Week 2 of the 2026 NFL preseason kicked off Thursday, giving us more insight into position battles and the push to make 53-man rosters before the cut-down deadline Aug. 30. Action kicked off with two games Thursday, and that will be followed by three Friday, 10 on Saturday and the first Sunday night game of the season to wrap things up.
What are the biggest questions for the teams after each game? What have we learned about how depth charts are shaping up? And what solutions could present themselves based on preseason play in Week 2?
Our NFL Nation reporters picked out what you need to know about big roster decisions and more coming off Week 2 of the preseason.
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Thursday's games
Raiders 22, Texans 20
Raiders: How much confidence do the Raiders have in their secondary? Las Vegas' secondary has potential, but will that lead to success in 2026? Second-year cornerback Darien Porter is still learning the position after spending most of his college career as a wide receiver. He started 10 games as a rookie, but he has a lot more growing to do. Fourth-round rookie corner Jermod McCoy hasn't played football in more than a year because of a knee injury, so it will take time before he feels like his true self. Fifth-round rookie corner Hezekiah Masses is also learning. Second-round safety Treydan Stukes has the best chance of making a positive impact as a rookie, but the Raiders are taking his development slowly because they are asking him to play deep safety and nickel.
The Raiders have struggled in coverage in two preseason games. Cardinals quarterbacks Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew II combined for 16 straight completions in the first half last week, and Texans backup Davis Mills completed 11 of 15 passes for 93 yards in the first half Thursday night. The Raiders' young secondary could be quite good in a season or two, but asking it to fix last season's pass-coverage issues immediately might be too tall a task. -- Ryan McFadden
Next game: vs. San Francisco 49ers (Aug. 27, 8 p.m. ET, ESPN Unlimited)
Texans: What will Houston's offensive line eventually look like? Houston's starting tackles Thursday were Trent Brown and Aireontae Ersery. First-round pick Keylan Rutledge started at left guard instead of center, where he has played for most of training camp, and Evan Brown took first-team snaps instead. Ed Ingram started at right guard, leaving two free agent signees (right tackle Braden Smith and guard Wyatt Teller) running with the second unit.
The Texans signed Smith to a two-year, $20 million deal and Teller to a two-year, $16 million contract, with the expectation that both would start and boost the team's frequently problematic offensive line. So how will Houston decide which linemen to start Week 1? And do the Texans want $36 million worth of offseason signings on their backup unit? -- DJ Bien-Aime
Next game: at Carolina Panthers (Aug. 28, 7 p.m. ET)
San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Chargers, 10 p.m. ET
Friday's games
New York Jets at Pittsburgh Steelers, 7 p.m. ET
Carolina Panthers at Jacksonville Jaguars, 7:30 p.m. ET
Green Bay Packers at Denver Broncos, 9 p.m. ET
Saturday's games
Washington Commanders at Detroit Lions, noon ET
Buffalo Bills at Cleveland Browns, 1 p.m. ET
Atlanta Falcons at Indianapolis Colts, 1 p.m. ET
Baltimore Ravens at Minnesota Vikings, 1 p.m. ET
New Orleans Saints at Los Angeles Rams, 4 p.m. ET
New York Giants at Miami Dolphins, 4 p.m. ET
Chicago Bears at Cincinnati Bengals, 7 p.m. ET
Philadelphia Eagles at New England Patriots, 7 p.m. ET
Kansas City Chiefs at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 7:30 p.m. ET
Dallas Cowboys at Arizona Cardinals, 10 p.m. ET