The Carolina Panthers have their new starting left guard.
Following this afternoon’s practice, just a few days ahead of their regular-season home opener against the New Orleans Saints, head coach Frank Reich named the next man up for Brady Christensen.
“Cade Mays will start at guard,” he told reporters. “And there may be some rotation there, maybe not. We’ll see how it goes.”
Christensen, the team’s starting left guard, sustained a biceps injury in last weekend’s 24-10 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. While he did finish out the contest, playing in all 77 offensive snaps, the 2021 third-round pick has already undergone surgery and will miss the remainder of the campaign.
Mays, a 2022 sixth-round selection, has worked his way back from a setback of his own. Initially the favorite to land the right guard spot—left vacant by a recovering Austin Corbett—the 24-year-old missed some time this summer due to a neck injury.
Rookie Chandler Zavala, in Mays’ absence, seized the right guard job.
If there is a rotation as Reich suggests, expect undrafted rookie Nash Jensen and/or veteran Justin McCray to potentially factor in.
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