July 30, 2025 • 10 mins
WBT Hall of Famer and long-time Panthers Radio play-by-play announcer, Jim Szoke joins us on Charlotte Sports Today to give a live update from the practice field of the second day of padded practice for the Carolina Panthers.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
WBT Hall of Famer and longtime member of the Panther
Radio Network. One of the many voices of my childhoods
a young Panther fan. He is the great Jim Zochie Jim,
good morning man. How you doing?
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hey, Petty, good to hear you.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
How you doing, Jim?
Speaker 1 (00:13):
I cannot complain because I'm sitting in air condition. I'm
not out there in the elements, in the heat. I
was supposed to be out there, though, So make sure
you keep my man Mac in line, because I know
he was excited to be a part of today's practice
because Dave Canalis said, Hey, this is going to be
a lot longer practice, is going to be a much
more physical practice. I know they've been out there for about,
(00:34):
you know, twenty five thirty thirty five minutes or so.
What's the early takeaways from today's padded practice so far?
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Yeah, I was actually standing with Mac, and then Kyle
Bailey has made an appearance here as well, and we were,
you know, just i't think it'll give it away the
playbook here, but JJ Jansen was going passes to the
safeties and taking it very seriously. So I don't think
we'll see that in a regular season game, but that's
kind of happening in front of us here, and then
as you know you've been out here, further down the
field is where the most most of the action seems
(01:02):
to happen away from the media side, so it's a
little bit more difficult to see right now. And actually
walked off down the sidewalks here, so I'm not talking
over practice, but yeah, they usually you said it's a
longer practice. Today it's a padded practice, so usually they
go about ninety minutes, so I think they'll go hour
forty five close to two hours today. They have tomorrow
off and they get back at it on Friday.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
So we heard about Chandler Savalla suffering the injury yesterday.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
He's got a brace on today.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
How how concerned should Panther fans be about that injury
as we're about a week in the camp.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
I guess you know. The news was it's it's a
week to week injury, and it sounds like something that
will resolve itself during this preseason, so as opposed to
a more significant injury of full tear something like that.
With the till that's that's good news. As far as
the extent of that injury goes and I guess they jinkstick.
They were talking every day about how they have everybody
back from the offensive line, the starters and all the
(01:56):
key reserves, and it's football, so stuff happens. We're seeing
that happen all around training camps elsewhere where. Injury are
bound to occur. And you know, one thing about Dave
canalis is and not that it's like led to this,
but you know he wants to have as much as
you can push the envelope safely, to have practices that
have tempo, that have energy, that have physicality, because you
(02:17):
find out you get into the regular seasons some of
these games and you arrest everybody, and next thing you
start playing real football and you're a step slow and
not used to tackling and all those things. Again, they
don't tackle and do all that here, but just trying
to take it as far as they can, having another
padded practice two out of three days, just to do
as much as you can in practice to simulate real
football when it rolls around.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
There's been a lot of talk, conversation and hype around
Hunter Renfro as he's making his return to football. Want
to sit out to you in your time seeing him well.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
And you know, basically when Dabo was here Monday, he
summarized it greatly by saying, you know what a great
route runner he is. That's the first thing that stands
out is he called him the craftsman as opposed to
a route runner. And you is he even in a
practice setting. I mean we don't we're not privy exactly
what the route is supposed to be in the playbook.
I mean he's just always and promote the coach of
state where he's supposed to be. Just a veteran route
(03:09):
runner very much reminds you in that way of an
Adam Feeling, which is so important to the quarterback to
know when you're dealing with these young receivers and rookies
and you know, got some senior guys coming in, but
there are guys who are like twenty nine or in
Adam Feeling's case, you know, thirty three, thirty four years
old that you know, they know where they're supposed to
be and if they're not in that right spot and
Bryce is go into a spot and they're not there,
(03:30):
look at the quarterback. This is so I think that
just adds another player like that and what's extra bonus
with him, of course, is that he can help you
in the return game. So I think he's got a
really good chance to stick even though you have Adam Feeling.
But also moving forward, if say this happens to be
feelings last year, gives you another veteran presence. So I
like his odds as far as what he brings. Even
though we have, you know, David Moore, we've got Adam Feeling.
(03:53):
I think having another guy like that around to develop
your young quarterback even further is a great receiver to
have as an option.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
You're no straight to the hype and the conversation that
the Panthers wide receiver room has generated here in the
first week or so of camp, but hasn't been a
lot of talk conversation around last year's first round selection
exavierly get how would you assess his second training camp
so far as the Carolina Panther.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
There been moments he looked really good. There was a
you know video from the other practice of the day
where he kind of runs a little fade out there,
catches it over the shoulder and makes a catch against
Mike Jack. So that's what you want to see is
and win those one on one matchups where it's good
on good one on one guy like that, and you know,
last year was a mixed bag. But I think, you know,
Bryce Young, I think you have to give some grace
to a rookie player that was injured at times, was
(04:39):
learning at other times. He certainly has some drops that
were tea in some situations and games that you know
they could have affected things in a better way if
he'd made those catches. So that's the development that that confidence,
and you see all the physical traits that are there.
He's a great guy, obviously a great part of this
team as far as his teammates loving them. So now
I just stay take that next step of being more
consistent and catching the ball and being like Hunter and
(05:02):
being like Adam Field and be able to run those
those routes a little bit more precisely, because I do
you know, at times either you get bumped off your
route or you're not running it precisely. You run a
little bit more of a loop than a straight line
to where you're supposed to be as an example, things
like that that the coaches have talked about. So I think,
you know, this is a chance for him to really
step up as being a guy who was the first
round pick the previous year to take it to the
next level.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
You mentioned the consistency there. We had a text or
Texas earlier. That's say a healthy XAVER league league at
equals one thousand yards receiving and ten touchdowns. What do
you think from a production standpoint would qualify as a
successful sophomore season for him?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
I think you know, first of all the eyeball tests,
you know that he when the ball does come to
him and he catches it, and that he is able
to be a part of what's going on here. Because
we mentioned this is probably about as long as the
all offensive line, one of the deepest positions on the team,
So feeling's going to get his catches. I think Jalen
Kocher deserves to get more opportunities and more catches. Certainly
t Mac is being counted on as being the eventual
(06:00):
number one receiver here and if we do it hunder
Ren for so, I don't know to answer Christy you
put a stats number on it, because I think it's
more about do the part when you're asked to do it,
and nobody should have to have you know, a huge
statistical season because there'd be a lot of mounts to
feed him. I'm hoping for the first time in a
long time, like with j. C. Sanders at the tight
end position, gets more than say, three hundred yards out
(06:21):
of that position.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
We're talking with Jim z Oki, longtime member of the
Carolina Panthers radio network. You know how a famous the
JJ Janssen long games are that he does. He plays
over there with a specialist yesterday. Andy Dalton, you know,
took a part in those. And I'm gonna try to
correlate this, you know, into Bryce Young where you know,
when Andy was brought he's supposed to be a mentor
(06:43):
and help Bryce grow and learn the NFL game. Of
course he got you know, thrust it into action last
year after Bryce was benched in Week two. What does
it say about where Andy Dalton is where he feels
comfortable to maybe not be as quote unquote involved in
the quarterback room because there's much more trust and believe
in Bryce Young as he's kind of taken that step
(07:04):
forward on and off the field as a player and
a leader.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
It's really the perfect combination for this room. Since at
the end of last season, Dave Sanallis said, Bryce is
our quarterback, whereas you know, there were many weeks when
Bryce was even starting. We'll see how this week goes.
So when it was annointed that that Bryce is the guy,
that's not a competition. It's great that Andy wants to
be here and is at this stage of his career
fourteen years in whatever that he loves Charlotte, he loves
(07:28):
being a part of this quarterback room, will start when
play when called upon, but does not mind being a mentor.
And just to contrast that with and again nothing wrong
with this, but in Cleveland they've got the other four
quarterback situation. Joe Flacco was asked the same question earlier
in their camp back in the spring, and he said,
I'm not here to mentor anybody if they learned something
from me by watching how I ask questions in the
(07:48):
meeting room, how I play, how I practice, I'm happy
to do that or answer their questions, but I'm here
to win the job over the young guys they drafted
with the two rookies and Kenny Pickett being up there.
So that's not what Andy Dalton news and he's happy
to be the ultimate teammate as this situation they happen
him under contract here to be that guy.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
I think Dave canw said yesterday in his press availability
that the tied end room is a position of strength
for them, and that's without Tommy Trumble right now being
an active member and practice you added Mitchell Evans in
the draft or product out of Notre Dame. What is
studut you about from that position group without its leader.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
Yeah, and again rookie, It'll be interesting to see this
year what kind of contributions Mitchell Evans has. But I
like the potential because like Tommy Trumble also coming out
of Notre Dame, is a combo guy where he was
a good blocker and also a good receiver at the
college level, it doesn't always translate immediately into the pro game.
And I think Trumble's gotten better each year, and he's
had some injury setbacks that have slowed that. But I
(08:44):
think with Evans that same opportunity exists where he can
be a guy that is not just a blocker or
he's not just the receiving type of tight end. And
it looks like the envision Sanders being more that receiving guy.
The fact that he's trimmed down lost some weight and
he's got the most agility as far as the tight
end into receiving there. So it should be a good combination.
Probably would not surprise me if we get towards the
(09:05):
end of camp and then they at least look at
whether they pull the trigger it out bringing in a
veteran tight end, especially true blocker because they want to
run the ball with Dabble coming on board, and even
a subset etn to go with Chuba out there that
you want those doule tight ends for the times that
you want to do that. And as we know, the
fullback doesn't exist here, so that's really something as an
HVAC tight end position that they can look at. All.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
Right, Zech, I'll get you out with at least one
question about the defense. Has been a week since the
Pant's moved on from Josie Jewel. That put a lot
of pressure on Trevin Wallace. Of course, the addition of
Christian Rose Boom in free agency. How should pant their
fans feel about the linebacker spot a week after losing
a guy that was a big part of what the
defense did a year ago.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
It hurts your depth for sure, because it was gonna
be Rose Boom kind of the first backup with Wallace
starting and Josie Jewel starting, and now he's moved up
to a starter's role. So again that could be another
when training camp the big cutdown comes that maybe they
look to bring in a guy that's more stable. They
had some younger veteran guys that came in and did
some good stuff like last year, like like Chevalists of
(10:08):
some others. But I think mostly it's an unknown, so
we'll see if somebody emerges. I would say the same
about backup cornerback. Mostly an unknown safety. So it's not
that the talent isn't there, just do we know what
we have and you know exactly. An example of that
is like Demani Richardson last year, like a year ago,
who would have thought, you know, an undrafted rookie could
(10:28):
contribute and maybe be a starter a year later at safety.
So who are this year's Demani Richardson and linebacker and
then the secondary we don't know, so we'll see. That's
why they want to sort through the players they have
right now. I think, give them a long look and
then if they need to, you know, plug and play
with a couple veteran free agents that might get released elsewhere.
Speaker 3 (10:44):
That's the voice of Jim Zochi.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
You know him, you love and you can catch them
on Monday mornings on the Mac and Bone Show with
a view from the booth. Jim, thank you for checking
in live from hanging at their's training camp.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
Stay safe, stay cool. We'll talk to you later down
the road. My man appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Thanks Biddy,
WBT Hall of Famer and longtime member of the Panther
Radio Network. One of the many voices of my childhoods
a young Panther fan. He is the great Jim Zochie Jim,
good morning man. How you doing?
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hey, Petty, good to hear you.
Speaker 3 (00:11):
How you doing, Jim?
Speaker 1 (00:13):
I cannot complain because I'm sitting in air condition. I'm
not out there in the elements, in the heat. I
was supposed to be out there, though, So make sure
you keep my man Mac in line, because I know
he was excited to be a part of today's practice
because Dave Canalis said, Hey, this is going to be
a lot longer practice, is going to be a much
more physical practice. I know they've been out there for about,
(00:34):
you know, twenty five thirty thirty five minutes or so.
What's the early takeaways from today's padded practice so far?
Speaker 2 (00:41):
Yeah, I was actually standing with Mac, and then Kyle
Bailey has made an appearance here as well, and we were,
you know, just i't think it'll give it away the
playbook here, but JJ Jansen was going passes to the
safeties and taking it very seriously. So I don't think
we'll see that in a regular season game, but that's
kind of happening in front of us here, and then
as you know you've been out here, further down the
field is where the most most of the action seems
(01:02):
to happen away from the media side, so it's a
little bit more difficult to see right now. And actually
walked off down the sidewalks here, so I'm not talking
over practice, but yeah, they usually you said it's a
longer practice. Today it's a padded practice, so usually they
go about ninety minutes, so I think they'll go hour
forty five close to two hours today. They have tomorrow
off and they get back at it on Friday.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
So we heard about Chandler Savalla suffering the injury yesterday.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
He's got a brace on today.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
How how concerned should Panther fans be about that injury
as we're about a week in the camp.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
I guess you know. The news was it's it's a
week to week injury, and it sounds like something that
will resolve itself during this preseason, so as opposed to
a more significant injury of full tear something like that.
With the till that's that's good news. As far as
the extent of that injury goes and I guess they jinkstick.
They were talking every day about how they have everybody
back from the offensive line, the starters and all the
(01:56):
key reserves, and it's football, so stuff happens. We're seeing
that happen all around training camps elsewhere where. Injury are
bound to occur. And you know, one thing about Dave
canalis is and not that it's like led to this,
but you know he wants to have as much as
you can push the envelope safely, to have practices that
have tempo, that have energy, that have physicality, because you
(02:17):
find out you get into the regular seasons some of
these games and you arrest everybody, and next thing you
start playing real football and you're a step slow and
not used to tackling and all those things. Again, they
don't tackle and do all that here, but just trying
to take it as far as they can, having another
padded practice two out of three days, just to do
as much as you can in practice to simulate real
football when it rolls around.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
There's been a lot of talk, conversation and hype around
Hunter Renfro as he's making his return to football. Want
to sit out to you in your time seeing him well.
Speaker 2 (02:49):
And you know, basically when Dabo was here Monday, he
summarized it greatly by saying, you know what a great
route runner he is. That's the first thing that stands
out is he called him the craftsman as opposed to
a route runner. And you is he even in a
practice setting. I mean we don't we're not privy exactly
what the route is supposed to be in the playbook.
I mean he's just always and promote the coach of
state where he's supposed to be. Just a veteran route
(03:09):
runner very much reminds you in that way of an
Adam Feeling, which is so important to the quarterback to
know when you're dealing with these young receivers and rookies
and you know, got some senior guys coming in, but
there are guys who are like twenty nine or in
Adam Feeling's case, you know, thirty three, thirty four years
old that you know, they know where they're supposed to
be and if they're not in that right spot and
Bryce is go into a spot and they're not there,
(03:30):
look at the quarterback. This is so I think that
just adds another player like that and what's extra bonus
with him, of course, is that he can help you
in the return game. So I think he's got a
really good chance to stick even though you have Adam Feeling.
But also moving forward, if say this happens to be
feelings last year, gives you another veteran presence. So I
like his odds as far as what he brings. Even
though we have, you know, David Moore, we've got Adam Feeling.
(03:53):
I think having another guy like that around to develop
your young quarterback even further is a great receiver to
have as an option.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
You're no straight to the hype and the conversation that
the Panthers wide receiver room has generated here in the
first week or so of camp, but hasn't been a
lot of talk conversation around last year's first round selection
exavierly get how would you assess his second training camp
so far as the Carolina Panther.
Speaker 2 (04:17):
There been moments he looked really good. There was a
you know video from the other practice of the day
where he kind of runs a little fade out there,
catches it over the shoulder and makes a catch against
Mike Jack. So that's what you want to see is
and win those one on one matchups where it's good
on good one on one guy like that, and you know,
last year was a mixed bag. But I think, you know,
Bryce Young, I think you have to give some grace
to a rookie player that was injured at times, was
(04:39):
learning at other times. He certainly has some drops that
were tea in some situations and games that you know
they could have affected things in a better way if
he'd made those catches. So that's the development that that confidence,
and you see all the physical traits that are there.
He's a great guy, obviously a great part of this
team as far as his teammates loving them. So now
I just stay take that next step of being more
consistent and catching the ball and being like Hunter and
(05:02):
being like Adam Field and be able to run those
those routes a little bit more precisely, because I do
you know, at times either you get bumped off your
route or you're not running it precisely. You run a
little bit more of a loop than a straight line
to where you're supposed to be as an example, things
like that that the coaches have talked about. So I think,
you know, this is a chance for him to really
step up as being a guy who was the first
round pick the previous year to take it to the
next level.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
You mentioned the consistency there. We had a text or
Texas earlier. That's say a healthy XAVER league league at
equals one thousand yards receiving and ten touchdowns. What do
you think from a production standpoint would qualify as a
successful sophomore season for him?
Speaker 2 (05:39):
I think you know, first of all the eyeball tests,
you know that he when the ball does come to
him and he catches it, and that he is able
to be a part of what's going on here. Because
we mentioned this is probably about as long as the
all offensive line, one of the deepest positions on the team,
So feeling's going to get his catches. I think Jalen
Kocher deserves to get more opportunities and more catches. Certainly
t Mac is being counted on as being the eventual
(06:00):
number one receiver here and if we do it hunder
Ren for so, I don't know to answer Christy you
put a stats number on it, because I think it's
more about do the part when you're asked to do it,
and nobody should have to have you know, a huge
statistical season because there'd be a lot of mounts to
feed him. I'm hoping for the first time in a
long time, like with j. C. Sanders at the tight
end position, gets more than say, three hundred yards out
(06:21):
of that position.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
We're talking with Jim z Oki, longtime member of the
Carolina Panthers radio network. You know how a famous the
JJ Janssen long games are that he does. He plays
over there with a specialist yesterday. Andy Dalton, you know,
took a part in those. And I'm gonna try to
correlate this, you know, into Bryce Young where you know,
when Andy was brought he's supposed to be a mentor
(06:43):
and help Bryce grow and learn the NFL game. Of
course he got you know, thrust it into action last
year after Bryce was benched in Week two. What does
it say about where Andy Dalton is where he feels
comfortable to maybe not be as quote unquote involved in
the quarterback room because there's much more trust and believe
in Bryce Young as he's kind of taken that step
(07:04):
forward on and off the field as a player and
a leader.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
It's really the perfect combination for this room. Since at
the end of last season, Dave Sanallis said, Bryce is
our quarterback, whereas you know, there were many weeks when
Bryce was even starting. We'll see how this week goes.
So when it was annointed that that Bryce is the guy,
that's not a competition. It's great that Andy wants to
be here and is at this stage of his career
fourteen years in whatever that he loves Charlotte, he loves
(07:28):
being a part of this quarterback room, will start when
play when called upon, but does not mind being a mentor.
And just to contrast that with and again nothing wrong
with this, but in Cleveland they've got the other four
quarterback situation. Joe Flacco was asked the same question earlier
in their camp back in the spring, and he said,
I'm not here to mentor anybody if they learned something
from me by watching how I ask questions in the
(07:48):
meeting room, how I play, how I practice, I'm happy
to do that or answer their questions, but I'm here
to win the job over the young guys they drafted
with the two rookies and Kenny Pickett being up there.
So that's not what Andy Dalton news and he's happy
to be the ultimate teammate as this situation they happen
him under contract here to be that guy.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
I think Dave canw said yesterday in his press availability
that the tied end room is a position of strength
for them, and that's without Tommy Trumble right now being
an active member and practice you added Mitchell Evans in
the draft or product out of Notre Dame. What is
studut you about from that position group without its leader.
Speaker 2 (08:23):
Yeah, and again rookie, It'll be interesting to see this
year what kind of contributions Mitchell Evans has. But I
like the potential because like Tommy Trumble also coming out
of Notre Dame, is a combo guy where he was
a good blocker and also a good receiver at the
college level, it doesn't always translate immediately into the pro game.
And I think Trumble's gotten better each year, and he's
had some injury setbacks that have slowed that. But I
(08:44):
think with Evans that same opportunity exists where he can
be a guy that is not just a blocker or
he's not just the receiving type of tight end. And
it looks like the envision Sanders being more that receiving guy.
The fact that he's trimmed down lost some weight and
he's got the most agility as far as the tight
end into receiving there. So it should be a good combination.
Probably would not surprise me if we get towards the
(09:05):
end of camp and then they at least look at
whether they pull the trigger it out bringing in a
veteran tight end, especially true blocker because they want to
run the ball with Dabble coming on board, and even
a subset etn to go with Chuba out there that
you want those doule tight ends for the times that
you want to do that. And as we know, the
fullback doesn't exist here, so that's really something as an
HVAC tight end position that they can look at. All.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
Right, Zech, I'll get you out with at least one
question about the defense. Has been a week since the
Pant's moved on from Josie Jewel. That put a lot
of pressure on Trevin Wallace. Of course, the addition of
Christian Rose Boom in free agency. How should pant their
fans feel about the linebacker spot a week after losing
a guy that was a big part of what the
defense did a year ago.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
It hurts your depth for sure, because it was gonna
be Rose Boom kind of the first backup with Wallace
starting and Josie Jewel starting, and now he's moved up
to a starter's role. So again that could be another
when training camp the big cutdown comes that maybe they
look to bring in a guy that's more stable. They
had some younger veteran guys that came in and did
some good stuff like last year, like like Chevalists of
(10:08):
some others. But I think mostly it's an unknown, so
we'll see if somebody emerges. I would say the same
about backup cornerback. Mostly an unknown safety. So it's not
that the talent isn't there, just do we know what
we have and you know exactly. An example of that
is like Demani Richardson last year, like a year ago,
who would have thought, you know, an undrafted rookie could
(10:28):
contribute and maybe be a starter a year later at safety.
So who are this year's Demani Richardson and linebacker and
then the secondary we don't know, so we'll see. That's
why they want to sort through the players they have
right now. I think, give them a long look and
then if they need to, you know, plug and play
with a couple veteran free agents that might get released elsewhere.
Speaker 3 (10:44):
That's the voice of Jim Zochi.
Speaker 1 (10:45):
You know him, you love and you can catch them
on Monday mornings on the Mac and Bone Show with
a view from the booth. Jim, thank you for checking
in live from hanging at their's training camp.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
Stay safe, stay cool. We'll talk to you later down
the road. My man appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (10:57):
Thanks Biddy,
Popular Podcasts
Fudd Around And Find Out
UConn basketball star Azzi Fudd brings her championship swag to iHeart Women’s Sports with Fudd Around and Find Out, a weekly podcast that takes fans along for the ride as Azzi spends her final year of college trying to reclaim the National Championship and prepare to be a first round WNBA draft pick. Ever wonder what it’s like to be a world-class athlete in the public spotlight while still managing schoolwork, friendships and family time? It’s time to Fudd Around and Find Out!
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!