Coach Ron Rivera confirmed Allen will start Sunday's season finale at New Orleans, Bill Voth of the Panthers' official site reports.
The Panthers will have a new starting signal-caller for the third straight game in Allen, an undrafted rookie out of Houston who was called up from the practice squad last week. Cam Newton was lost after the Week 15 loss to the Saints due to lingering discomfort in his right throwing shoulder, while Taylor Heinicke was moved to injured reserve Wednesday due to a left elbow. That leaves Allen as the next man up after he worked as the backup to Heinicke in Week 16 against the Falcons and completed all four of his passes for 38 yards in abbreviated action. With the Saints' 28th-ranked pass defense on tap, he could be a decent one-week replacement in spite of the visit to the raucous confines of the Superdome.