The most important preseason game is coming up on Saturday evening: the third game. That's the game that sees the starters playing into the third quarter, preparing for the regular season and giving everyone a good idea of where they stand. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will use their third game to go up against the Cleveland Browns.
That's going to be an interesting matchup for two reasons. One: the Browns have a really talented defense who will pose a good challenge for Jameis Winston and especially the Bucs' offensive line. It's (mostly) a 3-4 defense that blitzes quite a lot, and plays a lot of man coverage. It's a bit of a contrast with the slightly more static defenses the Bucs faced the past two games.
Two: Josh McCown comes back to Tampa. If the Bucs defense is as good as they aim to be this year, they need to be dominant against the Cleveland Browns. Because the Browns are not very good on offense. Their run game is mediocre, and McCown has looked like the disaster he was last year. If last Monday's performance against the Bengals wasn't an outlier, we should see Gerald McCoy and company wreak havoc tomorrow.
How to watch the game
Date: Saturday, August 29
Time: 7:00 p.m. ET
Location: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Fla.
TV: WFLA (NBC/8 - Tampa), WFTV (ABC/9 - Orlando), WFTX (FOX/4 - Fort Myers), WTLH (FOX/49 - Tallahassee), WPMI (NBC/15 - Mobile AL)
See 506 Sports for a full listing.
Announcers: Chris Myers, Ronde Barber (Bucs broadcast); Mike Patrick, Solomon Wilcots (Browns broadcast)
Online streaming: NFL Game Pass
Radio: WFUS 103.5 FM and WDAE 620 AM.
Enemy blog: Dawgs By Nature
Twitter: @Bucs_Nation
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Predict the score
Buccaneers preseason schedule
Week 3: Saturday, August 29, 7:00 p.m. ET - Cleveland Browns
Week 4: Thursday, September 3, 7:00 p.m. ET - @Miami Dolphins
Regular season schedule
The Bucs' all-time record against these opponents is listed in parentheses.
Week 1: Sunday, Sept. 13, 4:25 p.m. - Tennessee Titans (2-8)
Week 2: Sunday, Sept. 20, 1:00 p.m. - at New Orleans Saints (17-29)
Week 3: Sunday, Sept. 27, 1:00 p.m. - at Houston Texans (1-2)
Week 4: Sunday, Oct. 4, 1:00 p.m. - Carolina Panthers (11-18)
Week 5: Sunday, Oct. 11, 1:00 p.m. - Jacksonville Jaguars (1-4)
Week 6: Bye week
Week 7: Sunday, Oct. 25, 1:00 p.m - at Washington (10-9)
Week 8: Sunday, Nov. 1, 1:00 p.m. - at Atlanta Falcons (21-22)
Week 9: Sunday, Nov. 8, 4:05 p.m. - New York Giants (6-12)
Week 10: Sunday, Nov. 15, 1:00 p.m. - Dallas Cowboys (3-11)
Week 11: Sunday, Nov. 22, 1:00 p.m. - at Philadelphia Eagles (5-8)
Week 12: Sunday, Nov. 29, 1:00 p.m. - at Indianapolis Colts (5-7)
Week 13: Sunday, Dec. 6, 1:00 p.m. - Atlanta Falcons (21-22)
Week 14: Sunday, Dec. 13, 1:00 p.m. - New Orleans Saints (17-29)
Week 15: Thursday, Dec. 17, 8:25 p.m. - at St. Louis Rams (8-12)
Week 16: Sunday, Dec. 27, 1:00 p.m. - Chicago Bears (18-37)
Week 17: Sunday, Jan. 3, 1:00 p.m. - at Carolina Panthers (11-18)