Full NFL Preseason 2021 schedule: Cowboys, Steelers in HOF Game

The full 2021 NFL Preseason schedule has been revealed, kicking off with the Cowboys and Steelers and the Hall of Fame Game. What else is on the slate?

Though it seems impossible given that it feels like Tom Brady and the Buccaneers just hoisted the Lombardi Trophy not long ago, the start of the 2021 NFL Preseason is less than two months away at this point. And this will, of course, be the first three-game preseason as the league made the decision to move to a 17-game regular season by slashing off one of the exhibition/warm-up contests.

On Thursday, though, the full 2021 NFL Preseason schedule was released, starting with the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday, Aug. 5 with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys — two franchises fit for Canton, OH — through the end of the month.

With the schedule out now, we’ll dive into the full 2021 NFL Preseason schedule and also quickly go over some of the highlights that fans should be looking forward to seeing.

NFL Preseason Schedule: Hall of Fame Game

• Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Dallas Cowboys – Thurs., Aug. 5, 8 p.m. ET, FOX

While there is often a lot of fanfare and buzz for the Hall of Fame Game, the truth of the matter is that the on-field product is sometimes less than stellar. For instance, a matchup between the full rosters of the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers would be a lot of fun. The issue is that we likely won’t see the full rosters.

The safe bet would be to say we don’t see much (if any) of Dak Prescott or Ben Roethlisberger on the field for this game. We could get our first glimpses of Najee Harris and Micah Parsons, though, so that will still make sure fans get their eyes turned towards Canton as the NFL Preseason gets going officially.

NFL Preseason Schedule: Week 1

• Washington Football Team at New England Patriots – Thurs., Aug. 12, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Pittsburgh Steelers at Philadelphia Eagles – Thurs., Aug. 12, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Tennessee Titans at Atlanta Falcons – Fri, Aug. 13, 7 p.m. ET
• Buffalo Bills at Detroit Lions – Fri, Aug. 13, 7 p.m. ET
• Dallas Cowboys at Arizona Cardinals – Fri, Aug. 13, 10 p.m. ET
• Miami Dolphins at Chicago Bears – Sat., Aug. 14, 1 p.m. ET
• Denver Broncos at Minnesota Vikings – Sat., Aug. 14, 4 p.m. ET
• New Orleans Saints at Baltimore Ravens – Sat., Aug. 14, 7 p.m. ET
• Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars – Sat., Aug. 14, 7 p.m. ET
• New York Jets at New York Giants – Sat., Aug. 14, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Cincinnati Bengals at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Sat., Aug. 14, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Houston Texans at Green Bay Packers – Sat., Aug. 14, 8 p.m. ET
• Kansas City Chiefs at San Francisco 49ers – Sat., Aug. 14, 8:30 p.m. ET
• Seattle Seahawks at Las Vegas Raiders – Sat., Aug. 14, 9 p.m. ET
• Los Angeles Chargers at Los Angeles Rams – Sat., Aug. 14, 10 p.m. ET
• Carolina Panthers at Indianapolis Colts – Sun., Aug. 15, 1 p.m. ET

There are a number of games that should be fascinating to see in the first full week of the NFL preseason, assuming that we get to see some of the big names out on the field now that the preseason slate has been shortened to just three games.

Most notably, the Titans and Falcons will play on the heels of All-Pro wide receiver being traded to Tennessee from Atlanta. That should be a fun little subplot. But fans will also get the battle for New York (or New Jersey, really) between the Giants and Jets along with the same for Los Angeles as the Chargers and Rams play one another.

All in all, though, this should be a fun foray back into NFL action.

NFL Preseason Schedule: Week 2

• New England Patriots at Philadelphia Eagles – Thurs., Aug. 19, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Kansas City Chiefs at Arizona Cardinals – Fri., Aug. 20, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN
• Cincinnati Bengals at Washington Football Team – Fri., Aug. 20, 8 p.m. ET
• Buffalo Bills at Chicago Bears – Sat., Aug. 21, 1 p.m. ET
• New York Jets at Green Bay Packers – Sat., Aug. 21, 4:25 p.m. ET
• Baltimore Ravens at Carolina Panthers – Sat., Aug. 21, 7 p.m. ET
• Atlanta Falcons at Miami Dolphins – Sat., Aug. 21, 7 p.m. ET
• Detroit Lions at Pittsburgh Steelers – Sat., Aug. 21, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Tennessee Titans at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Sat., Aug. 21, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Houston Texans at Dallas Cowboys – Sat., Aug. 21, 8 p.m. ET
• Indianapolis Colts at Minnesota Vikings – Sat., Aug. 21, 8 p.m. ET
• Las Vegas Raiders at Los Angeles Rams – Sat., Aug. 21, 10 p.m. ET
• Denver Broncos at Seattle Seahawks – Sat., Aug. 21, 10 p.m. ET
• New York Giants at Cleveland Browns – Sun., Aug. 22, 1 p.m. ET
• San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Chargers – Sun., Aug. 22, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Jacksonville Jaguars at New Orleans Saints – Mon., Aug. 23, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN

Frankly, the second week of the preseason doesn’t hold nearly the same allure in terms of the matchups as Week 1 does. With that said, we should see more starters and key players in these games, which will be fun.

Seeing Daniel Jones and the Giants take on Baker Mayfield and the Browns should provide some good entertainment. The same can also be said for Joe Burrow — assuming he is back healthy — and newcomer Ja’Marr Chase take on the Washington defense with the Bengals.

Plus, if nothing else, getting a good look at No. 1 overall pick Trevor Lawrence for a preseason Monday Night Football game should be well worth the price of admission.

NFL Preseason Schedule: Week 3

• Indianapolis Colts at Detroit Lions – Fri., Aug. 27, 7 p.m. ET
• Pittsburgh Steelers at Carolina Panthers – Fri., Aug. 27, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Philadelphia Eagles at New York Jets – Fri., Aug. 27, 7:30 p.m. ET
• Minnesota Vikings at Kansas City Chiefs – Fri., Aug. 27, 8 p.m. ET
• Green Bay Packers at Buffalo Bills – Sat., Aug. 28, 1 p.m. ET
• Baltimore Ravens at Washington Football Team – Sat., Aug. 28, 6 p.m. ET
• Chicago Bears at Tennessee Titans – Sat., Aug. 28, 7 p.m. ET
• Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Houston Texans – Sat., Aug. 28, 8 p.m. ET
• Arizona Cardinals at New Orleans Saints – Sat., Aug. 28, 8 p.m. ET
• Los Angeles Rams at Denver Broncos – Sat., Aug. 28, 9:05 p.m. ET
• Los Angeles Chargers at Seattle Seahawks – Sat., Aug. 28, 10 p.m. ET
• Jacksonville Jaguars at Dallas Cowboys – Sun., Aug. 29, 1 p.m. ET
• Miami Dolphins at Cincinnati Bengals – Sun., Aug. 29, 4 p.m. ET, CBS
• Las Vegas Raiders at San Francisco 49ers – Sun., Aug. 29, 4 p.m. ET
• New England Patriots at New York Giants – Sun., Aug. 29, 6 p.m. ET
• Cleveland Browns at Atlanta Falcons – Sun., Aug. 29, 8 p.m. ET, NBC

Because of the new NFL Preseason format, we don’t know specifically how coaches are going to approach the final week. Traditionally, Week 3 of the preseason has been the dress rehearsal game. But with it being the last week of the preseason now, will that still be the case? Only time will tell.

However, if we do see some starters, getting matchups like Tua Tagovailoa vs. Joe Burrow or the Packers and Bills facing off should be a ton of fun for fans to take in right before the regular season gets underway. This should be a good tone-setting wrap-up to the preseason action.