Tonight’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Philadelphia Eagles might be just a preseason affair, but believe the hype: Last season’s AFC champs are licking their chops at the chance to take on this season’s preseason darlings.

Here’s what else is on tap Thursday:

• With Week 2 of the preseason about to kick off, NFL.com analyst Elliot Harrison explains why these games are so important, and runs down this weekend’s most intriguing storylines.

• Several high-profile NFL players implicated in a scandal involving an imprisoned University of Miami booster brushed off the claims Wednesday, while others refused to comment, but no player explicitly denied the allegations.

• Eli Manning counts himself among the NFL’s top quarterbacks, but our experts aren’t so sure. Find out where they rank Eli in our latest Instant Debate — and hear from Manning himself on Thursday night’s “NFL Total Access.”

• If you think Manning is in Tom Brady‘s class, our Adam Rank has some other things you probably think in his latest Pick Six.

• With the Lions’ Ndamukong Suh in the news for his vicious hit on Bengals QB Andy Dalton, Dave Dameshek calls out some other NFL villains in The Shame Report.

• Will Donovan McNabb replicate Brett Favre‘s 2009 success with the Vikings, or his 2010 failure in Washington? NFL.com senior writer Steve Wyche reports from Minnesota’s training camp.

• Catch up with your favorite team with our comprehensive reports from all 32 NFL training camps.

• The NFL.com experts fantasy football league held its draft this week, and you might be shocked at the results.

• It’s not too late to sign up to play Fantasy Football for free on NFL.com and get ready to draft the players that will drive your team to a championship.

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