Systems and methods for evaluating packets and frames in a wireless communication system having multiple reverse-link channels including a spontaneous, burst oriented transmission channel and its corresponding rate indicator channel. One embodiment comprises a base station monitoring the rate indicator channel, decoding the rate indicator channel using a maximum likelihood decoder and detecting the presence of a packet on the rate indicator channel by comparing a likelihood with a threshold, and analyzing the validity of a frame on the burst oriented channel based on the presence and content of packets received on the rate indicator channel.