CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Taylor Moton and Ikem Ekwonu worked with trainers during the Carolina Panthers’ Labor Day practice, as they have most days after the team reported to training camp seven weeks ago.The two veteran offensive tackles later visited with teammates in the locker room at Bank of America Stadium, where they’ll attend Sunday’s season opener against the Chicago Bears, but both will be sidelined for the Bears game and at least the three after it as they make their way back to full health.The Panthers have known they would be without their starting bookend tackles for the start of the season, but their absences felt a little more real last month after the Houston Texans edge rushers dominated the replacements for Moton and Ekwonu during a joint practice that tilted heavily in favor of the Texans defense.The Texans sacked quarterback Bryce Young seven times and intercepted him twice during a practice Panthers coach Dave Canales described as “lopsided.” At least four of those sacks came against rookie right tackle Monroe Freeling, who was overmatched by the edge-rushing tandem of Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter, who combined for 27 sacks in 2025.The Panthers are chalking up Freeling’s struggles as a rough day against the NFL’s top-ranked defense from last season rather than a cause for alarm for their first-round pick.“Those two guys (Anderson and Hunter), you don’t see those — you may see them one time a year, and that’s there (at Houston). And now you may see them with the Rams with those guys, right?” said right guard Rob Hunt, referring to Myles Garrett and Aaron Donald.“But you don’t see that every week. (Freeling) has been holding his own. He’s been doing a really good job. And he’s a rookie, man. I remember when I was a rookie trying to block people; it’s hard. And not guys like that. I couldn’t imagine blocking some guys like that.”After Ekwonu ruptured his patellar tendon in the playoff loss to the Los Angeles Rams, the Panthers signed veteran tackle Rasheed Walker to a one-year deal in free agency, then drafted Freeling with the 19th pick a month later. Many draft analysts viewed Freeling as a developmental pick after he started just 17 games at Georgia, but that learning curve was expedited after the Panthers found out this summer Moton was diagnosed with a blood clot in his lung.So the Panthers will roll out an offensive line against Chicago featuring three new starters. In addition to the tackles, center Luke Fortner will make his Panthers debut after agreeing to a one-year contract to succeed Cade Mays, who left in free agency. Hunt is back after missing the final 15 regular-season games last year following biceps surgery before returning for the wild-card game.“Don’t get me wrong, T-Mo and Ickey are huge parts of this O-line, and they have been for years. And everybody’s seen when this line is completely healthy what it can be and what it is. So we can’t replace them, right?” Hunt said Monday.“But we can get guys that are really good football players like Monroe Freeling and Rasheed Walker, and they come in and do what they do. And also we’ve got Luke, who’s new. And I haven’t played in a year. So s—, we’re excited to go out for the challenge.”The Panthers did a decent job protecting Young last season despite missing Hunt. Their 35 sacks allowed tied for the 12th fewest in the league.Walker was known more for his pass protection than run blocking while starting 48 games the last three seasons for the Green Bay Packers. The 2022 seventh-round pick from Penn State allowed five sacks and 34 pressures last year, with a Pro Football Focus pass-blocking grade of 70.0 that ranked 42nd among 89 qualified tackles.Walker faced the Bears three times last season with Green Bay, including a 31-27 playoff loss in which Chicago erased an 18-point halftime deficit at Soldier Field. Chicago might not have Houston’s pass-rushing firepower, but Montez Sweat finished with 10 sacks in 2025, the second-highest total of his seven-year career.“He’s a strong pass rusher,” Walker said of the 30-year-old Sweat. “He’s a seasoned veteran, a respected pass rusher throughout the league.”Sweat lines up on both sides of the line, so Walker and Freeling will see him Sunday, but the Bears are looking for someone else to step up on the edge. Austin Booker, who had 4.5 sacks last year, missed time late in training camp with a groin injury.Canales spoke with Freeling during and after the Texans practice and doesn’t think he’ll carry it with him into the season.“The good part about Monroe — really confident guy. He really enjoys playing ball,” Canales said. “I don’t wanna say happy-go-lucky because that wouldn’t be accurate in describing him, but he does have a self-deprecating nature to him, where he’s like, man, he’s acknowledging (how tough that day was).“And I just told him, ‘Hey, if that’s not the best tandem, I don’t know what it is.’ This is what we need to take our steps and continue to improve stuff, but he’s excited about this week, and he’s had a couple of nice days of practice.”Rookie Monroe Freeling had a rough outing in the joint practice with Houston, but his teammates are impressed with his talent and the way he’s progressed. (Melina Myers / Imagn Images)The Panthers still believe the 6-7, 323-pound Freeling will be a franchise stabilizer at tackle. Left guard Damien Lewis said Freeling was the first offensive lineman on the practice fields during camp.“That guy’s a freak. He’s real athletic, and he comes to work every day,” Lewis said. “He wants to learn. He’s hungry, and he’s just excited to be out here, just like every other rookie.”Still, the team expects bumps in the road for Freeling as he makes the jump from college — even after playing in the SEC — to the pros.“It’s a part of it,” Hunt said. “Anybody expecting a rookie to get in there and be flawless is either you’ve got really high standards for him, and you think he’s gonna be a Hall of Famer, because there’s only so many that does that, or you’re just delusional to the game of football.”Walker called Freeling a coachable player with great length who benefited from blocking Jaelan Phillips every day this summer. As for Walker, the former Packer is fired up to see what this new-look offensive line can do against an opponent he knows well.“It’s crazy. I think this is like my third time in a row playing the Bears,” said Walker, who saw Chicago in weeks 14 and 16 last year before the wild-card game. “Shoot, it’s the NFL. It’s a faceless opponent, honestly. We’re gonna prepare this week, game plan, and then we’re gonna come with that smoke on Sunday.”