NFL 2016 Preseason Schedule Released: Dates, Times, TV Coverage and More

The NFL released the full dates and times for its 2016 preseason Thursday, offering a first glimpse at the four-week slate that begins with Aug. 7's Pro Football Hall of Fame Game. 

The Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts were previously announced as the participants in the preseason kickoff. Former Packers quarterback Brett Favre, and former Colts wide receiver Marvin Harrison and head coach Tony Dungy are part of a class that also includes Kevin Greene, Orlando Pace, Eddie DeBartolo Jr., Ken Stabler and Dick Stanfel.

The Hall of Fame Game is one of just eight preseason contests that will be nationally televised. ESPN will carry the first game back in Los Angeles for the Rams franchise when the team plays the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday, Aug. 13. The Rams returned to Los Angeles after a two-decade jaunt in St. Louis this offseason and traded up to the No. 1 selection to take California's Jared Goff.

Date	Matchup	Time (ET)	Network
Sunday, Aug. 7	Green Bay Packers vs. Indianapolis Colts	8 p.m.	ESPN
Saturday, Aug. 13	Dallas Cowboys at Los Angeles Rams	8 p.m.	ESPN
Thursday, Aug. 25	Atlanta Falcons at Miami Dolphins	8 p.m.	NBC
Friday, Aug. 26	Cleveland Browns at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	8 p.m.	CBS
Saturday, Aug. 27	Tennessee Titans at Oakland Raiders	8 p.m.	CBS
Sunday, Aug. 28	San Diego Chargers at Minnesota Vikings	1 p.m.	Fox
Sunday, Aug. 28	Arizona Cardinals at Houston Texans	4 p.m.	Fox
Sunday, Aug. 28	Cincinnati Bengals at Jacksonville Jaguars	8 p.m.	NBC

Every other nationally televised contest will be in Week 3, which is typically when starters see their heaviest action. NBC hosts a game between the Atlanta Falcons and Miami Dolphins on Thursday, Aug. 25. That game will take place in Orlando, the new host site for the Pro Bowl.

“The league asked us if we would move the game up there,” Dolphins CEO Tom Garfinkel told Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald. “As part of [Wednesday’s] Pro Bowl announcement, we agreed to do it.”

CBS will feature games that Friday (Cleveland Browns vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Saturday (Tennessee Titans vs. Oakland Raiders), while all three of the Sunday games for Week 3 will be on national TV. Fox hosts a doubleheader of the San Diego Chargers visiting the Minnesota Vikings and the Arizona Cardinals taking on the Houston Texans, while NBC closes out the week with a night game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Most of these teams are less featured nationally during the regular season, so this could be a bit of a compromise. Fans who root for teams not in their area and who are not Sunday Ticket subscribers can at the very least see a little bit of Robert Griffin III in a Browns uniform or Brock Osweiler's ability to be an NFL starter.

The preseason schedule was previously released in April, though no dates were given at that time. The NFL preseason runs from Aug. 7 to Sept. 1.