Pranger » Cam Newton is expected to see his first game action since Dec.

17 when the Carolina Panthers host the Buffalo Bills on Friday night.Newton Gale Sayers Jersey , the league MVP in 2015, missed the final two games of last season and underwent arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder in January. He and Carolina’s other starters did not play in the first preseason game against the Bears.Wide receiver Curtis Samuel was the star of training camp for the Panthers. His speed, quickness and ability to create separation are quickly turning him into Newton’s favorite offensive option. Samuel will step into a starting role in his third NFL season and play alongside D.J. Moore after the Panthers let Devin Funchess leave in free agency.Panthers rookie first-round draft pick Brian Burns had two sacks against the Bears and has looked dominant in Carolina’s 3-4 defense. However, Burns tweaked his ankle Tuesday in a joint practice with the Bills. He tried to practice Wednesday, but couldn’t. Burns said he plans to play against Buffalo, but it’s possible coach Ron Rivera will err on the side of caution and keep Burns out.Bills quarterback Josh Allen gets an opportunity to carry over what was an encouraging performance during two days of practices with the Panthers.Aside from continuing to develop rapport with new receivers Cole Beasley and John Brown, Allen took time to get advice from Panthers star linebacker Luke Kuechly on how he defended against certain plays.Running back LeSean McCoy is expected to make his preseason debut after fellow veteran Frank Gore started in Buffalo’s preseason-opening win over Indianapolis. And there will also be focus placed on rookie running back Devin Singletary to see if he can build on the production — 27 yards rushing and 21 yards receiving — he had against the Colts.BEARS AT GIANTSGiants rookie quarterback Daniel Jones gets another chance to impress in the teams’ first preseason matchup since 2012.Jones was 5 for 5 for 67 yards and a TD pass in last week’s preseason opener against the Jets.Jones and Eli Manning and both played one series. Both should see more action against Chicago in the Giants’ first game since the suspension of wide receiver Golden Tate was announced Tuesday.The Giants’ defense struggled as Sam Darnold drove the Jets right down the field on the opening possession.Bears coach Matt Nagy continues to keep quiet on how much the starters will play, but all indications are little or not at all even if they’re obviously tired of hitting each other and want to hit someone else.They went through a two-hour-plus mock game Wednesday night, complete with pumped-in stadium noise, light hitting, a clock and starters facing backups. Kyle Long got into a fight, removed the helmet of rookie defensive lineman Jalen Dalton and began swinging it at defenders before being sent to the bench for the night. It was their third straight practice with a fight of some sort.Starting tight end Trey Burton returned to play in the simulated game after a week and a half away while recovering from hernia surgery Womens Walter Payton Jersey , but left guard Cody Whitehair injured a finger and left the practice. So, seeing any starters after a practice so long and intense would seem unlikely.Mitchell Trubisky and the starting offense played only three snaps and handed off three times in last week’s preseason opener, a 23-13 loss to Carolina.The kicking competition between Eddy Pineiro and Elliott Fry continues after the Bears reportedly failed in a bid to trade with Baltimore for Kaare Vedvik, who was dealt to Minnesota.DOLPHINS AT BUCCANEERSRyan Fitzpatrick, battling with Rosen for the Dolphins‘ starting quarterback job, will face the team for which he played the last two seasons.Fitzpatrick is expected to start, but Rosen may also get some snaps with the first team. First-year coach Brian Flores this week declined to say who is leading the competition.Flores will likely take another long look at undrafted rookie receiver Preston Williams, who had a breakout performance in the first exhibition game with four catches for 97 yards.Also expected to see significant action are rookie guards Michael Deiter and Shaq Calhoun, both competing for starting jobs, and rookie defensive ends Jonathan Ledbetter and Dewayne Hendrix, who both won praise for their play in the first game.The Buccaneers‘ regulars, including quarterback Jameis Winston http://www.thebearslockerroom.com/authentic-jim-mcmahon-jersey , played one series in last week’s preseason opener at Pittsburgh.They probably won’t play as much as they might normally in a second preseason game because the Bucs and Dolphins held a pair of joint practices this week.“With as much (practice against Miami) as our 1s are getting … I don’t think it’s necessary probably to play them much in the ballgame, maybe a few more plays than last week,” coach Bruce Arians said. “If things go as well as they did early offensively, it’ll probably be the same. Defensively, the same, just because of the work we’re getting this week. If we weren’t working together this week, we’d probably play 20 or 25 plays.” From the Burner to Free, with plenty of Antone Smith in between."Our series continues with a look at running back from Michael Turner to Devonta Freeman, and perhaps beyond. The Falcons have not had the luxury of Matt Ryan-like stability at running back, but then, no organization has for that long. They have had the relative luxury of just three full-time starters from 2008-2018, though injury robbed Michael Turner of his effectiveness and robbed Devonta Freeman of significant portions of the last two years. The story from 2008-2014 was one of marginalizing young Tarik Cohen Jersey , speedy backs whenever the opportunity presented itself. That was defensible when Michael Turner was running over hapless defenders and throwing Eric Weems like a javelin, but it was less defensible when Turner slowed down and, subsequently, when Steven Jackson took over. From 2015-2018, the story has largely been about getting the young backs involved, from Freeman starting to Tevin Coleman carving out a significant role to Ito Smith playing a major one (largely thanks to injury, but still) in year one. Here’s a closer look. Falcons RB EvolutionYearRB1FBRB2RB3RB4YearRB1FBRB2RB3RB4Falcons RBs, 2008-2018As I noted, the common thread running through the Mike Smith years in Atlanta, all of which notably came under either new/old offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter or tight end coach/old OC Mike Mularkey, was a big, physical back taking the lead role. That worked brilliantly from 2008-2011 Womens James Daniels Jersey , but Turner’s body began to break down in a major way in 2012 and the passing game under Koetter largely dragged the Falcons offense along. Under Dan Quinn and coordinators Kyle Shanahan and Steve Sarkisian, meanwhile, the team shifted to less of an attack designed to bang between the tackles and one that emphasized versatility, speed, and shiftiness, which was largely perfect for Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman.The noteworthy thing is how the Falcons have strove to have some stability behind their starters, with Jason Snelling, Jerious Norwood and Antone Smith each sticking around for a long time in Atlanta. Smith was criminally underutilized, something we’ll litigate another day, but the Falcons have done a stellar job over the last decade-plus of stocking the cupboard with talented backsthey invested relatively little draft capital into. Tevin Coleman was the highest selection with a third round pick, while Devonta Freeman and Ito Smith were fourth rounders, Jacquizz Rodgers and Brian Hill were fifth rounders http://www.thebearslockerroom.com/authentic-aaron-lynch-jersey , Jason Snelling was one of the team’s best seventh rounders ever, and Antone Smith was an undrafted free agent. The team’s philosophy under Dimitroff has been largely brilliant in that regard, but the Falcons have repeatedly fallen flat on their big contracts since the masterstroke that was the Turner signing, with S-Jax’s decline and the state of the offensive line and now Freeman’s contract, undone to this point by injuries outside of his or the team’s control. But history teaches us that the Falcons have keen eyes for young backs, which is a major comfort with Freeman’s long-term injury outlook so up in the air. We’ll hope that Ito Smith and Qadree Ollison will be the latest in a long line of quality additions, and more than anything, that Devonta Freeman will be the first Falcons back of this era to log more than five seasons as a starter.