Kickoff: The Jerod Mayo, Drake Maye era kicks off this evening at Gillette Stadium as the Patriots host the Carolina Panthers in the preseason opener for the 2024 season. It seems like a month ago that we were at Mayo’s introductory press conference but after eight long months, football is back in New England.

Here are four things we are watching in tonight’s game.

1st Down: How long will the quarterbacks play?:  Jacoby Brissett is expected to get the start tonight and play at least one, maybe two series. From there, we should see Drake Maye for a quarter, Bailey Zappe for at least three series and Joe Milton for a quarter, maybe a quarter and a half. All four quarterbacks will have an opportunity to get snaps and make an impression. 

2nd Down: O-Line Shuffle: The offensive line is in flux. The first group which has mostly been repping in camp could get a couple of series. Otherwise expect some mixing and matching as the offensive staff tries to evaluate all of the available offensive lineman and who can make the team and contribute. There are a lot of questions that need to be answered.

3rd Down: Receiver watch: With all the Brandon Aiyuk talk this week, we lost sight of the fact that there is a glut of receivers on this roster. The focus tonight of course will be on Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker, but Tyquan Thornton and JuJu Smith-Schuster will also play a fair amount as will the other receivers on the roster. We should get some clarity after tonight.

4th Down: Mayo’s debut: Tonight will be our first look at in game Jerod Mayo. We will see how manages a game, his temperament and how risky he is in critical situations. Admittedly, it will take some getting used to not seeing Bill Belichick on the Patriots sidelines. 

Extra points: The Patriots and the Panthers will meet in the preseason for the 13th time overall and for the first time since the 2022 season. Tonight’s game will mark the third straight preseason meeting at Gillette Stadium with games in 2019 and 2022. The Patriots beat Carolina, 10-3, on Aug. 22, 2019 and 20-10 on Aug. 19, 2022.

The teams last regular season meeting was in 2021 with the Patriots winning 24-6 at Carolina on Nov. 7, 2021. Since 2000, the Patriots have a winning record against every NFL team except Carolina at 3-3, Green Bay at 3-3 and Seattle at 2-3.

New England leads the preseason matchups with a 9-3 record. Carolina holds a 4-3 advantage in the regular season meetings. 

Final Drive: Tonight is all about evaluating talent and working through various in-game situations for Mayo and his staff. It is a big night, but let’s not lose sight of what it is. The first preseason game. Coming away with a positive feeling about the team and building on tonight is what really matters in the end.