Tonight at 8:00 p.m. ET, the Chicago Bears will take on the Carolina Panthers in NFL Preseason Week 1 action live from Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. The game can be viewed here. Bears fans can listen to the game on WSCR-AM 670 while Panthers fans can access it at 99.3 WBT-FM.
Two key players that will suit up for both teams, but will probably play very little considering its the first exhibition game, are former members of their opposition. Defensive end Julius Peppers who played eight seasons with Carolina will enter his fourth campaign with the Bears, looking to get off to a hot start against his former team. Meanwhile, Panthers tight end Greg Olsen enters his third year with Carolina, and is looking to make a mark against Chicago, where he played his first four professional seasons.
The quarterback situation for both teams is interesting as Chicago's Jay Cutler and Carolina's Cam Newton look to prove that they can lead their teams into the playoffs this year as they've been under constant media criticism recently on whether or not either one of them can propel their teams to the next level.
Newton, who has been vocally critical about his performance and has tucked away any Super Bowl proclamations, went 280-for-485 in his second NFL season last year, throwing for 3,869 yards with 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while rushing for 741 yards on 127 attempts and mounting eight touchdowns. Newton is looking to bounce back after leading Carolina to a 7-9 record last year.
Meanwhile, Cutler led the Bears to a 10-6 overall record, which was an improvement on an 8-8 record the previous year, but the team missed the playoffs as it came in third place in the NFC North for the second consecutive season. Cutler went 255-for-434 for 3,033 passing yards with 19 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.
The Bears and Panthers quarterback's have something to prove, but it'll be tough since both teams' offensive lines have question marks, and it could lead to some struggles in protection for their signal callers.
The Bears will look a bit different this season without eight-time Pro Bowl linebacker Brian Urlacher, who announced his retirement last May, and was the team's first-round draft pick (No.9 overall) in the 2000 draft and stayed with the team his entire career.
The road to a season of redemption for Newton and Cutler starts with a preseason game tonight that will see their paths cross.
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