(Cover image credit: NFL Network; Image above: Sporting News…poor Chiefs fans so bored…)
-Johnny Knast (@MrKnasty128)
Well it’s everyone’s favorite time of the year again: FOOTBALL is back and the NFL preseason is underway… (hooray….). For a six-week period every summer, all of us NFL fans hold our breaths every single day. From the end of July to the first week in September we are on edge. During this time, we keep track of our favorite team while they go through training camp and four nerve wracking meaningless preseason games. Question is do you really need a six-week window to get ready for a seventeen-week regular season. Some would say yes while others especially those who have season tickets say no way. I decided to look at the pros and cons of the NFL preseason and ultimately came to a conclusion about how they could adjust this time of year to benefit everyone involved: Players, Coaches, FANS.
Preseason can be a blessing for young athletes trying to make a name for themselves at the next level. There are over 250 players selected in the NFL draft each year, who know that they have what it takes to be an everyday NFL player. However, there are an additional 500+ non-draftees who find themselves looking for work to showcase their skills. When you have a six-week training camp/preseason schedule, players usually take that time to show what they can do. A player could be terrible in practice but in game situation be completely different. What pre-season games allow us to see, are the non-household names we are used to seeing, while knowing that our superstars are resting on the sidelines. Every now and then, teams find that undrafted rookie that blows them away and ends up possibly pushing a veteran out of a job.
A perfect example of this would be HoF quarterback Kurt Warner. An undrafted rookie in 1994 who was signed by the Green Bay Packers of all teams. Warner was released following training camp (we all know who was the starter for Green Bay back then) but was told by several coaches he had great talent. Warner then found himself unemployed and ending up at a grocery store making $5.50 an hour. Arena football came a-calling and Kurt signed with the Iowa Barnstormers for the 1995 season. What a blessing that was because it led to Kurt getting signed by the St. Louis Rams following a season with the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe in 1998. Kurt was the third string in 1998 and only completed four of eleven pass attempts. The following season Warner was the second QB on the depth chart in St. Louis behind Trent Green. After Green was lost with a season-ending injury in the pre-season of 1999 (see the cons of preseason soon to come), Warner took over the starting job in St. Louis and well the rest is pretty much history, as the “Greatest Show on Turf” was formed. Kurt would go on to play in St. Louis until the 2003 season. After being released in 2004 he would sign with the New York Giants. Warner only last a season in New York then was released and signed with Arizona. Kurt played until the 2010 season before calling it quits. Kurt was just honored and introduced into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this past summer. So, if you ask players like Kurt Warner pre-season helped them get discovered and turn into an all-pro and future Hall of Fame quarterback.
So then, why is the preseason such a bad thing? Well, there are some people who absolutely hate pre-season football and it can be one of a few things. Season ticket holders for sure do not like these games because they spend money for these tickets as part of their season ticket package and sometimes they do not even get to see the stars of their team. Fans have always asked why they should pay full price for these tickets when they really have no idea who or what to expect on the field. Another reason people are weary about pre-season football is the possibility of season ending injuries (enter Julian Edelman and Spencer Ware). That can make or break a team depending on who it is that gets hurt. The number of injuries has gone up every year since 2000. So why play games that mean absolutely nothing to a veteran player other than just collecting a paycheck. Plus, half the time these games are not being attended by actual season ticket holders because they feel it is a waste of time (believe me, I don’t blame them for not going…).
So now that you have read both sides of the argument, where do you stand on pre-season football? I personally think they should change how it is. You do not need 4 games that don’t count, to determine if you have NFL talent on your roster. If anything, have two weeks of practices, two pre-season games, so those fighting for a spot can showcase what they can do at game speed, and then have one more week of training camp after the two games and that’s it. Add two additional, meaningful games at the end of the regular season, which would make it easier to clear up the playoff picture at the end of the season, PLUS the NFL would make back the money they lose from season ticket holders not attending meaningless pre-season games.
Thoughts? Comments? Happy reading and let’s get the games started!
#TEAMNOBODY
I don’t think the players want an 18 game schedule. The owners probably do and the fans probably do, but the players don’t. The veterans on the teams don’t like training camp, but the games themselves they probably don’t mind because they don’t play much and it’s basically a day off. Preseason and training camp is more for the rookies and guys at the bottom of the roster like you said. It’s basically useless more the established guys who know they will be on the team.