Ok, I know there are some NFL fans on the board. I just want to say that I really like the preseason. Not as much as the regular season, obviously, but I like looking at the rookies my team has picked up; I like cheering for undrafted rookies to make the team; I like seeing promise for the coming season.
That said, the whole thing scares the hell out of me! Every time one of my team’s players takes a little longer than usual to get up, my heart starts racing. Hell, I was even worried when Keith Bulluck seemed to have hurt Travis Henry, even though I am a Titans fan. I just hate seeing players get hurt at all, on ANY team.
I’m not calling for an end to preseason. The players need it, the coaches need it, and a lot of fans enjoy it. I’m just saying that it’s hard to watch sometimes. I feel like a worried mother, peeking out from between my fingers at the dangerous thing my child must do.
There was one play during the Titans game last night where McNair had to scramble a little and a guy grabbed his lower leg and tackled him. I was absolutely convinced McNair was not going to get up. Of course, he did. Two preseason games are enough.
btw, Robert, are you sold on Chris Brown and Tyrone Calico? So far so good. Out of all the people the Titans lost this year, McCareins is the biggest loss. I hope Calico can step up because McCareins is going to be a star for the Jets. And while it’s strange to not have Eddie around, that was the right thing for the club to do. Brown has looked a lot better than two-yard Eddie has the last couple of years.
And what week do you think Kearse will go down in Philly? My guess is week 6 with a “sore” ankle. I can’t believe what they paid him. Good luck, Eagles fan.
Actually, I disagree with you about McCariens. I think he is a good player and will be great for the Jets, but I think our biggest offseason loss was Robaire Smith. He was a leading tackler on the D-Line and a large reason why we played so well against the run last year (1st in the league). Justin is less of a loss (for us) only because of the depth at WR. Even Schifino looks good, which makes us 4 deep, all good WRs, IMO.
Brown looks great, but that doesn’t surprise me. I was impressed with him at Colorado. He never really got the praise he deserved. He has been hitting the holes super fast and lowering his shoulder. I (like everyone else) am concerned that he runs a bit too upright. He could get leveled if doesn’t see someone coming in time to get low. But he looks real good.
Antowain Smith hasn’t impressed me yet though (as Solomon told me he wouldn’t), so I am a bit concerned about depth. The rookie RBs look good, but they are still rookies.
Except the dude who wears the #1 jersey. That guy never makes the team. Does anyone ever wear #1? It’s like the Scarlet Letter of football. They ought to just offer a contest, Be An NFL Camp Rookie. Put the guy in jersey #1. Minimum health requirements apply. So, at the last day of cuts, he’s happy becuase he just won the dream of his life instead of dejected and crushed over washing out.
hido mentions the over/under on Jevon’s sidelining injury. It didn’t sideline him, but ol’ Kearse had to get the coaches out on the field after the first play of the Ravens game. Come on Jevon, secure your fucking chandelier ankles and whatnot. Anyway, I think he’ll make it most of the season. The injury bug has already gimped Kalu and Buckhalter.
No shit. Eli, don’t roll out and try to score, you big dummy! That’s what happened to Chad! Forget it, though. The bottom line here is, owners charge for those games. Hell, Dan Snyder has been charging for practices (or he was if he still isn’t). There’s no way to win that argument.
(San Fransisco) I need to see Tim Rattay get healthy and do some more work. Dorsey has looked pretty good, and so have the recievers and the gorund game. The defense needs help, since franchise player Julian Peterson is on holdout. The rest of the line is in pretty good shape, and so is the LB corps. I’m thus far pretty happy with the offensive line, a serious question mark. But the Niners will probably stink this year anyway.
Yeah, there’s money made on the preseason games, but not a whole lot (comparatively). One of the reasons for the pre-season is that those games are needed to evaluate the 2nd and 3rd strings. The 1st straingers don’t play more than a full game the entire time (usually like 1 or 2 series in the first game, a quarter or so in the second, maybe a little more in the 3rd and next to none in the 4th).
There’s so much football on, it’s hard to keep up. I know that it’s heaven for the hardcore fan and the fantasy football enthusiast, but I’m looking forward to the mostly Sunday / Monday regular season.
Yes, evaluating rookies and other marginal players is important. I don’t think people (like Greenberg on ESPN, or even Cowherd) realize this. They think coaches could have scrimmages/practices to take care of this, but it’s never the same.
As for the starters, nothing says the coaches have to play them. But they do, which means EVERY coach thinks these games are necessary for getting into shape. And that is a month long process. You just can’t do it all in one game, even if you were to play the whole game.
