It would be cute and cavalier for me to tell you about the third-string left tackles we should all keep a close eye on as the NFL preseason kicks off nationwide this week.
There are “roster battles” taking place in every training camp and fights for spots on depth charts. And all of that matters. But let’s be real, for exhibition football in particular, a lot of people are going to have fantasy football in mind and gambling in mind and much of the focus is going to be on skill players. It’s only natural.
And while a great many teams will rest their starters for the entirety of the preseason, not all will. And some teams are dealing with some complicated situations regarding top talents coming off season-ending surgery, that will make them perhaps have to explore possibilities they normally will not. And others, like Sean McVay, might even go even more conservative with how they deploy even key back-ups, let alone starters, as they wait for Aaron Donald to officially come back.
So that’s as good a place to start as any for the five pre-season games I am most interested in watching this week. After that show that the Panthers and Cardinals put on in the Hall of Fame game, with rookie QBs Haynes King and Carson Beck exchanging haymakers, here’s why these games appeal to me:
Los Angeles Rams at Kansas City Chiefs
- Date: Saturday, Aug. 15
- Time: 4 p.m. ET
- TV Channel: NFL Network
We have the most conservative coach when it comes to who sees the field in these exhibitions in McVay, and it sounds like even back-up Stetson Bennett might stay on the sidelines given how important he is behind Matthew Stafford. And on the other sideline it’s Andy Reid, who makes a point of giving Patrick Mahomes a run every summer, and more than just a few meaningless snaps or a series or two.
He plays quite a bit.
Now, coming off major knee surgery, and with an offensive line still getting sorted out, we’ll see how Big Red handles that this summer. This is probably a little soon. But does anyone on the Chiefs depth chart at a skill position pop? Does someone with some speed and twitch stick up his hand and get noticed, because this cast looks bleak.
And let’s be real, everything about the Rams selection of Ty Simpson is kinda wild and splashy, and that rookie first-round pick is going to get a long look in these fake games. Would the Rams announce Donald's return during the broadcast?
Cleveland Browns at Chicago Bears
- Date: Saturday, Aug. 15
- Time: 1 p.m. ET
- TV Channel: NFL Network
The Browns don’t have anything close to an NFL starting QB on this roster, but damn if they don’t generate headlines. And rookie head coach Todd Monken leaned into the intrigue this week by flipping around the scheduled rotation with the first team to give a longer look to Deshaun Watson.
This entire debacle is pretty easy for me: Follow the money. Watson is about to get the final installments of his fully guaranteed $240M deal, and owner Jimmy Haslam wants to get blood from a stone (maybe a comp pick if somebody signs this disgraced former star as a free agent in 2027). So we expect Watson to play quite a bit when the games count.
Shedeur Sanders has been polarizing and a magnet for attention since playing for his Hall of Fame father as his coach in college. This is worth keeping an eye on. Watson is probably toast, but I bet he gets the job to start.
I am interested to see if the Bears are beyond some of the pre-snap and procedural stuff that bogged them down at times last year in Ben Johnson’s first as a head coach and their center and left tackle positions bear close monitoring.
Indianapolis Colts at New England Patriots
- Date: Friday, Aug. 13
- Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
- TV Channel: Check Local Listings
Like Mahomes, Daniel Jones is coming off season-ending surgery that torpedoed Indy’s season like Kansas City’s. The Colts offense was humming before the injuries took hold to their QB, and Jones isn’t playing in this game but will probably warm up and put on quite a show.
Remember Anthony Richardson? How high he was drafted? How he was always hurt and it didn’t take long for things to sour? It’s ugly again between him and the team and he has no teal trade value, but do they give him a run to try to stir up a phone call from someone?
Las Vegas Raiders at Arizona Cardinals
- Date: Friday, Aug. 13
- Time: 8 p.m. ET
- TV Channel: ESPN Unlimited
Can Carson Beck do it again? Several execs I spoke to ahead of the draft believed Beck was the most pro-ready QB in the draft based on how much he played in college and how much he moved around adjusting to new systems and concepts. His personality wasn’t for everyone, and he’s older … which means he has to play. Bet he shows pretty well here, and bet the Cards are trying to move Jacoby Brissett by the deadline.
But of course I’ve buried the lead here.
Kirk Cousins is the Raiders Week 1 starter; there isn’t any intrigue there and they want to keep him healthy in a system he has already mastered from his time with head coach Klint Kubiak in Minnesota. So the first-overall pick in the draft should get quite a looksee this summer.
Cousins going after Maxx Crosby in practice fills us with joy. Still feisty at age 38. You like that? Interested to see what Kubiak dials up for his rookie in the interim, before the veteran takes over Week 1.
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