Dec 24, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers place kicker Eddy Pineiro (4) during pregame warm ups against the Green Bay Packers at Bank of America Stadium. Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

Panthers injury updates: Dave Canales claims kicker Eddy Piñeiro (hamstring) is 'fine'

Originally posted on Carolina Panthers on SI
By Tim Weaver | Last updated Aug 25, 2024 1:33 PM ET

The Carolina Panthers won their last preseason game of the year yesterday, 31-26 over the Buffalo Bills. While any win is nice for a team that only managed two of them all season in 2023, all that really matters coming out of any preseason game is that a team doesn't suffer any major injuries to any of their key players before the regular season even begins.

It appears that the Panthers dodged that particular bullet, with one possible exception to the rule. Kicker Eddy Piñeiro apparently suffered a hamstring injury to his kicking leg and was pulled from the field with a "questionable" to return designation.

After the game was over, head coach Dave Canales did his best to downplay the issue. He claimed that Piñeiro was "fine" and the decision to take him out of the game was just erring on the side of caution.

Dave Canales on #Panthers kicker Eddy Pineiro

“He’s fine.”

Said Pineiro had some (hamstring) soreness, and they erred on the side of caution with him
— DaShawn Brown (@DaShawnWSOC9) August 24, 2024

For all we know Canales could be telling the truth, but it's not like he would run out and announce to the whole world right away if he knew his kicker was going to miss time.

The Panthers don't need to release their first injury report for another 10 days or so. In the meantime, we'll keep any eye out for any kickers they might bring in for work outs, which could be our best clue.