:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/65236432/usa_today_11776764.0.jpg)
The New England Patriots will have to wait until Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET to play their second game of the regular season — an AFC East meeting with the Miami Dolphins — but the league’s second slate of games will already be kicked off tonight. That’s right, it’s Thursday Night Football. So what’s on the menu? And who should Patriots fans root for? Let’s find out:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-1) at Carolina Panthers (0-1)
When: 8:20 p.m. ET
Where: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte NC
Television: NFL Network
Live streaming: fuboTV (sign up here)
Patriots rooting guide: Neither the Buccaneers nor the Panthers are on the Patriots’ schedule this year, which means the team does not have any rooting interests in terms of strength of schedule or victory. The two teams will play the AFC South this year, but the game will also not have much impact on those teams at this point in time. And with no future draft picks or the like involved, the best thing to do is probably just to root for an entertaining football game and no injuries.