Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera says that neither quarterback Cam Newton nor linebacker Luke Kuechly will play in the Panthers' preseason opener against the Chicago Bears on Thursday night, according to Joseph Person of The Athletic.
Newton is still on the mend from arthroscopic shoulder surgery, a procedure he underwent back in January. It marked the second time since the end of the 2016 campaign that Newton had gone under the knife to repair a shoulder issue.
The 30-year-old was shut down for the final two games of the 2018 campaign as a result of his shoulder problems, as he threw nine of his 13 interceptions between Weeks 10 and 15 and clearly looked out of sorts.
On the season overall, Newton threw for 3,395 yards and 24 touchdowns while completing 67.9 percent of his passes and posting a passer rating of 94.2.
Meanwhile, Kuechly sustained an undisclosed injury last Wednesday and just returned to team drills on Sunday. While he was never actually placed in concussion protocol, his history with concussions has the Panthers being extra cautious with him heading into the preseason.
Kuechly is coming off of a season in which he racked up 130 tackles, a couple of sacks, an interception, a pair of forced fumbles and a fumble recovery en route to a Pro Bowl appearance and a First-Team All-Pro selection.
The 28-year-old has made six straight Pro Bowls, notching First-Team All-Pro honors five times in the process.
Carolina won seven games this past year in spite of getting off to a 6-2 start. The team began to spiral downward once Newton's shoulder issues began to worsen.
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