Weekend Sports Preview

The NFL’s Week 3 preseason games are the must-watch episodes of some musty watching. This is when starters play at least most of the first half and sometimes into the second half in their final tune-up for the regular season. They won’t see the field in the final preseason game.

The NFL is kind enough to present us with a triple-header on NFL Network, so all we can do is reciprocate by watching.

The fun begins Friday night at 11 p.m. ET with the Green Bay Packers meeting the Oakland Raiders. Raiders coach Jon Gruden was once a Packers assistant coach. Oakland has a huge backfield, with 253-pound rookie Chris Warren III making an impression on his coach and the people he runs over.

The Kansas City Chiefs and Chicago Bears get after it on Saturday at 1 p.m. And immediately thereafter, at 4 p.m., the Tennessee Titans and Pittsburgh Steelers play.

There might be some hitting in baseball as well. The Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins meet in z televised affair (FS1) at 7:10 p.m. on Saturday. Marlins pitcher Jose Urena plunked Braves rookie Ronald Acuna Jr. last week because Acuna had the audacity to hit home runs against his team. Urena is suspended and won’t appear in this series. Make sure, as you plop your heiner in the recliner, that you have your batting helmet handy because the Braves may still want vengeance.

Sunday afternoon’s special is the Boston Red Sox, the best team in baseball, meeting the Tampa Bay Rays at 1:10 p.m. on TBS.

No NASCAR this weekend. The bump-and-grind guys will be back on Sept. 2 at Darlington. But there’s golf. The Northern Trust, which kicks off the PGA Tour’s playoffs, began Thursday. Sunday’s final round can be seen on CBS from 2-6 p.m. on CBS.

Don’t fret. College football is coming. The NFL’s regular season is closing in as well. Life as we know it on this planet will become immeasurably better.

 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman