Panthers’ Cam Newton, Luke Kuechly Among Starters To Play Vs. Patriots

The New England Patriots return to Gillette Stadium for their first home preseason game of the year Thursday when they take on the Panthers, and it appears they’ll get a taste of Carolina’s starters.

Cam Newton, Luke Kuechly and Christian McCaffrey are expected to start for the Panthers on Thursday night along with the rest of the starters, according to ESPN’s David Newton. Newton, Kuechly and McCaffrey did not play in Carolina’s first two preseason games.

Panthers head coach Ron Rivera gave New England plenty of credit Monday, labeling it as the NFL’s “gold standard.”

“They’ve been the gold standard for a long time,” Rivera said, per ESPN. “You want to go out and see just how good you are. It is a good measuring stick as to who we can be as a football team.”

Time will tell if Tom Brady will make his first preseason appearance of the season Thursday. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET.