New England Patriots 2013 Preseason Opponents

Football lovers get ready. It’s that time of the year again for late summer night football as the NFL has announced the 2013 Preseason Opponents. The New England Patriots will start the preseason playing against the Philadelphia Eagles in Eagles territory.

Jan 20, 2013; Foxboro, Massachusetts, USA; A New England Patriots helmet rests on the side line during the third quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports

However, the Patriots will not be on the spot light until Week 2 on Friday, August 16 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the game will be featured on national television on FOX.

Here is how the 2013 Patriots Preseason schedule is lined-up.

Opponent

Time

TV Coverage

Week 1

@ Philadelphia Eagles

TBA

Patriots Preseason Network

Week 2 August 16

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

8:00PM

FOX

Week 3

@ Detroit Lions

TBA

Patriots Preseason Network

Week 4

New York Giants

TBA

Patriots Preseason Network

The preseason games are a valuable measurement to evaluate which player will make the 53-man roster. In the past, Bill Belichick has used the final preseason game as a “warm-up” for the obvious starters. As the potential for injuries increased and it’s just not worth taking the risk, last year we saw a decrease of play-time by many starters as many had hoped to see more play-action from Welker, Brady, Gronkowski and Wilfork in the final weeks of preseason. That fits within the meaning of doing what’s in the “best interest” of the team, since the risk for injuries at this point in the season must be avoided at all cost.

With the draft still to come, Bill Belichick still need to fill in key positions, primarily at the wide receiver and cornerback since  up to this point, the returning of Alfonzo Dennard is unknown  as he may or may not face jail time. Nevertheless, this preseason should be a very exciting one as we look forward to watching a glimpse of play-action from the newest Patriots players – Danny Amendola, Leon Washington, Will Svitek, Adrian Wilson, Donald Jones and Michael Jenkins.

The New England Patriots offseason activities are scheduled to start on April 15 with OTA’s from May 20-21, May 23, May 28-30, June 3-4, June 6-7 and mandatory minicamps from June 11- 13.

Are we ready or what?

Follow Celia Westbrook on Twitter @celiawestbrook