The NFL preseason is rolling right along into the penultimate week of exhibition action featuring another full slate of games spread from Thursday through Sunday night.
NFL preseason 2013 odds: Lines for Thursday’s games
The defending Super Bowl champions are in action as one of four teams taking part in Thursday night’s slate of NFL exhibition games.
Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports
Thursday's action features a pair of potential Super Bowl contenders as the defending champion Baltimore Ravens get ESPN treatment against the Carolina Panthers and the New England Patriots visit the Detroit Lions.
New England (+1) at Detroit, 7:30 p.m. ET
The Patriots are dealing with their fair share of off-field problems, but the on-field performance hasn't suffered too much because of it. The Patriots are undefeated this preseason, despite the loss of Aaron Hernandez and a slew of injuries to Tom Brady's other potential targets.
The Lions struggled to put points on the board in last week's loss to the Cleveland Browns, and Matthew Stafford led only one scoring drive in the first half. He's been solid otherwise this preseason, though, and could cause trouble for New England's secondary if he sees extended action Thursday night.
Carolina (+3) at Baltimore, 8 p.m.
Baltimore's first string had a rough showing last week, but the defending Super Bowl champions hung 20 points on the board in the fourth quarter to pick up a 27-23 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. The running game struggled mightily in that game, gaining just 61 yards on the ground over the course of 26 carries.
The Panthers have had similar struggles as Cam Newton's thrown for just one touchdown and was unable to lead Carolina's first-team offense to a score in last week's 14-9 loss to the Eagles. This game could be different, however, considering it's on ESPN and Newton's had a few big games when the big lights are on.
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