South Carolina

PRESEASON OPENER: Familiar faces square off as Panthers visit Buffalo

By STEVE REED, AP Sports Writer
By STEVE REED, AP Sports Writer

BUFFALO — Carolina opens the 2018 preseason with a trip to Buffalo Thursday night, marking the sixth time Carolina has plays the Bills in the preseason. The Panthers hold a 3-2 edge.

The last time the two teams faced in the preseason was in 2015 in a 25-24 Panthers win in Buffalo.

[FOOTBALL IS BACK: Panthers players return to training camp]

The Panthers are 2-5 all-time against the Bills in the regular season after defeating Buffalo at home last season.

The Bills and Panthers are one of the more familiar sets of teams in the NFL. Bills general manager Brandon Beane and head coach Sean McDermott were both in Carolina at the end of the 2016 season.

Bills players Kelvin Benjamin, Kaelin Clay, Star Lotulelei, Dean Marlowe and L.J. McCray all played for the Panthers recently, while Panthers players Lorenzo Doss, Da'Norris Searcy and Kevon Seymour all spent time in Buffalo.

Benjamin made headlines this week after calling out Cam Newton in an interview, saying the former league MVP was not accurate and that he could have excelled with any other quarterback.

[McDermott unhappy with Benjamin criticizing Panthers, Newton]

[Panthers trade WR Kelvin Benjamin to Buffalo Bills]

Carolina enters 2018 after an 11-5 season and a playoff berth as the five seed in the NFC playoffs last year. The Panthers advanced to the postseason for the fourth time in five seasons, tied for the most in the NFC over that span.

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This season, the Panthers welcome a number of new weapons, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Carolina drafted D.J. Moore, the first wide receiver taken in the 2018 NFL Draft. They also added veterans Torrey Smith and Jarius Wright to the receiver room.

The Panthers also signed running back C.J. Anderson who is fresh off his first career 1,000-yard rushing season in Denver.

Defensively, the Panthers drafted cornerback Donte Jackson in the second and safety Rashaan Gaulden in the third round. They signed defensive tackle Dontari Poe to replace free-agent departure Star Lotulelei and safety Da'Norris Searcy after the free agent departure of Kurt Coleman.

Panthers have a QB battle on their hands -- behind Cam Newton

For the first time since 2010, the Carolina Panthers have a quarterback battle on their hands heading into the preseason - at least when it comes to who'll backup 2015 league MVP Cam Newton.

Since Newton entered the league as the No. 1 overall pick in 2011, Panthers coach Ron Rivera has always had veteran Derek Anderson to fall back on as a security blanket. But the Panthers opted not to re-sign the 35-year Anderson this offseason, opening the battle for the No. 2 spot between two young QBs who have attempted one career pass between them.

Garrett Gilbert and Taylor Heinicke will begin that battle in earnest on Thursday night when the Panthers open the preseason in Buffalo against the Bills.

Rivera said Gilbert will be the first off the bench and will get some reps with the first team. Heinicke will be the third quarterback for this game, although he didn't rule out that the QB rotation could change the following week.

"I'm really curious to watch them and see how they both do, I really am," Rivera said. "... We are going to try to get those guys as many snaps as we can the next few weeks so we can make a good decision."

Rivera said he'll try to split reps as equally as possible between the two in the preseason.

"We would like to feel really good about who the guy is going to be going into the last preseason game so he can get the bulk of the work," Rivera said. "We will give them both some opportunities with the twos and the threes and create some situations where they can get some time with the ones."

Panthers tight end Greg Olsen said he likes what he's seen from both young QBs in training camp.

"They are two really smart kids and can spin it really well," Olsen said. "Of course, losing a guy like D.A. (Anderson) is tough for a lot of reasons because of who he was in the locker room for us, but we are moving in another direction."

Ironically, both Gilbert and Heinicke have spent time in New England behind Tom Brady, although neither was able to stick with the Patriots.

Gilbert was drafted in the sixth round by the Rams in 2014 and spent time with the Patriots, Lions and Raiders before serving as Carolina's third-string quarterback last season. However, he's never played in a regular season game.

"You can see the confidence with how he gets up and handles things right now," Rivera said. "He has a strong arm and we know that. So now, it's about knowing the offense, and what we're trying to do and then taking it and translating."

Heinicke has a leg up on Gilbert in that area since he's familiar with coordinator Norv Turner's offensive system having spent two years working under him with the Minnesota Vikings.

"He has shown us he has a good arm and good decision maker and he's athletic as well," Rivera said.

Gilbert said he's not worried about the competition at this point, saying his goal is to "develop my skills and be the best quarterback for this team I can possibly be."

NOTES: Rivera said ideally he'd like to play Newton about nine to 10 plays against the Bills. ... Tyler Larsen will start at center against the Bills as the team slowly works center Ryan Kalil back into action. ... Defensive end Julius Peppers still has not practiced with the team, although he has been cleared to return.

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