Ryan Tannehill will start his first career NFL game on against the Panthers.
Miami quarterback Ryan Tannehill started all 16 games of his rookie season last year. winsnlosses.com

The Dolphins and Panthers face off on Friday night as both teams look to win their first game of the 2012 NFL preseason.

The contest is set to get underway at 8 p.m. ET at Bank of America Stadium in North Carolina. You can still watch the game if you don't live in the local TV markets. Click here to watch a free live stream online.

With three games to be played before the start of the regular season, Miami has a lot of questions to be answered. This biggest revolves around their starting quarterback. David Garrard, who was supposed to be the team's starter, will probably miss every exhibition game with a knee injury.

The Dolphins are left with Ryan Tannehill and Matt Moore at quarterback. Moore got the starting nod last week against Tampa Bay. He went 7-12 for 79 yards, but failed to get the offense into the end zone. Tannehill was impressive, going 14-21 for 167 yards and a touchdown. The rookie's performance forced Miami head coach Joe Philbin to give him the start on Friday.

At the start of training camp, Tannehill was listed third on the team's depth chart. Now, he's got a legitimate shot to enter Week 1 as the starter.

Miami will be looking for one of their wide receivers to fill the role that Chad Johnson has left open. Ochocinco was released on Sunday after he was arrested on domestic violence charges.

Brian Hartline, Davone Bess, Legedu Naanee and Roberto Wallace remain as the Dolphins top wide outs. Wallace performed the best against the Buccaneers, catching four balls for 71 yards.

Miami doesn't have one receiver on the roster that has had a 1,000-yard season in his career.

Carolina also struggled in their first preseason game. They fell to Houston 26-13 at home, and weren't able to do much with the backups in the second half.

Cam Newton looks to improve on his 2-6, 17-yard performance. The quarterback set multiple rookie records in 2011, passing for 4,051 yards and rushing for 14 touchdowns.

Newton is expected to have another big year, so it's the Panthers defense that needs to improve the most. Carolina finished 27th in points allowed last year.

Linebacker Luke Kuechly was the Panthers first pick the draft, and performed admirably against the Texans. He didn't hesitate to make his presence known, recording three tackles in the first series of the game.

Fourth-round draft pick Frank Alexander wasn't as productive. The defensive end played for a lot of the second half, only recording two tackles.

Prediction: With one game under his belt, look for Cam Newton to have a big performance. The Dolphins don't have very many offensive weapons, so Carolina could jump out to an early lead.

Predicted Score: Carolina 30, Miami 17

Bank of america National Football League Bank of america