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The Titans are cranking up the intensity on defense, with defensive coordinator Jerry Gray calling for a more physical and explosive attack. Tennessee lost 27-17 to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 1 of the preseason, giving up 135 yards on the ground. Veteran Matt Hasselbeck, who started versus Seattle, will come off the bench in relief of Jake Locker.
The Bucs opened the preseason with a 20-7 win over the Miami Dolphins. Running backs Doug Martin and LeGarrette Blount each scored in that game and have a nice battle to be the featured back going. Tampa Bay will try to get free-agent addition WR Vincent Jackson some action Friday after he went without a catch in the win over the Dolphins.
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Ryan Tannehill and Matt Moore will duke it out at QB with veteran David Garrard on the shelf. Head coach Joe Philbin still hasn’t announced a starter as of Thursday afternoon. Tannehill picked apart the Bucs second and third stringers for 167 yards and one touchdown while Moore finished 7 for 12 for 79 yards and an interception.
Panthers head coach Ron Rivera plans to play his starters the entire first half Friday night, including quarterback Cam Newton. Newton wasn’t all that sharp in a Week 1 preseason loss to the Houston Texans, going 2 for 6 for 17 yards and adding 16 yards on the ground.
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Lions coach Jim Schwartz wasn’t pleased with his team’s effort in a 19-17 loss to the Cleveland Browns in the preseason opener. Fingers are pointing at the offense as well as the defense, more specifically the lack of depth at safety. Erik Coleman and John Wendling got the nod versus the Browns after Louis Delmas and Amari Spievey were ruled out with ailments. Detroit was torched for 309 passing yards from the Browns’ sub-par QBs.
John Harbaugh could play some of his starters the entire first half Friday, hoping to get a good look at his offensive line. Baltimore’s o-line was terrible in the early going of Thursday’s preseason win over the Atlanta Falcons, leaving QB Joe Flacco to take some licks.
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The Bills will be doing some ground work in Week 2 of the preseason. Buffalo’s first-team offense exclusively passed the ball during their plays in last week’s 7-6 loss to the Washington Redskins. Chan Gailey says running backs Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller will get more touches, which could kept the clock running and the scoring low.
Head coach Leslie Frazier told the media his veterans will get plenty of action during Week 2 of the preseason. The Vikings are expected to play their starters into the second quarter Friday, with veterans DT Kevin Williams, CB Antoine Winfield and DE Jared Allen back on defense and WR Percy Harvin returning on offense after sitting in the preseason opener.
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With this being the Saints' third game of the preseason, thanks to the Hall of Fame Game, oddsmakers have set a big spread for Friday’s exhibition. Drew Brees only threw four passes versus the Patriots in Week 1 but should get more reps Friday. Tight end Jimmy Graham returned to practice and is expected to play in Week 2.
While the Jaguars wait on one star to show up to camp, they’ll debut another against New Orleans Friday. First-round pick WR Justin Blackmon will play in his first game and is schedule to put in about a half of action before taking a seat. Jacksonville took a 32-31 win over the New York Giants in the preseason opener, with Blaine Gabbert throwing for 62 yards and a touchdown.
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The Raiders were goose-egged in their preseason opener, losing 3-0 to the Dallas Cowboys Monday. Now, they have a short turnaround to fix whatever was broken on offense, namely a rushing attack that total just 89 yards and averaging just over three yards per carry.
The Cardinals are playing in their third preseason contests of the summer and will let the starters play extensive minutes, according to head coach Jim Whisenhunt. Arizona is still on the fence about who its starting QB will be in Week 1, so Kevin Kolb and John Skelton will get plenty of snaps Friday.