The Carolina Panthers won’t wait until their Aug. 19 preseason matchup to offer players the opportunity to stand out against the New England Patriots. The team officially announced that New England will host Carolina for a series of joint practices ahead of their second preseason game.
Last summer, the Panthers had joint practices with two teams: the Baltimore Ravens and Indianapolis Colts. Related to the former, Carolina will play Baltimore in the regular season this year, so it didn’t make sense to renew those joint practices.
As for the latter, practices between the Colts and Panthers were a little too physical at times. Typically, coaches expect small skirmishes in 11-on-11 drills as players itch to get the regular season underway. During the second day of these practices though, multiple fights involving large numbers of players broke out. Even though head coaches Frank Reich and Matt Rhule spoke to their team captains ahead of the first Thursday practice, two large ones broke out during the Friday drills.
In addition to New England not being on Carolina’s regular-season schedule for 2022, Rhule told Joseph Person of The Athletic about his respect for their organization.
“I just know everything they do is first class,” Rhule said.
After the Panthers’ preseason game against the Patriots on Aug. 19, they will return home for their final preseason matchup versus the Buffalo Bills on Aug. 26 at 7:00 p.m. ET.
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