The third preseason game is when things start getting real for NFL teams, and that will be the case on Friday night when the Carolina Panthers host the New England Patriots. The Patriots are still trying to prepare for life without Tom Brady, while Carolina is working out the kinks for an offense suddenly without Kelvin Benjamin for the entire season.
Patriots vs. Panthers 2015 live stream: Start time, TV schedule and how to watch online
Week 3 of the preseason is underway and Carolina is looking to go 3-0 when it hosts New England Friday night.
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The Panthers have been struggling on offense this preseason thanks to a stream of injuries. Quarterback Cam Newton had a rough first half last week against the Miami Dolphins, which didn't help the young receivers expected to step up following Benjamin's ACL tear. Newton completed just 4 of 10 passes for 42 yards and an interception against Miami. He'll need to show more against New England to create some chemistry with his newer receivers.
The Patriots are dealing with offensive injuries of their own, placing wide receiver Brandon Gibson on the injured reserve list and signing veteran Reggie Wayne earlier in the week. Danny Amendola is the only other healthy receiver with experience for the Pats, meaning Wayne should be out on the field right away. Wayne figures to play one last season in the league after spending his entire career with the Indianapolis Colts, a team, along with the Denver Broncos, that figures to be New England's top competition in the AFC this year.
With Brady still set to serve his four-game DeflateGate suspension at the start of the season, the team will rely on backup Jimmy Garoppolo, who has been steadily improving each week. Garoppolo started preseason Week 1 with a meek 20 of 30 completions for 159 yards and a pick -- he was also sacked seven times. Week 2 was a much better showing -- 28 of 33 completions for 269 yards, one touchdown, one interception and zero sacks. Although Brady continues to fight to get his suspension reduced or eliminated, the Patriots have to be encouraged by Garoppolo's play thus far.
It will be interesting to see how much Brady plays in a preseason game that typically sees the starters play more than usual. Garoppolo likely needs that time and the Patriots need to give him that time, so Brady may take fewer reps than he would have under normal circumstances. That said, Garoppolo has shown the touch and poise the Patriots look for out of a starting quarterback.
Cornerback is another position to watch when New England is on defense. After Darrelle Revis and Brandon Browner signed with new teams during free agency, it's no longer a deep position for the Patriots. Super Bowl hero Malcolm Butler is still around, but now rookie Darryl Roberts, who went down against the Green Bay Packers in Week 1 with a wrist injury, could be out for a majority of the season.
As much as both teams want to get their newer players time on the field, with the litany of injuries each has faced in the past few weeks, they could hesitate to put their best out there ahead of the regular season. Severe injuries have been numerous throughout the preseason this year, and even outside of this game it will be worth monitoring how much playing time starters will get this week.
How to watch
Date/time: Friday, Aug. 28, 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, N.C.
TV: Away: WBZ-CBS 4; Home: WCCB-CW 18 (for complete listings, head over to 506sports.com)
Online: NFL Game Pass
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