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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
NFL ANNOUNCES 2002 PRESEASON SCHEDULE
The 66-game 2002 preseason schedule, featuring many of the rivalries of the pre-realigned NFL, was announced today by the league. The NFL realigned this past May into eight divisions of four teams each to accommodate the addition in 2002 of the expansion Houston Texans as the league’s 32nd team. One of the provisions of realignment was to give the league, through the Commissioner’s office, a broader role in developing the preseason schedule for the next five seasons (2002-2006). The Commissioner’s office worked closely with all clubs in scheduling preseason Weeks 1, 2 and 3. Each team was allowed to schedule Week 4 on its own. Only the dates and the start times of the American Bowl and Hall of Fame Game have been determined. The exact dates and times for the remainder of the schedule will be announced after the season.A key emphasis in formulating the preseason schedule was traditional rivalries. For example, the Seattle Seahawks, who switch from the AFC Western Division to the NFC West Division next year, will play longtime AFC Western-rivals Denver, Oakland and San Diego next summer. The Indianapolis Colts, formerly in the AFC East and now in the AFC South, will play former division-rival Buffalo in the preseason.Other longtime preseason rivalries have been retained, such as Dallas vs. Oakland, a preseason series that has been contested for 15 of the past 16 years; New York Giants-New York Jets, which has been played every year since 1969; and the “Battle by the Bay,” Oakland vs. San Francisco. The 2002 preseason will kick off on the August 3-5 weekend when an American Bowl is played for the first time in Osaka, Japan featuring the San Francisco 49ers and Washington Redskins in a game to be televised in the U.S. on Saturday night, August 3 at 10:00 PM ET on ESPN. The second game that weekend will be the NFL debut of the Texans in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on Monday night, August 5 on ABC-TV (8:00 PM ET) against the New York Giants in Canton, Ohio. The 2002 preseason schedule also includes a rematch of Super Bowl XXXIV in Week 1 when St. Louis meets Tennessee; a meeting of Florida rivals Jacksonville and Tampa Bay in Week 2; Houston’s first home game in Week 3 against Miami; and a rematch of Super Bowl XXXV when the Baltimore Ravens play in New York against the Giants in Week 4. The 2002 NFL preseason schedule:
2002 NFL PRESEASON SCHEDULE
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