The NFL Preseason Schedule hits week 2 on Thursday night with a number of games on the schedule and the following day another crop of good games are going down, highlighted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New England Patriots, which has even more intrigue now that Tom Brady is a bit banged up.
The Patriots are looking to win their second straight game in the preseason and the team will have plenty of focus on the offense again as Wes Welker is departed and Aaron Hernandez is behind bars. The Friday games have some intrigue as well, as the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns will go at it after both winning their opening games. The Carolina Panthers and Eagles will go at it with mobile starting quarterbacks in Michael Vick and Cam Newton and that game will have Carolina looking for a second win and the Eagles their first one.
The Chargers and Bears will play in a Monday Night Football presentation on Thursday in Chicago, while the Atlanta Falcons will visit the Ravens in a game in Baltimore that could be a Super Bowl preview. The Falcons are 0-1 after losing their first game, while the Ravens on big in their first game and both the Chargers and Bears will be looking for their first wins. The Vikings and Bills will matchup in the first game on Friday and the Bills are coming off a big win over the Colts while the Vikes will be looking for their first win.
The 49ers and Chiefs are playing in a matchup that puts Alex Smith against his old team and both are looking for their first win after losing in Week 1. The Bucs and Pats have a ton of connections between the two and the Bucs will be looking for a win, while the Raiders and Saints come into their game after having won their first games of the preseason. Saturday will also have a number of games, including the Cowboys and Cardinals.
Week 2 matchups Friday:
7:00 PM ET
Buffalo Bills vs. Minnesota Vikings
8:00 PM ET
Oakland Raiders vs. New Orleans Saints
San Francisco 49ers vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Patriots