NFL Preseason 2012: What to Watch for During Week 2

The second week of the NFL preseason kicks off on Thursday with the Cincinnati Bengals taking on the Atlanta Falcons.

Week 2 will end with the Philadelphia Eagles facing off against the New England Patriots on Monday night, but there is plenty of action in between. Every squad in the league will look to see what it has in its starters and, most importantly, its backups.

Let’s take a peek at three key matchups that will be taking place.

New York Jets vs. New York Giants: Saturday, August 18 at 7:00 p.m. ET (NFL Network)

This matchup features the two teams that call MetLife Stadium home, but the defending Super Bowl champions will technically be the “road” team in this contest.

Expect to see a lot of Tim Tebow and the Wildcat offense from the Jets, who will try to fine-tune their unique system in time for the regular season.

The G-Men will likely be more conservative, as they are the superior team and would much rather spend time evaluating their reserves.

Regardless, it should be a great game and a fun one for the fans in the New York area. 

St. Louis Rams vs. Kansas City Chiefs: Saturday, August 18 at 8:00 p.m. ET (Local TV)

The Rams lost 38-3 to the Indianapolis Colts in what was a rough beginning to their preseason. Kansas City performed much better, dominating the Arizona Cardinals by a score of 27-17.

Sam Bradford will try to rebound from his poor performance against Indy as he looks to get back into the swing of things following a sophomore slump in 2011.

Matt Cassel seems more ready than ever to manage games for the Chiefs and played a solid outing against the Cards.

Both of these teams will be attempting to fine-tune their offensive attacks in preparation for the opening of the regular season. This is going to be a shootout at the Edward Jones Dome. 

Philadelphia Eagles vs. New England Patriots: Monday, August 20 at 8:00 p.m. ET (ESPN)

The “Dream Team” has a tough preseason matchup against the Super Bowl runner-up, and expectations are high for both squads in 2012.

Michael Vick and Tom Brady highlight the elite QB battle. Even though they are two completely different types of players, both clearly make the biggest impact on the outcome of their games.

This particular contest is crucial to watch because of the defenses. The Eagles have a highly-touted unit that should be better than it was last year, while the Patriots are hoping to get some sort of production out of the worst group in the league (in 2011) against a high-powered offense.

It will certainly be interesting for spectators and a headache for coaches Bill Belichick and Andy Reid.