EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – The Giants' 2014 preseason is a mirror image of their 2013 slate. After facing the Buffalo Bills in the annual Hall of Fame Game, they will meet the same four teams they played last summer, and in the same order – Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, the Jets and New England.
They will host the Steelers and Patriots and visit the Colts and Jets.
It is the second preseason in a row the Giants will face AFC teams exclusively. Indianapolis is the only preseason opponent they will also play in the regular season. The Colts will visit MetLife Stadium. Indianapolis and New England are the only 2013 playoff teams on the Giants' preseason schedule.
The Giants will open preseason play on Sunday night, Aug. 3, in Canton, Ohio against the Bills. They will host the Patriots on Thursday, Aug. 28. The dates and times of the other three games have not yet been finalized.
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The regular-season schedule is expected to be released later this month.
The game vs. Buffalo will be the Giants' fifth in the Hall of Fame Game and first since Aug. 5, 2002, when they defeated the expansion Houston Texans, 34-17.
The Giants played in the inaugural Hall of Fame Game on Aug. 11, 1962, when they tied the St. Louis Cardinals, 21-21. They also played in the game in 1972 (a 23-17 loss to Kansas City) and 1985 (a 21-20 victory over the Houston Oilers).
This will be the fifth preseason meeting between the Giants and Bills. The series is tied, 2-2, with the Giants winning in 1977 and 1991 and Buffalo prevailing in 1974 and 1990.
The Giants are 35-26-3 in preseason openers since 1950.
In preseason Week 1 (Aug. 7-10), the Giants will host the host the Steelers. The Giants opened their 2013 preseason with an 18-13 victory in Pittsburgh. The Giants lead the preseason series, 14-12. The teams first met in a preseason game on Aug. 22, 1952 – a 24-10 Giants victory in Des Moines, Iowa. The Giants and Steelers played each other every summer from 1978-89. They did not meet in the preseason from 1993-2009.
The Giants will visit quarterback Andrew Luck, the No. 1 overall selection in the 2012 NFL Draft, and the Colts in preseason Week 2 (Aug. 14-18), their first visit to Indianapolis since their victory there in Super Bowl XLVI on Feb. 3, 2012.
Last Aug. 18, the Colts defeated the Giants, 20-12, to even the teams' preseason series, 6-6.
That was the teams' first preseason meeting since the Giants defeated the Colts in Indianapolis, 26-20, on Aug. 11, 1984 – the year the Colts moved from Baltimore.
In Preseason Week 3 (Aug. 21-24), the Giants and Jets will square off for the 46th consecutive summer since the series began in 1969. The Jets won their 2013 meeting, 24-21. The Giants trail in the preseason series, 24-20-1, with the tie coming in 1972.
The Giants will host New England on the final Thursday in August. This will be the 10th consecutive year the two teams will close the preseason by facing one another. The Patriots won last year in Foxboro, 28-20, but the Giants lead the preseason series, 14-9. The two teams first met in the preseason in 1971.
The Giants were 1-3 in the preseason in 2012, beating Pittsburgh in their opener before losing to Indianapolis, the Jets and the Patriots. They are 19-21 in the preseason in Tom Coughlin's 10 years as head coach.
