It’s a clash of similar cultures as the New England Patriots take on the Detroit Lions at Ford Field in Week 1 of the NFL preseason. Here’s how to watch.
The defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots (perhaps you’ve heard that before) begin their 2019 NFL preseason slate on Thursday night. Taking them on will be a familiar face in Matt Patricia as the former Pats’ defensive coordinator leads his Detroit Lions onto Ford Field to match up against his former team. This should be an incredibly fun matchup to watch.
Yes, the Patriots have familiar faces like Tom Brady and Julian Edelman in 2019 once again. However, for the purposes of the preseason, they get looks at young players and they have a lot of exciting guys. Rookies N’Keal Harry, Chase Winovich, Jakobi Meyers, Joejuan Williams and Damien Harris will all make their debuts for New England, which should excite the faithful up in Boston.
As for the Lions, this should be the first look at high-profile first-rounder T.J. Hockenson — whether or not Matthew Stafford is throwing to him remains to be seen. Even still, they’ll also get look at defensive pieces like Jahlani Tavai, Austin Bryant and Will Harris. There’s a lot of pieces on this roster that should be incredibly exciting to see, especially against a deep, well-coached Pats team.
Details for Patriots vs. Lions on Thursday night are below:
Date: Thursday, Aug. 8, 2019
Start Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Detroit, MI
Stadium: Ford Field
TV Info: Local Cable Networks (Check Listings)
Live Stream: NFL Game Pass, FuboTV
Many people will certainly push the Belichick vs. Patricia narrative for this matchup, the Patriots and Lions have much more to offer than just that. Even if we don’t see much of the veterans, each team has young players trying to establish their roles early on. This preseason clash gives them their first opportunity to do just that.