Comments from Carolina Panthers head coach John Fox following the team's practice.
On roster moves: We waived Oliver Young and Dexter Jackson, moved Thomas Davis to reserve/physically unable to perform and placed Wallace Wright and Hilee Taylor on injured reserve.
On wide receiver Wallace Wright's season-ending injury being a big blow: Yeah. I felt worse for him. He's worked very hard this offseason and was having a tremendous camp. He'll require surgery on his shoulder; that's why he hit the IR list. Of course we're disappointed, and so is he.
On how losing Wright affects special teams: He was a guy that we were counting on pretty heavily, both at the receiver position and in the kicking game. We've got Charly Martin coming back up, and he'll get some action. The next guy has got to step up like with all injuries.
On the battle between Hunter Cantwell and Tony Pike to be the third quarterback: They (games) are all important as far as evaluations. Both of those guys have gotten minimal reps. This will probably be the most significant playing time they'll both get. We'll evaluate that during the game, after the game and go from there. I think for a lot of guys, especially the bottom half of the roster, this is a big weekend. Not that this is going to make or break them, but this is one more chance to show what they can do. Hopefully, they go out there and put their best foot forward.
On the importance of the final preseason game for Cantwell and Pike since they have not had many reps: I wouldn't say that. We watch them every day. We get a lot of game-type reps in practice. They're evaluated every day, and obviously games hold a little bit more importance. We've played three, have got one left and have had a whole bunch of practices where we've watched both of them.
On if injuries have contributed to the struggles on special teams: Injuries are a part of this game. Every team in the league deals with them, including us. We've had a few along the way over our tenure here. Some of those guys are back healthy, and we've lost some. The next guy has got to step up. It's something everybody fights. I think we've shown steady improvement - whether it be on offense, defense or special teams - throughout the preseason.
