It appeared the Carolina Panthers came out of Saturday's first padded practice unscathed. Then Kony Ealy wasn't in pads for Sunday's practice.

The third-year defensive end is in the concussion protocol after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit late in Saturday's session.

With the NFL ramping up concerns about concussions the past few seasons, the Panthers have been proactive when players have complained about symptoms.

Teams have even more to lose now after the league on Monday amended its concussion policy to include fines and possibly the loss of draft picks if they violate the gameday protocol.

When asked if Ealy's status was a byproduct of teams keeping a closer eye on players with concussion symptoms, even in training camp, coach Ron Rivera said:

"I think it's a little bit of a byproduct, but at the end of the day, we really don't know. There's never really been a real, true long-term study. So now we're just trying to find out and starting to realize and recognize that we have to be careful and we have to be smart."

With Ealy out and Charles Johnson taking a veteran's day off Sunday, Wes Horton and Ryan Delaire saw the bulk of snaps with the first-team defense.