The final week of the preseason has arrived—while starters get to sit back and relax on the sidelines, this is the final chance for young players to prove themselves. Whether you are an undrafted free agent out of Tennessee State or a second-round pick from Florida. Every snap matters this week—it will determine what your role will be this season or if you'll even have one.
Rosters were trimmed down to 75 this week across the league and after the final games this week, all 32 teams cut down to 53 players. That means 22 players will not make the roster, 304 men will either be placed on injured reserve, on the 10-man practice squad, on another team or out of the NFL.
You can't sleep this week, especially in a division where the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers expect to fight for the NFC North, while the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings will provide strong competition throughout the season.
Kansas City Chiefs @ Green Bay Packers
August 28, 7 PM EST
When the Packers wrap up the preseason at home against the Chiefs, there will be one player everyone focuses on. Rookie center Corey Linsley was thrust into the spotlight when J.C. Tretter went down with a knee injury. Now the fifth-round pick has two weeks to gain some confidence and prepare himself as best he can for the road opener against the Seattle Seahawks.
This game will also feature a quarterback battle—Matt Flynn and Scott Tolzien will each have plenty of time to prove why he should be the Packers' backup quarterback. Tolzien has looked sharper in three preseason games, he also offers more athleticism and upside. But Tolzien is eligible for the practice squad, which would allow Green Bay to keep three quarterbacks and have just two on the 53-man roster. While Flynn will start Thursday's game, Tolzien doesn't have to do a lot to win the job.
Thursday's game will also present a chance for rookies like Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix, Davante Adams, Carl Bradford and Khyri Thornton to prove themselves. Clinton-Dix should see plenty of time with Micah Hyde and Morgan Burnett sitting early, same goes for Adams when Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb relax on the sidelines. Thornton and Bradford have a lot to prove—both rookies have shown little ability in minimal snaps through three games, the chances will be there on Thursday, but they need to step up right now.
Detroit Lions @ Buffalo Bills
August 28, 7 PM EST
The Lions need this preseason game—while all three of their games have been close and resulted in three wins, they faced the Cleveland Browns, Oakland Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars. All three games were decided by one point and the Browns and Raiders have been two of the most unimpressive teams so far.
We won't see much of Detroit's starters this game, some of them might not even dress for the game. So this will be about the backups and guys like Kevin Ogletree, Kris Durham, Dan Orlovsky and others showing some form of reliability or potential that makes them worthy of roles on the team or even roster spots. LaAdrian Waddle and Corey Hilliard should both see plenty of action as they contend for the starting right tackle spot.
One other name to keep an eye on is Nick Fairley, who has been one of the most disappointing players across the NFL this preseason. Fairley lost his starting defensive tackle job and hasn't even looked good playing against backups. The problem for Fairley is his effort and weight, the talent has always been there but the hustle and discipline is still lacking. For a player entering a contract year, these are the last things you want to see. Fairley has another chance this week to earn some trust back from the coaching staff, but hopes can't be high right now.
Chicago Bears @ Cleveland Browns
August 28, 8 PM EST
After an utterly embarrassing performance last week against the Seahawks, the Bears defense was horrendous. Chicago gave up 31 points by halftime and their offense left a zero on the scoreboard until the fourth quarter. While the Bears' backup quarterback battle has been decided, there is still plenty to watch on Thursday.
Now that the Bears have parted with Jordan Palmer, we finally get to see David Fales get some playing time this week. He hasn't played since the first week of the preseason against the Philadelphia Eagles, when he completed five of seven passes for 68 yards but threw an interception. Now he is back on the field and taking on a Browns' secondary that is banged up and will be resting a lot of key players. Fales has already had several months to learn from Marc Trestman and while it certainly takes time to develop, there should be plenty of positive signs on Thursday.
Chicago still has its starting free safety job open for the taking—Chris Conte started last year but struggled and made free safety a clear position of need. But this preseason when he has been healthy, Conte has impressede and warranted a starting job with the Bears. The problem for Conte is he has a concussion and still hasn't practiced, which could open the door for Brock Vereen to have a lot of snaps and potentially win the free safety job.
Minnesota Vikings @ Tennessee Titans
The Vikings announced earlier this week that Matt Cassel earned the starting job to open the season against the St. Louis Rams. It was a good decision—while Teddy Bridgewater has certainly been impressive this preseason, he didn't do enough to earn the starting job from a very impressive Cassel.
While he may have lost this round, Bridgewater now has a great chance to start against the Titans on Thursday. A starting opportunity would mean more snaps to try and close the gap against Cassel and build on his momentum heading into the regular season. Bridgewater has been strong so far and if he adds in a great preseason finale, it may only be a matter of weeks before Minnesota reconsiders their plan at quarterback.
Tomorrow night should also give everyone a chance to see the Vikings' defensive line try and ruin Bishop Sankey's night. The Titans' rookie running back hasn't been quite as advertised this preseason, but he has shown improvement every week. He still sits behind Shonn Greene on the depth chart, but will be itching to have a big performance and potentially overtake him and earn the starting gig.