The 2016 NFL season kicks off Thursday, with the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos taking the field in Colorado in a rematch of Super Bowl 50. Following Peyton Manning's retirement, the Broncos are debuting a new quarterback under center in Trevor Siemian, a second-year signal caller who's yet to register a single NFL career pass. They'll also have some new faces on the offensive line, which hopes to buy Siemian time in the pocket as he eases into running an NFL offense.
The Panthers, meanwhile, return last year's league MVP Cam Newton at quarterback, and are looking to avenge their championship defeat last February, when they fell to the underdog Broncos 24-10. Newton has started against the Broncos twice in his career, and was sacked a whopping 13 times total in those two games, but he'll have standout receiver Kelvin Benjamin back as a target after Benjamin lost last year to injury.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
How to create a healthy 'germier' homeUnder The Radar Exposure to a broad range of microbes can enhance our immune system, especially during childhood
-
George Floyd: Did Black Lives Matter fail?Feature The momentum for change fades as the Black Lives Matter Plaza is scrubbed clean
-
National debt: Why Congress no longer caresFeature Rising interest rates, tariffs and Trump's 'big, beautiful' bill could sent the national debt soaring
-
MLB lifts ban on Pete Rose, other dead playersspeed read 16 deceased players banned for gambling and other scandals can now be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame
-
Canada beats US in charged 4 Nations hockey finalSpeed Read 'You can't take our country — and you can't take our game,' Prime Minister Justin Trudeau posted after the game
-
Eagles trounce Chiefs in Super Bowl LIXspeed read The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22
-
Indian teen is youngest world chess championSpeed Read Gukesh Dommaraju, 18, unseated China's Ding Liren
-
Europe roiled by attacks on Israeli soccer fansSpeed Read Israeli fans supporting the Maccabi Tel Aviv team clashed with pro-Palestinian protesters in 'antisemitic attacks,' Dutch authorities said
-
New York wins WNBA title, nearly nabs World SeriesSpeed Read The Yankees with face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the upcoming Fall Classic
-
Caitlin Clark the No. 1 pick in bullish WNBA DraftSpeed Read As expected, she went to the Indiana Fever
-
South Carolina ends perfect season with NCAA titleSpeed Read The women's basketball team won a victory over superstar Caitlin Clark's Iowa Hawkeyes
