Dave Canales’ first game as the Carolina Panthers’ head coach ended with a 17-3 loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium on Thursday. But that final score wasn’t what mattered in the preseason opener in Foxborough, Mass., as the Panthers sat a massive group of players who will be on their 53-man roster come September.
Instead, the Panthers got to evaluate the second and third rungs of their depth chart with the likes of Bryce Young, Diontae Johnson, Jaycee Horn, Xavier Woods and Derrick Brown watching from the sideline.