playing in
this game, but I know it's not JJ Cole. So
if they're without both of their quarterbacks, yeah, that's that's
pretty tough.
Speaker 1 (44:34):
Got to give some love to the Charlotte Hornets. They
played the Bucks Hornets looking pretty good. We dodged a
serious injury. Get excited who dodged a serious injury with
kan Ka Nipple where the X rays came back negative
on his ankle injury.
Speaker 2 (44:46):
He is out. He will not play tonight against the Bucks.
But the Hornets are eleven and twenty. They had a
big win against the Orlando in that game that Con
did get injured in. That was over the weekend, So
we'll see what the Hornets are able to do tonight.
Of course, you can listen to that game right here
on Sports Raded ninety two seven WFNZ seven o'clock tip
Milwaukee is a three and a half point favorite. Giannis
is back. I'm gonna go with the Hornets, rapid fire,
(45:08):
what you got, I'm going.
Speaker 1 (45:09):
On Hornet Hornets.
Speaker 3 (45:11):
By the way, Willie p on pregame tonight, there you go,
be all right, iowen Willie all right speaking to Kyle.
Speaker 2 (45:16):
It's his show coming up next alongside Smoke Ludwig. You're
listening to Sports Radio ninety two seven WFNZ.
Speaker 1 (45:23):
Listen to the Wes and Walker Show weekis from noon
to three only on Sports Radio ninety two point seven
FM UFNZ, the
Speaker 3 (45:32):
Official home of the Charlotte Sports Fan
You're listening to the Wes and Walker Show. After the
latest College footballlayoff rankings. Which team do we think would
fare the best in the college football playoffs? It's Wes
SMU Miamis and Walker. My Dog going Wow, my dog
going through it. Only on Sports Radio ninety two point
seven FM WFNZ.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
We're gonna pick you up. Man, We're gonna pick you up.
One more hour to go on Western Walker Sports Radio
ninety two to seven WFNZ. We're broadcasting live from the
channel Vaulta Studios Cvinjurylaw dot Com, CV Injurylaw dot Com.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
One call. That's all the.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
Carolinas personal injury lawyers. We've been reading a lot of
text messages on the world famous WFNZ FanDuel text line
seven oh four five seven oh ninety six to ten. Again,
the Fandel text line number is seven oh four five
seven oh ninety six ten. The people writing about the Panthers,
And here we are talking about some of the Panthers'
gifts that they've given us or they have the potential
(01:06):
to give us. At the end of the season, and
as we often do around the holiday break, you got
to figure out what gifts are worth keeping. What gifts
are you just going to regift and what gifts are
you just going to return? And it's awkward. You never
really want to talk about it with the gift giver,
so to speak. But everybody has these experiences. And I
do want to bring Flounder in on the conversation. I've
(01:27):
already checked during the break he said we could talk
about it. But Flounder, Man, I feel bad for you,
and I know you talk about first world problems. There
are plenty of other people that have at worse than you.
This is your first world problem. Because we had Carl
Wright in what is it for you? It is this
is your first world problem. But also it might be
a little frustrating because I ask you a typical question
(01:48):
when everybody comes back from their holiday break. What'd you get?
What's the most important thing you got, the coolest thing
you got? Just be bopping around and what normal holiday
conversation is. And man, I just did not get a
lot of excitement with what you got. You didn't get
some of the stuff that was on your list. In fact,
I don't think you got anything that was on your list.
Am I cre shirt okay? By Jackson dart t shirt.
(02:11):
So I ask him, just for the people back at home,
to give you a peek behind the curtain. I ask
Flounder in the side studio, what's your favorite thing that
you received? Probably this Jackson Dart T shirt that I'm
wearing as we speak. Okay, was it the biggest, No,
it wasn't the most expensive. Oh, but it was the
most exciting. Yeah, it was the thing that I liked
the most. If you want to explain to the people
(02:32):
what it is that you receive this Christmas and all
the lackluster things, Oh I got.
Speaker 3 (02:36):
I got a sweet, sweet, gigantic box underneath the tree,
and I'm saying, man, this has to be something real special.
Open it up. It's some luggage. Oh no, I get
and I get it. I need luggage. You know. Whenever
I go on trips, I usually have to use the parents'
luggage that they have, which which allows me to store
(02:59):
more stuff in it. I get it. Could we not
save that for a birthday? That's all I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (03:05):
You feel like Christmas you need to get something that
you want, and birthdays might be reserved for something that
you need.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Yeah, that's I mean, that's kind of how I feel.
But you know what.
Speaker 3 (03:13):
Look, they put a lot of thought into this stuff
as well, So I'm not I'm not. I want to
make sure that they realize I am very thankful for
my gifts. But at the same time, I was a
little bit disappointed when I opened some of these stuff
under the tree and I did not get any tar
heel gear or which they would say I probably have
too much, or any Drake may gear. I mean, come on,
(03:37):
you didn't get it in the middle of an MVP
race right now.
Speaker 2 (03:40):
Facts, and you had a jersey on your list, correct,
a jersey. I did not have a jersey.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
I did not.
Speaker 3 (03:46):
I had a couple of T shirts from Breaking Tea
for uh for Drake, not the one that's on barstool
that's making the rounds, which I will not say which
shirt it is, but it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
Interesting. Yeah, I know exactly what shirt it is. Man, interesting,
I know exactly what shirt it is. Yeah. Perhaps we
leave there real quick. I was gonna say, we need
to show love since he brought up jerseys for the
jerseys that we got today about you go ahead, man,
go ahead and give him a shout out. I did
forget the uh yeah mineo Dan shout out to you.
Salute to you. Man sent I come in this one
(04:19):
and say, hey, you got a package. I was like
a package. You know what. Some of the people you
see on the computer up here, you gotta be careful
what type of packages you might be getting you out.
But no, I'll send the people that they put on
the computer screen that you aren't allowed here anymore. So
But anyway, man, yeah, manhal Dan sent us some jerseys.
He sent me a D White Clark forty nine ers
throwback in the style that I love sat Walker mellow
(04:41):
JJ Janssen jersey. So salute to you, man, Thank you
so much for those gifts. Shout out to JJ.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
I might tweet it out too, but I got a
JJ Jansen jersey, which, by the way, I just love
because the jersey rules for me are I don't want
to go after the Star. Everybody has the Bryce Young jersey,
the Team Mac jersey, as much as I love them,
Team May.
Speaker 1 (05:00):
I can get a tailor Moton jersey, that's what you need.
That would have been a perfect because it's also under
the radar. It's not Star's Star. There's not a bunch
of tailor Moton jerseys out there. But I also see
probably even fewer JJ Jansen jerseys out there. So I
love that I got it and shout out to JJ
America's long snapper, our long snapper, a man who maybe
(05:21):
once upon a time his job was threatened to be
taken away from him. And no, no, no, All I
do is provide accurate snap upon accurate snap. And so
I got that man's jersey, all right. I would have
gotten you Taylor Moton jersey. I appreciate that. Thank you.
Speaker 2 (05:36):
I would wear it. I would wear a Temo jersey.
So I don't want to return Temo. I wouldn't return
your gift that you gave to me. But there are
some things that I would possibly return. And so here's
the way that the game works. We can either keep
a Panther storyline. We can regift it, which means maybe
you hold on to it and then you give it
away at a later date because it might come to fruition,
(05:58):
or you can just return it because this thing is
never gonna work. It's a terrible gift. I don't agree
with this gift. I'm bringing it right back to Macy's.
Speaker 1 (06:05):
Here we go.
Speaker 2 (06:06):
Dave Canalis Coach of the Year Candidacy are you keeping
this idea that he could win Coach of the Year.
Are you regifting it? Maybe he wins it. I don't know,
a year from now, two years from now, maybe there's
a shot and you just want to hold on to
it for a little bit. Or are you returning it
because there's just no way? What is this? This is
socks on Christmas. I don't want socks. This thing is terrible.
(06:26):
I'm going to return into the story.
Speaker 1 (06:27):
I would keep this gift because he has the Panther's
in a position A lot of people didn't think that
they would be in a winning your in scenario, and
if he wins it, even more so. Not to say
that he should be a front runner or get it,
but yeah, his candidacy, no doubt about it, is deserved
because of where he has his team. Yeah he's got
some flaws, but also you have to remember that this
is still a second year head coach.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
I'm regifting in I think it's a good gift, possibly
for somebody else, but for me, it just doesn't fit
quite right. There are too many other things that do
fit better with me, like Mike McDonald winning Coach of
the Year. I don't think anybody expected Seattle to beat
the number one seed in the So you're saying winning
it or just his candidacy in it, Well, I would
go winning it. But also, if you just wanted to
(07:08):
go candidacy, what is a legit chance at winning Coach
of the Year Top five?
Speaker 1 (07:14):
Is that fair? Yeah? I don't think he's top five.
Speaker 2 (07:17):
So if you want to go down the list of
top five, I think it would be Kyle Shanahan, Ben Johnson,
Mike McDonald, Jeff Rickard. Shout out to Jeff Listening to
the show, he texted as Sean Payton. As much as
I can't stand Sean Payton, I don't feel like the
Denver Broncos talent on their roster is an AFC number
one seed, and yet here they are. So I'd put
Sean Payton up there, and Mike rabel Is up there.
(07:40):
I would think all those guys probably deserve it more
than Dave Canalis. Would you agree?
Speaker 1 (07:44):
I would say so. I just felt like his candidacy.
I think there's a case. I think he has a
case to be made to be top five just because
of where he has this team. Now, him winning it,
no doubt about it, I would regive that for sure,
that definitely ok to go to some but candidacy, I
would keep it because I think that's a case you
could slide him in there at five if you wanted
(08:05):
two or four because of the way he has this
Panthers team.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
Yeah, I'm not returning this idea. I think it's decent
enough for somebody to try this on and it might
fit and it works out for them. It does not
work out for me. Real quickly regifting pro or anti regifting?
Are you okay with receiving something that you don't love
and just regifting it to somebody else, or if you're
giving a gift, the thought counts a lot to you
(08:30):
and so you just got to go ahead and hold
on to it even if you don't love it.
Speaker 1 (08:33):
I'm a pretty straightforward guys, so there's not really a
lot of punch pulling with me. But if somebody gives
me a gift and it's thoughtful and it's from the
goodness in their heart, I'm not going to regift it.
I'll keep it, you know, I'll find someone. Now, they
might find it somewhere if they don't like at one point,
I gave you this, but I'm not gonna regift it
because I think that's kind of rude. Uh. Yeah, No,
I'm not gonna regift it.
Speaker 3 (08:54):
I'm definitely not going to return it because they went
through how much to get whatever item that they ended
up get.
Speaker 1 (09:00):
It's going to be one of those things where they're going.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
To say, hey, I haven't seen that shirt A why,
I don't know word.
Speaker 1 (09:07):
Yeah, I don't know where that went. I'll look for
it later.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
Yeah, it depends on if I can regift it to
somebody in a completely different pocket of my life. I
can't tell you that I have ever regifted anything. In fact,
I don't think I have, But I'm just thinking about
the ethics of it. If I have family in Indiana
that gives me a gift and it's just that I'm
going to say to them, I really appreciate this, thank
(09:30):
you very much. And then if I don't use it,
wear it, or whatever within the next calendar year or two,
then I might just regift it to somebody in a
completely different pocket of my life.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yeah, so you'd have got it when they come to
visit and you forget about it, I say, hey, that
looks just like that shirt that I got to you last year.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Maybe, well, if I regifted to a friend, then that
friend just ain't gonna hang out with me. That's just
how it is. Next one on the list, Bryce Young
receiving a contract extension this offseason. Okay, so you're given
this gift and it's Bryce Young agreeing to a term,
a long term deal. Let's just say for something forty
five fifty whatever it is that makes sense to you,
(10:07):
not the fifth year option.
Speaker 1 (10:09):
Because I'm keeping that gift. I think we all would clearly.
Speaker 2 (10:11):
But if I'm giving you a Bryce Young contract extension,
are you keeping it? Are you regifting it? Are you
returning it immediately? Because what are we talking about here?
He just threw for fifty four yards.
Speaker 1 (10:24):
All right? Because I was gonna also ask for extra caveat?
Is this saying that he plays well against him, but
they win and win the division? Are we going just today?
Where we are at today? His agent walks in the
office today. That's what I work. I do, toll right.
So today, if I'm the Panthers, I keep it because
of the fact that we know how quarterback contracts go.
I feel like that this is the cheapest you'll get
(10:45):
him because if he plays really well next year or
let's just say he goes out and balls out in
this next game and the playoffs, this is the cheapest
you'll be able to get him, because if he plays better,
it's only going to get worse. We know how quarterback
contracts go, So let's just say he got four forty five,
which could probably be in arrange that you would want
him at right now forty to forty five. So if
(11:05):
he were to take a deal like that right now,
you know that for one, that's already not going to
put him close to the top anyway. But in another
two years, if you got him playing at Pro Bowl
level and you're paying him that as a bar again,
so I would keep it. I'm not going to return it.
I'll say that, Okay.
Speaker 2 (11:24):
The real conversation for me is holding on to the
gift and just accepting it for what it is, or
holding on to the gift with in with intention of
possibly giving it to somebody else. But maybe it does
end up fitting. Maybe you gain a little weight, maybe
you lose a little weight, and it ends up and
ends up fitting you exactly to your taste.
Speaker 1 (11:42):
I would say, I'm going to hold on to it now.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
But really this fits the regifting category for me, because
really what I want to do with Bryce is hold
on to the fifth year option. Just have him play
on that ands If he balls out next year and
he forces your hand and you have to pay more money,
it's going to sting a little little bit. But think
about what the quote unquote issue is there. He plays
really well and now you have to play it. Pay
a quarterback a decent amount more money because he's earned it.
(12:09):
I'm cool with losing that, with losing that game, if
you will, so I'm gonna hold on to it. I'll
possibly regift it to somebody else right now, but I
do want it to be in existence. I'm not returning
it and allowing it to sit on the shelf for
years and years to you.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
If you paid him forty five, just for you panthon
fans enough, you gave him forty five, I would put
him fourteenth in the league. He'd be tied with Kirk Cousins.
So are you okay with making him anywhere between the
tenth and fourteenth highest paid quarterback? All right, we'll just
make it round numbers tenth and fifteenth. What I'll say
here is forty five. I would do it.
Speaker 2 (12:45):
The problem is, I know I just threw it out there,
so it's my own fault for doing it. I don't
think he's forty five ain't gonna do it. No, I
don't think so either. He'll probably gamble on himself forty five.
I would forty five. I would keep that okay, and
I would be just find a dandy with that present.
Last one here before we move on Temac winning Offensive
Rookie of the Year, I can start first because I
(13:06):
already know the answer here, absolutely keeping it. Part of
the reason here is my god A Mecca Buka is
not doing anything. Yeah, he's fallen off a cliff a
little bit since the guys have come back. It's not
even that Mike Evans and Chris Godwin is back. It's
that Jalen McMillan is back. It's that Tess Johnson has
actually given them more production in terms of what you
(13:27):
would expect, like the kind of impact that your receiver
might have on the game. Man, A Mecca Buka isn't
doing anything. Grizzard, the offensive coordinator hilarious last name. I
think it was Ryan Grizzard. The OC told us that
they're going to try to feed a Mecca Abuka early
in this game, and they just refused to do it.
I don't think I had to catch in the first half.
Eventually ended up with three catches for twenty yards. It's
all at the line of scrimmage. I don't think they
(13:47):
are comfortable with him and him getting separation downfield like
and he was known as this route runner anyway, so
buka out of it. Like I just he did a
lot of his work early on, but man, he's just
it's been so he hasn't provided a whole lot in
the last half of or whatever. And then Trayon Henderson,
I saw Ramandre Stevenson play a better game than him.
(14:09):
Like to me, Yes, I'm gonna keep this gift and
give t mac offensive Rookie of the Year.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
Okay, I'm going to regift that to Travion Henderson who
went over one thousand scrimma's yards this week. He did
have eighty two yards yesterday coming off of a concussion,
so he came back and did that. But for Ted McMillan,
since his eight catch, one hundred and thirty yard two
touchdown performance, he's got one hundred and eighty one yards
total in five games, and so you know he's hit
(14:37):
his stretch where the production hasn't been as plentiful. He's
got a twenty five yard game, a thirty five yard game,
and then a five yard game yesterday on one catch.
I know he was sick, but listen, you know how
fans are. Yeah, that's the suit up to come out
there on the field you're playing, So yeah, I would
regift that to Travion Henderson.
Speaker 2 (14:54):
What are you doing, Flander? Do you agree with these gifts?
Keeps regifts? I don't know if you've been paying attention
or he's just getting dreaming about.
Speaker 3 (15:00):
Interesting one is the one at the very end. I
think that you could regift it. And I think there's
a good chance that a guy that we haven't talked
about all the year, Tyler shook.
Speaker 1 (15:13):
He stretch at the end.
Speaker 3 (15:14):
Here he's playing pretty well because they get situated with
the quarterbacks.
Speaker 1 (15:19):
I'm with Walker here in that I know that his
case when he was saying with Travon, he feels like
he's only had a good half of year. But now
for a quarterback and that limited of a sample size,
I couldn't give it to him. But I mean, you know,
he's playing.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Well, and love quarterbacks man, and love quarterbacks for these awards.
Speaker 1 (15:35):
They do so.
Speaker 2 (15:36):
And look, this game didn't help Tmac, no doubt. He
had a great game against Tampa Bay and I think
that put him back on top. And he didn't have
a good game against the Seattle Seahawks and that probably
brought him back a peg. So that's just what it is,
Live Wire. Maybe a couple of other keep, regift or
return items coming up next. Western Walker Sports Radio ninety
two seven WFZ. Welcome back to Wes and Walker. You're
(16:06):
listening to Sports Radio ninety two to seven WFNZ, and
we are recapping the holiday season. We're keeping some of
the gifts, we're regifting them. Some of them were returning,
just saying hey, we don't want this, nobody should have this.
I'm not even going to regifted it's so bad. I'm
going to return this. No thank you. So we've gone
through Dave Canalis Coach of the Year, Candidacy, Bryce Young
receiving a contract extension this offseason, and Temac winning offensive
(16:29):
Rookie of the Year. Now Flounder brought up Tyler Shuck,
who has been baldin man. He's been very, very good
and it has been prolonged at this point where it's
not even just a couple of games, it's not even
just three. Tyler Shuck has looked very good for a
while now, and we saw it up close and personal
a couple of times against the Panthers where it did
feel like the Panthers were almost the launching pad, which
(16:50):
is not a great feeling. But he had early on
his best games against Carolina. Now he's just having a
good outing pretty much every single time that he plays.
There are people that feel good about his candidacy and
not so good about it. On the FanDuel text line,
Bagel Guy says, don't give t mac excuses. Four of
his last five games, he doesn't have any more than
(17:11):
two catches, and then he also says no love for
Tyler Shuck. That's your rookie of the year. JP and
Moresville says shuck stop. Okay, well stop. Backyard Legend says
love t Mac. Love the pick at the time. Brother
needs to stick with two hands though, Yeah, the one
handed grabs, I could deal with it a little bit
(17:31):
early on.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
It needs to stop. Yeah, what's he got like one
of those this year?
Speaker 2 (17:34):
One or two grabs actually with one hand? The ones
that I think he's had with the one hand, I
think they've been called back. Was it a game against
Jacksonville where I think that might have happened, or it
was just a crazy catch. I mean, he's come up
with some impressive catches that have counted, but he's done
this too many times, and like, I get the frustration,
(17:55):
what are we doing here? He looked lost. It looked
like there could have been a better effort. I went
back and watched it. I mean, his left arm is
pinned against the defensive back. Like I don't know if
sometimes he's too smooth where it looks lazy and he's
not putting up enough effort. Because there are some basketball
players that look like this. I was listening to somebody
talk about this with Jalen Johnson, who's just so smooth
and he's destroying everybody, but it doesn't look like he's
(18:17):
trying very hard. I wonder how much of that is
with t Mak if he really needs to go at
it with one hand. But either way, I watched it,
and I thought, real time and even going back, I'd like,
probably a better effort here. Yeah, but what's going on?
Let's go, Let's go out this football with two hands.
So anyways, that's what some of the feelings are on
Team MAC winning Offensive Rookie of the Year. Jac Horn
(18:38):
Pro Bowl not You'll be surprised to know that I
didn't put this here.
Speaker 1 (18:42):
We go back. Yeah, I was laughing this morning when
I'm putting in cause you you. I saw you type
and you had it and I said, I know he's
going to get a kick out of this. And I
went down and Dan, why you were doing it?
Speaker 2 (18:54):
So we have two more. This is Wes's contribution. Jac
Horns Pro Bowl nod. Are you gonna do anything but
returning this West, I'm regifting it. I'm going to go
over there. I'm gonna pack it up. I'm going to
put it in a nice little package, and I'm going
to walk over to the locker of one Mike Jackson.
He can hear or whatever he wants to do once
(19:15):
I bring it over there. But yes, man, I'm going
to take it over there to him, because, like I said,
this young man is having a really good year. He's
got now I believe he has eleven passport because I'm
trying to hunt it down because I had it over
there for me just now, as a matter of fact,
I got it right here.
Speaker 1 (19:31):
Yeah. I mean, you know, he had a career high
tackles yesterday, but he leaves the NFL with nineteen passes defended.
That's the third most enfranchise history. He's also got a
career highe four interceptions. He's number three analytically with PFF
right now. So yeah, I'm going to walk right over
there and hand it to its rightful owner.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
Mike Jackson. The big plays have been an issue. He's
had big mistakes and that's been the problem all year long,
and he's had really good games. San Francisco and the
New York Jets come to mind. I don't think it
was a real big issue the way that he was
playing in the first what maybe six weeks, five weeks
of the season. I thought he was having a really,
really nice year. And then we've seen some of those
mistakes really come back to bite him in Monster games.
(20:13):
I mean, we're look, I'm never one thing I'm going
to do is I'm never going to blame a loss
on the refs. There's just too many other plays that
happened to the game for you to make up for it.
And I'm never really going to put the loss all
on one player. At the same time, I saw a
lot of people on Twitter saying, man, that mistake really
(20:34):
could have costed the Panthers the division and there was
a lot of football to be played after that. The
Panthers could have gotten off of the field on the
third down opportunity and they did not.
Speaker 1 (20:44):
This is part of what football is.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
It's picking up your teammate when they make mistakes, and
there are going to be a lot of mistakes made
throughout the course of a game. At the same time, Buddy,
that's a bad one. It's a real bad one. And
you had the dropped interception as well. What would I do?
I might regive that as well.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
I think j C.
Speaker 2 (21:04):
Horn is a Pro Bowl level player. It's all about
how much do you weigh the mistakes to some of
the things that he was compared to the things that
he's accomplished this season. This is what I do get,
This is what I do want to defend when we
discuss JC. So, Mike Jack has had a very good year.
(21:25):
If you care about the grades, if you care about
whatever the advanced metrics are on him, they've been pretty good.
There is something too, quarterbacks not trying j C.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
Horn.
Speaker 2 (21:36):
That's a thing, And it doesn't mean that they never
throw his way, because every once in a while people
to throw Derel Reeves's way. JAC Horn ain't Darrel Reeves.
But I'm going with the exaggeration to bring you the point.
Speaker 3 (21:46):
J C.
Speaker 2 (21:46):
Horn, with all of the cornerbacks that have played at
least even just twenty percent, let's go even fifty percent
of the snaps this year at cornerback, Jac Horn is
one of the least targeted cornerbacks in all of football.
In fact, he's fiftieth among all of the people that
have played that amount of snaps. They don't target him,
So I think what happens here is when they don't,
(22:09):
they don't target JC Horn and instead they target Mike Jack. Well,
now you're trying to target what has been largely considered
the second best corner on this team, and you might
be targeting Mike Jack and putting him at advantageous situations
because you don't want to attack the other side of
the field, which is the idea. Right we see they
play zone coverage. We've seen the age old debate should
(22:30):
they have j C. Horn follow all of these wide
receivers and in reality of Arrow has been sticking to
the script. No, we're gonna have him play one side.
We're gonna have Mike Jack play one side. So we're
gonna throw it to this side, and it takes away
in large part a large portion of the field. That
is because jac Horn is out there. That's been a
thing for him for quite some time, and that they're
always going to attack the other corner, even when Mike
(22:50):
Jack has had a good year. You look at all
the most targeted corners, there's something in common that the
Panthers have with those top corners.
Speaker 1 (22:58):
Right.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
You know who else is the most targeted corner in
all of football? It's Riley Moss. Why are they targeting
Riley Moss because they don't want to throw passer Tan's way?
Why are they targeting the other cornerback for Cleveland because
they don't want to throw Denzel wardsway? Why are they
targeting all of these other Kamari Lassiter is another name
that comes to mind, good corner, but they're gonna target
him over Derek Stingley. So you could look at the
(23:19):
grades and you could see all the mistakes and they're
clearly bad. I just told you I was going to
regift it, but with the J. C. Horn hate that
is overwhelming today because he made a big time mistake
yesterday and I get it right, recency bias, we're gonna
hold a lot to that. At the same time, are
all of these offensive coordinators and all of these quarterbacks
and all of these decision makers for other football teams
(23:40):
just wrong every single week? I don't think that's the
case either. So I think he's a Pro Bowl level player.
I do, but he's also had some big time mistakes
that have cost the Panthers games in large part with
a lot of other mistakes that have been there.
Speaker 1 (23:53):
Yeah, and you know, I think offensive coordinators, you know
football one on one, they're always going to go with
what they proceed to be the better matchup and they're
gonna go at that more likely than not. So there's
no question about that there. But we do see when
teams have receivers that they feel like, you know, of
that Ilk, that they will make sure to you know,
they target him. And I mean he's given up fifteen
(24:13):
yards a catch, which is eighth in the league. And
you know, we've seen olive A and when he plays
with Mike Evans or different guys like that, the teams
will target him, so I think that that plays into
it too. But I mean, you're right, he doesn't get
targeted as much. And Panthers, you know, their opponents, dude,
decide to go over to the other matchup more times
than not. I mean when he played with Action Jackson yet,
(24:35):
I mean I was an easy target right there to
go at him because you knew that you were going
to be able to get some big plays on him,
no doubt about it. It's funny too. He's he's sitting
right there, a number twenty one right now. I know, Dante, Yeah,
hey man, this is not a Stellia. I mean, he's
got a seventy one point seven.
Speaker 2 (24:50):
But still, my Dante Jackson takes are looking better and
better as nobody cares about him anymore.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
But that's what's happened. So J C. Horn pro bow nod.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
We're going to regift it or return it out right,
last one here before we go to the live wire,
because I do have some sound I want to play
with Floundy Rico Dawbell contract extension this offseason, that was
a thing that was large that was talked about quite
a bit. Are we doing that anymore? Do you want
to keep returning that? You returning it?
Speaker 1 (25:17):
Just not with it? Like I said, I you know,
I felt from the jump that the production he had well,
I do think he's a you know, he's a good back,
but I thought that Chuba Hubbard would have put up
similar numbers in those games. And I feel like that
really ever since that Package Gang, you know, he hasn't
really been much of a factor at all. I think
he's a really good player. I do. So we know
what's coming. You think the opposite of this is coming?
(25:41):
When you start with that preface, I'm like, yeah, it's coming.
It comes to hammer. I it depends on what the
deal would be and what the deal is, and I
ultimately I'm probably with you. I mean, the Jonathan Brooks
thing is so weird. I just don't know what to
do with that right now. How healthy is he going
to be? I don't think you can make decisions based
off of his health anymore, because he's proven that he
(26:01):
can't stay healthy right now. But if they're gonna know
more about him than I do, all about his rehabilitation,
and if he is rehabbing quite well, then maybe you
just decide we can save money here, We're gonna stick
with Cuba. They use him in passing situations anyway. Like
I Cuba has a case of the dropsies and it's
been bad this year, but over the last few games
they've been using him a lot on these swing routes
(26:23):
and he's bright shung by the way the accuracy on
those checkdowns, that's impeccable for him, Like he just puts
it right in the spot where Cuba can keep running.
But I'm kind of with you, Wes. I think ultimately,
with all the other things you need to address, maybe
you just go ahead and return the contract extension for
Rico flown. You got some sound ready for us?
Speaker 2 (26:39):
Mm hmm, Okay, let's give the people with some sound
with flounds in the.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
West, with the West the sound down.
Speaker 3 (26:50):
Connect a right, and let's start with the head coach
of the Carolina Panthers talking yesterday after the loss to
the Seahawks, Dave, did you feel the loss out there?
Speaker 1 (27:03):
Did the group feel the loss as a whole?
Speaker 4 (27:05):
Yeah, we definitely feel the missed opportunity, But at the
same time, we know it's in front of us.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
It's clearly defined.
Speaker 4 (27:09):
It was going to come down to this game, us
handling our business and facing the Bucks one more time
on the last game of the season. Couldn't ask for
a better situation for this. The guys are excited and
fired up about that, and you know, we got to
get over the fact that we missed an opportunity, you know,
with the Bucks losing that game. So but our focus
has to go to the next one really quickly.
Speaker 3 (27:27):
All right, So, how do you guys feel like Panther
fan should be feeling? My explanation for this is we
had a Robert Hunt fan yesterday. He was in a
Robert Hunt jersey walking back to a similar area that
we were, and he was saying, how Panther fans should
be looking up.
Speaker 1 (27:42):
They still got a chance next week.
Speaker 3 (27:44):
Even if they don't end up winning, this is still
a season, a step in the right direction. How do
you feel like they should be feeling about their team
after a twenty seven to ten loss yesterday?
Speaker 1 (27:56):
It was tough because, like you said, that is one
of those games that the final result you don't like it,
But the game did flip on his head once that
penalty occurred. What would have happened after that? You were
hanging in with the Seattle Seahawks after that, and I
feel like that after that penalty, that the air was
just kind of let out of the team and the building.
To be frank, but I think if you come out
(28:16):
of it, you're a little worried because this team I
don't believe has earned the trust of their fan base,
and a spot like this, it's like, Okay, if you
lose a Seattle thirty four to twenty seven, you come
out of it like, well, you know, we feel confident
about this and that going in the next week. I
feel like we should be good here or there. But
as we said, things kind of got exposed. You got
(28:37):
dominated up front on both sides of the ball. Not
that Tampa has Seattle's personnel, but it's like they lose
this game, and that just puts just a little bit
of doubt in your head to where you say, all
right now, we felt like that they passed the tests
finally in a big spot when they beat Tampa the
first time, But it's still a little bit of doubt
there to yourself to say, can they do this again
(29:00):
on Tampa's tart, because that would really make a statement
to go in there and take everything in their building
Tampa has been on an all time crash out. They have.
Speaker 2 (29:11):
Nothing is going right for them. Their loan win in
the second half of the season came against the Arizona Cardinals,
and the Cardinals have been absolutely terrible. They beat them
by a field goal. They beat them twenty to seventeen
despite that passing defense. Is that a historically bad passing defense,
just like what the Panthers rushing defense was, because they're
giving up yards left and right, and it takes ja
(29:31):
Kobe Brissett to throw for three hundred just to only
lose by fourteen to all of these teams. That's the
loan win Tampa has. They have all the signs of
crash out. Coach going to the public to call everybody out.
They lose immediately after that call out. Oh, there's no
way they're going to lose to Miami with Quinn you
were starting at quarterback. Except that's exactly what happened in
(29:52):
Miami handled them pretty well. Baker Mayfield's throwing for all
of these interceptions. Bucky Irving is barking back and forth
with their the best left tackle, one of the best
left tackles in the league, and Tristan Wurfs every single thing.
Everything they show us is they're not a good football
team anymore. You go back all the way to the
bye week, they have one win. They are one and
(30:14):
seven in their last eight mm hm. Can Carolina be
what has been wes the worst team in the league
since that point? And that's the thing I would ask
you too, Does that make it? Because I know the
optimism you say, it's a step in the right direction
and all that stuff, and.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
You should feel that way. But if you lost this
game in this spot to this team the way that
they're playing, like, how much more does that add insult
to injury? I think it's bad. I know I'm with
you think so too.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
No, it's because Tampa Bay they are so bad right
now and they lose to the I've gone through all
the losses and you get the idea. Some of them
are one score games. So if you wanted to subscribe
to the theory that things are going to regress to
the mean, I do understand that all the one score games,
it's tough to keep that going. At some point they're
gonna have to win. But I would argue they're already
(31:00):
regressing right Think about the games that they want at
the beginning of the season, they won the one score games.
Now they're losing them, and they're even getting beat down
in some of these scenarios against all the good teams,
like the Buffalo Bills they lost by double digits. Against
the Rams they lost by double digits. Yeah, I think
you're right about that. Like, it's a good point to
(31:20):
bring up. So if they lose to Tampa, it's going
to look bad for this coaching staff and company. And
I think Carolina can still get it done. We'll give
our official predictions later on in the week, but yeah,
I think they have a great opportunity in front of him.
Speaker 3 (31:33):
All right, let's stick with Dave talking about excels off
sides penalty.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Yeah, the official tried to try to warn him. He
was trying. He was telling him he's had his foot there.
Speaker 4 (31:40):
He was trying to let him know, and you know,
Xavier kind of didn't didn't see what he was doing
and thought he was okay on that.
Speaker 1 (31:45):
So we got to clean that up. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (31:47):
Not great with lines on the field, even the invisible ones.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
He has absolutely no idea where he's supposed to be going. Uh.
Speaker 3 (31:53):
When you look at Xel, you know, we saw yesterday.
I noticed it throughout the game, started seeing a little
less of him, little more Jimmy Horn, he was out
there a little bit more. Do you think we're maybe
seeing the final days of Excel as a part of
this starting receiving core, the starting trio that they have.
Speaker 1 (32:12):
Yeah, because I think that you know cannounces, he can
say whatever he wants about. You know, they're still with
him this, that and the third. But like you said,
things like that, and also just the mistakes that we
see where you know that they see it, and it's
been repetitive mistakes. People talking about his situational awareness and
different things like that, and we're seeing it over and
over again. And it's like, dude, like sometimes you get
(32:33):
frustated because you like due that you're a pro receiver
like that all because you feel like some of the
things like toad drags, keeping both feet in, you feel
like that's receiver one on one of the NFL. If
you want a chance to make a roster, you need
to be able to do those things. And he has
not mastered those things, man, And like you said, with him,
just the optics, it's just so bad. He couldn't have
asked for worse here, And I'm not going to say
I predicted it anything like that, but I just felt
(32:55):
like it was just too much focus on all the
wrong things for him, and his season has gone according
to what his off season looked like, and so for him,
he is just in a lot of trouble right now.
With Jimmy Harnt, I'm like, hey, I'll throw him a
dog on pass and quit treating him like. I know
he's a bit of a gadget player. He's small, but
good lord, can't throw them something past a line of scrimmage.
Speaker 2 (33:16):
They didn't throw anybody pass passed the line of scrimmage.
Gener me, it's always a reverse. Yeah, that's fair. I
think they're just trying to get the ball in his hands.
But I'm one hundred percent with you. I'd like to
see some go balls here for anybody. And look, I
guess that's when Xcel has had most of his success.
I go back to that Atlanta game when he had
the go ball, had the touchdown since then where it
felt like, hey, maybe Xcel is finally starting to contribute
(33:37):
at a higher level.
Speaker 1 (33:39):
He has not.
Speaker 2 (33:39):
Twenty two thirty nine are the biggest receiving totals that
he's posted, and even still, we just see so many
of these mistakes and the off season, as much as
we talked about it going back and forth, I would say,
if if you feel like the off season contributed to this,
that means you still feel like he has the ability
to put it all together. And I just don't know
if that's true. I I just don't he makes too
(34:01):
many mistakes all the time. Point because he's he is,
he's playing in the season right now. Like he's not
doing any of the music videos in the last month,
the last two months, the last three months, that was
all in the off season. So what's happening at practice
right now? Like if you thought that then it's all right,
Well he's got all the ability now that he's with
Dave Canalis and Bryce Young every day. Now he's going
(34:21):
to start figuring it out. And we're still seeing the
same bone headed mistakes. And the other thing I'll mention
is they have another offseason to acquire different wide receivers
through free agency or the draft. That's a position where
you can just keep reloading because of how many wide
receivers you keep on a roster man. At some point
you just start to get pushed down the spot like
you're just going to be the third right now, fourth, fifth.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
And now you just might not even be on the roster.
Maybe there's I'm in the same position as Tariss Marshall
next year. I feel like and I think to one
thing that you know, I don't know his training habits.
I'm not gonna, you know, pretend to know. And I'm
not talking about work ethic. I'm just talking about the
way he's going about things. Yeah, because of the situation,
win and stuff. Like I said, I mean, get what
a to or get with some of these big bodied
(35:04):
retired receivers that can help because when you do see
some of the training, like they said Cam Newton brought
it up in one of his things. You see him
doing all this stuff that does not, for one, translate
to the game on the field, and then you're training
like a little guy. It's like, man, you need to
you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (35:21):
It's no hate to the Route God, go put out
your hustle. The problem with the Route God is I've
seen two Panthers receivers work with him and get a
lot of hype during the offseason, and those guys have
flamed out. Miserably so, Deontay Johnson being the first the
guys that have worked with the Route God here in Carolina,
Deontay Johnson and Excel. Maybe we just don't work out
(35:43):
with him anyfo.
Speaker 1 (35:43):
You think the last thing I actually do before we
go to break, do you think he's too nice? Because
he's got such a personality. He's such a nice guy,
and there's nothing wrong with that. But as I said, man,
you are two thirty. You should just be exerting your
will on guys and just physically dominated cats, blocking and
catching the ball. And I just feel like what his personality.
(36:04):
I'm like, is it Daddy's too Now? I don't know.
This is all speculating, No, And I get the question too.
I mean, I can't help but go back to the
preseason when he fought some dudes against Cleveland, like he
wasn't putting up with anything there. I wish you would
have put up with a little more so you could
have played that right and I got kicked out, but
it did show some aggression. You're right, you would think
that he would be great at attacking. He did attack
(36:26):
the football downfield at South Carolina. That happened.
Speaker 2 (36:29):
It's a different level, though, and right now we're just
not seeing a lot.
Speaker 1 (36:32):
I hate it.
Speaker 2 (36:32):
I wanted to work out for him, but every time
we watch him play football, it just doesn't work out.
We have one more segment to go. It's the walk
off coming up next. Sports Radio ninety two seven WFZ.
Speaker 1 (36:51):
Are you a challenge for me to walk off? Oh? Yeah,
that's a walk off challenge, my friend. It's a walk off.
It's a walk off. One one segment to go on.
Speaker 2 (37:06):
Weston Walker broadcasting live from the Chandler Vault to studios
at CV Injury Law dot com. CV Injury Law dot Com.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
One call.
Speaker 2 (37:13):
That's all the Carolinas personal injury lawyers. Dave Canalis speaking
with media just a little while ago, probably within the
last hour, and he spoke about the pressure Bryce Young
might be facing versus the Seahawks, the actual in game pressure,
not the proverbial on the shoulders.
Speaker 1 (37:29):
How do you perform under pressure?
Speaker 2 (37:31):
No, I mean there was actual pass rushing pressure that
he had to deal with. That's life in the big leagues.
Dave said, I didn't see the offensive line as a
limiting factor of what we could do yesterday, which to
me is interesting because it does run in direct contrast
with what he was talking about to some degree yesterday.
Speaker 1 (37:46):
I guess with Dave.
Speaker 2 (37:47):
Canalis discussing the lack of deep shot opportunities, and he's
addressed this a couple of times this season. Maybe he's
putting that more on the defense, the way they were
playing and the wide receivers not getting separations, not getting open,
and Bryce Young not wanting to throw where the defense
was more so than he puts it on the offensive line.
If you were to put his comments from yesterday and
(38:08):
today together, it feels like he doesn't blame the old
line as much as he does pretty much everything else surround.
Speaker 1 (38:14):
Again, Yeah, which is interesting. I think that you know
the offensive line, as I said, I pointed out the
run game being kind of ineffective. They had their moments,
and you felt like that Bryce was under pressure a lot.
But coach, he also is watching the tape. He knows
what he calls, he knows how things should look. So
maybe there was a bit of that.
Speaker 2 (38:30):
And if you care about pass blocking grains, Ikey Kwanu
had an eighty one, Timo had a seventy three. Then
you go down to Cade Mays who had a sixty
four point eight. It's not bad. It was the guards West.
It was the guards an interior pass rush.
Speaker 1 (38:46):
That Damien Lewis he was not he was not up the.
Speaker 2 (38:50):
Paw Yes and Austin Corbett gave up quite a bit.
And in true pass sets if you care about that
sort of thing too. It was the interior offensive line.
So really on the outside outside of one of the games,
close to the end of the game here one of
the plays there, Icky quantity did give up a pressure,
but really it was from the inside. And as quarterbacks
(39:10):
will say constantly, interior pass rush is king. It's really hard.
You can't step up in the pocket. Now you've got
to roll out. It cuts the field in half. You
can't throw across your body. Now you're asking only the
defense to cover however many yards on that side, and.
Speaker 1 (39:22):
They put some more press on a tackle and make
you give up sack.
Speaker 2 (39:24):
No doubt, no doubt. So interior pass rush, if you
can provide it, then it's going to hurt the offense.
Speaker 1 (39:30):
I know.
Speaker 2 (39:31):
Look, we try to give him love and they just
didn't do it here. That's a tough assignment though, no doubt.
Some more comments coming in from Dave Canalis, as reported
by some of the people over there. With Dave's media availability,
Dave did say that they're considering playing guard Rob Hunt
and wide receiver David Moore this week versus Tampa Bay
the end of the regular season, possibly getting I would
(39:54):
still think one of their two best guards.
Speaker 1 (39:55):
I think David Moore is going to really help them
stretch the field. Maybe he's a guy those system. He
will catch the football, he can get open. I think
he's going to help immensely if he comes back.
Speaker 2 (40:05):
Maybe some rust stuff there, hopefully not as much just
going back from injury, the blown out elbow, as he
described it, it seems like you would rather be one
hundred percent before you get out there on the football
field and you know, not have to deal with any
other lingering injuries there with the blown out elbow. Let's
tell you what's on tap, presented by Twin Peaks. Twin
Peaks has locations in Concord and Fort Mill. Twin Peaks
(40:28):
is your local sports lodge you can come in from,
made from scratch food and signature twenty nine degree draft beers.
We have Monday night football rams at Falcons eight point
fifteen on ESPN. I will tell you for yours truly.
I am in two Fantasy Football championship games.
Speaker 1 (40:46):
Oh, sweating out of Monday Night. Monday Night Mail.
Speaker 2 (40:50):
We are one hundred percent sweating out a Monday Night
because in both of those games I am a fifty
one percent favorite in each of those leagues. I mean,
it is neck and neck, and I do have Puka
Nakua in both of these matchess. Okay, that's good. Who
you going up against, that's the key. Though in one
league I'm going up against Drake London, so not great.
(41:11):
But I again, I have Puka's still feeling good. In
one league, Okay, I'm down, I don't know, thirty or whatever,
but I have Matthew Stafford and Puka, so I get
to double tip that's been helping me get to the championship.
And I'm also starting Blake Krum. Okay, he's been productive,
but that's a lot of trust in the Rams offense.
And then in the other league it's just Puka and Blake.
(41:33):
But again, I've called the Atlanta defense fraudulent all season long.
I'm hoping that one more Hayton, one more piece of
Hayton from your boy in Atlanta can get me a
championship game. I'm putting my money where my mouth is.
Quite literally, I've got the Rams to win. And by
the way, if the Rams win, it would get rid
of this weird scenario where if Atlanta wins out, the
(41:56):
Panthers would actually still find themselves as NFC South champions.
Speaker 1 (41:59):
Because true enough, Panther fan, that's what I'm hearing.
Speaker 2 (42:01):
Yeah, I think the Rams are gonna take care of
business here tonight. So if they do that, then that
scenario goes out the window, and then we really just
have to focus on the Panthers beating Tampa Bay. I
do think that's eventually gonna happen. Yeah, I'll go with
the Rams here, man. But man, you saying that definitely
brings me back.
Speaker 1 (42:17):
It brings some bad memories sweating out of Monday night
game when you feel like something is a short thing.
You think, sure though, you think Stafford's gonna come in
and ball out. He throws two or three pigs, sack fumble,
Well it was Luca pulls a hammy. They don't want
to risk it in the first Drave like, oh man,
but I'm gonna go with the Rams and I'm gonna
go walk them out to take them two championships.
Speaker 3 (42:38):
This is tough because, in one light, if the Falcons win,
it keeps your hopes alive to make the playoffs, but
it also sort of devalues your biggest win of the
season against the Rams. At the same time, if the
Rams win that that win is validated. But at the
(42:59):
same time, you're looking at a scenario where you absolutely
cannot lose next week. The Falcons, man, they're a weird team, right,
They've been on Prime time a lot this year. They
have some weird wins. I mean, somehow be Buffalo. I think, yeah,
I'm gonna go with the Rams. I think they'll win
this one, but it'll be close. I think the Falcons
(43:21):
will keep up, but I do think LA eventually wins
the game.
Speaker 2 (43:24):
All right, we're all going Rams. And again, if the
Rams do win, that would mean the Panthers only shot
at winning the division would be straight up by beating
in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this weekend. Last thing, app State.
They're playing Georgia Southern right now in the Birmingham Bowl.
It feels like app State. It really feels like the
Birmingham Bowl is the Appalachian State Invitational.
Speaker 1 (43:44):
APP State. They are down.
Speaker 2 (43:45):
George Southern is up ten to nothing as it currently stands,
George Southern just hit a field goal to extend their
lead to ten nothing. There's nine minutes left to go
in the second quarter a rivalry bowl game, and I
would expect George Southern to continue to hold on. Remember
app State made a bowl game as a five win team,
so George Southern I would expect them to hold on
(44:05):
with a ten point difference already.
Speaker 1 (44:08):
You think the Mountaineers can make it a game. Uh No,
I'll stick with Georgia Southern. You know, no love for
apple over here?
Speaker 2 (44:12):
Yeah, I know the fake black and goals, right right? Okay,
what you got of it there?
Speaker 3 (44:16):
Okay, Well, I'll say that I believe that app State
probably loses this game, but mainly because of the fact
that they don't have either of their quarterbacks as far
as I know, I think maybe AJ Swant's playing in
this game, but I know it's not JJ Cole. So
if they're without both of their quarterbacks, yeah, that's that's
pretty tough.
Speaker 1 (44:34):
Got to give some love to the Charlotte Hornets. They
played the Bucks Hornets looking pretty good. We dodged a
serious injury. Get excited who dodged a serious injury with
kan Ka Nipple where the X rays came back negative
on his ankle injury.
Speaker 2 (44:46):
He is out. He will not play tonight against the Bucks.
But the Hornets are eleven and twenty. They had a
big win against the Orlando in that game that Con
did get injured in. That was over the weekend, So
we'll see what the Hornets are able to do tonight.
Of course, you can listen to that game right here
on Sports Raded ninety two seven WFNZ seven o'clock tip
Milwaukee is a three and a half point favorite. Giannis
is back. I'm gonna go with the Hornets, rapid fire,
(45:08):
what you got, I'm going.
Speaker 1 (45:09):
On Hornet Hornets.
Speaker 3 (45:11):
By the way, Willie p on pregame tonight, there you go,
be all right, iowen Willie all right speaking to Kyle.
Speaker 2 (45:16):
It's his show coming up next alongside Smoke Ludwig. You're
listening to Sports Radio ninety two seven WFNZ.
Speaker 1 (45:23):
Listen to the Wes and Walker Show weekis from noon
to three only on Sports Radio ninety two point seven
FM UFNZ, the
Speaker 3 (45:32):
Official home of the Charlotte Sports Fan
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The Burden
The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.