Professor

The Herald - Life. Captured Every Day. - Serving York, Chester, and Lancaster Counties.

excerpt:
SPARTANBURG -- Linebacker Jon Beason was taking first-team reps on his first day with the Carolina Panthers.

But he'll likely work with the second team tonight in the preseason opener at the N.Y. Giants, to give him a chance to play more.

Beason missed the first eight days of camp during his contract holdout, and the Panthers plugged former strongside backup James Anderson into the starting weakside job in his absence.

Based on what they showed in their final walk-through Friday, Anderson appears set to start against the Giants. Starters usually work the first few series (or no more than the first quarter) in the first game.

That'll give Beason more of a chance to play, and that's the plan, according to coach John Fox.

"Yes, but I'm not saying so much more tomorrow night than I am just getting him up to speed," Fox said. "You've got to be a little bit cautious when a guy is a late arrival, because everybody else is used to carrying their pads and being more conditioned with their pads.

"But mentally just getting the looks in pads, that's why he's working with multiple groups."

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