The week begins and ends with big-time reunions.
In between there will be hundreds of scenarios played out involving both
veterans getting ready for the season and rookies hoping to simply make the
team.
It’s NFL preseason Week 2 and it comes packed with five national TV games,
the final of which on Monday is a rematch of last February’s Super Bowl XLI.
Every night, fans can see the team-molding unfold.
“Preseason is for seeing the progress of players,” says New York Jets
head coach Eric Mangini, whose club will host the Minnesota Vikings on FOX this
Friday night. “The rookies last year, what kind of strides have they made?
Your veteran guys that have a year in the system, what does their improvement
look like? That’s the great thing about training camp and preseason games. You
get to look at a body of work.”
That work continues in earnest this week. The five national TV games in Week
2 are listed below along with some interesting notes about other matchups around the league.
MIAMI at KANSAS CITY (Thursday, ESPN, 8:00 PM ET)
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Trent Green
Al Messerschmidt,
Getty Images |
Trent returns!
New Dolphins quarterback Trent Green comes back to Arrowhead Stadium where he
had some of his greatest games as the Chiefs’ QB from 2001-06. Green ranks as
Kansas City’s career top-rated passer (87.3) and either leads or follows at
No. 2 Pro Football Hall of Famer Len Dawson in numerous club passing categories.
The KC QB battle between Brodie Croyle and Damon Huard (who took the team to
the playoffs last year) will continue to be waged.
The Dolphins think they may have found a potent backup for their 1,000-yard
rusher Ronnie Brown last Saturday in former Charger Jesse Chatman, who rushed
for 88 yards on six carries, including a TD.
MINNESOTA at NEW YORK JETS (Friday, FOX, 8:00 PM ET):
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Chad Pennington
Elsa, Getty Images |
The Vikings
young QB looked solid. The Jets may have locked up their No. 2. Those scenarios will be played out even further Friday night.
Minnesota’s Tarvaris Jackson – who last season became only the third
Vikings rookie to start at quarterback (Fran Tarkenton, 1961; Tommy Kramer,
1977) – turned in an impressive performance last Friday night against St. Louis. The Alabama State product threw for 83 yards on 8-for-11 passing and
scrambled twice for 25 yards. “He had good command of the offense, and that’s
what we’re looking for,” says Vikings head coach Brad Childress.
The Jets’ Chad Pennington is locked in as the starter. The backup job may
well have been solidified last Friday by Kellen Clemens, who became only the
third Jets QB in the past 15 years to throw three TDs in a preseason game (Rick
Mirer, 1999; Ray Lucas, 2000). “For a young QB, there’s no substitute for
reps,” says Clemens.
SAN DIEGO at ST. LOUIS (Saturday, CBS, 8:00 PM ET)
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Adam Carriker
Philip Vishwanat,
Getty Images |
The Rams got
promising showings from their top two draft picks last week. The Chargers saw a
second-year player come on. They’re anxious to see what happens in Week 2.
St. Louis’ No. 1 selection, nose tackle Adam Carriker (Nebraska), helped
shut down Minnesota up the middle for a game total of 87 rush yards. Afterwards,
Vikings Pro Bowl center Matt Birk told Rams head coach Scott Linehan that
Carriker was “a handful, a heck of a player.”
On St. Louis’ offensive rookie side, second-round choice Brian Leonard
(Rutgers), slotted to be the backup to All-Star Steven Jackson, turned in an
impressive debut with nine rushes for 36 yards (and a TD) and five catches for
30 yards.
The Chargers Sunday may have found their No. 2 or 3 receiver behind Antonio Gates while Eric Parker recovers from toe surgery in Malcolm Floyd. The
second-year wideout – who had three touchdowns among only 15 catches in ’06
-- had five receptions for 65 yards against Seattle, including a TD.
NEW YORK GIANTS at BALTIMORE (Sunday, NBC, 8:00 PM ET):
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Willis McGahee
Greg Fiume, Getty Images |
First game,
two standout performances by the RBs. That was the story for both teams in Week 1 and they’ll want to see the
same thing this time around.
New Ravens running back Willis McGahee, acquired in a trade with Buffalo, had
a 16-yard run Monday night against Philadelphia and showed that he might supply
the raw power that Baltimore used so effectively in its Jamal Lewis bulldozing
days. “I still need to get comfortable with what the guys are doing up front,
but it was a good start,” says McGahee.
It was such for the Giants’ Derrick Ward in Week 1. The four-year running
back, sparsely used due to injuries and the dominance of now-retired Tiki
Barber, showed he may be a factor in the battle with Brandon Jacobs and newcomer
Reuben Droughns to replace Barber.
Ward had five carries for 29 yards, including a 19-yard gain and a five-yard
TD burst against Carolina. He also set up a score with a 67-yard kickoff return.
“I’m just trying to show the Giants this year that they can rely on me,”
says Ward.
CHICAGO at INDIANAPOLIS (Monday, ESPN, 8:00 PM ET)
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Tony Ugoh
A.J. Mast, AP |
Super Bowl rematch! But the Bears will see a slightly different Colts team than the one that
topped them 29-17 on February 4 in Super Bowl XLI. Gone are tackle Tarik Glenn
(retired), linebacker Cato June (Tampa Bay) and cornerbacks Jason David (New Orleans) and Nick Harper (Tennessee).
So…maybe there’s a chance for Chicago to become only the third Super
Bowl-losing team since 1990 to win a rematch the following preseason. The Super
Bowl winners have gone 5-2 in that span. Only Tennessee in the 2000 preseason
over St. Louis and Carolina over New England in 2004 have extracted some revenge
the next summer.
Both clubs come off Week 1 games in which key performers turned in promising
outings.
Indianapolis lost to Dallas, but rookie left tackle Tony Ugoh, competing to
replace Glenn, held off the Cowboys’ best rusher DeMarcus Ware. For Chicago in
a win over Houston, running back Cedric Benson – due to carry a bigger load
now that Thomas Jones has been dealt to the Jets – had five caries for 23
yards. “Cedric ran the ball really well,” says Bears head coach Lovie Smith.
“It’s good to get him into the flow.”
AMONG OTHER INTERESTING GAMES THIS WEEK: Eagles QB Donovan McNabb
(knee in ’06) should see his first preseason action vs. Carolina……Browns
first-round choice QB Brady Quinn, will probably also see his first playing time
vs. Detroit. Matchup will be one of 11 Week 2 games aired by NFL Network, and
one of seven in high definition……Seattle head coach Mike Holmgren visits his
old QB, Brett Favre, in Green Bay as No. 4 prepares to break the NFL career TD
record this year……and Oakland plays in San Francisco, with the teams
splitting the last six preseason meetings. “It’s big to win the Battle of
the Bay,” says 49ers wide receiver Arnaz Battle.