One of the Carolina Panthers’ biggest competitions of the summer has officially come to a close.
Head coach Frank Reich named Chandler Zavala the team’s starting right guard on Wednesday. The rookie will get the nod in his first career regular-season outing on Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons.
The opportunity arose this summer, with regular starter Austin Corbett having to recover from offseason ACL surgery. Corbett, as a result of being placed on the reserve/physically unable to perform list, will miss at least the first four games of the 2023 campaign.
Zavala—who beat out the likes of Cade Mays, Nash Jensen and Justin McCray—started the last two preseason games at the position. In a combined 43 offensive snaps, he—per Pro Football Focus—allowed just one pressure against 24 pass-rushing opportunities.
Right guard will be a change of scenery for the fourth-round selection, who manned the left side for North Carolina State University in the last two years.
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