Now that the game has started I know this thread has pretty much outlived its usefulness, but I just wanted to put in one final word.
I used to love the preseason. You got to see the "star" players along with a bunch of other guys, who knows, maybe you would see the next breakout star. Plus there was an air of experimentation, because coaches would try out stuff they usually wouldn't do in a regular season game. And the league would try different stuff, like the modern replay system, etc.
"I don't care if they won't be on the roster in a month," I used to tell people. "Tonight they're playing for my team so tonight I support them as much as the regular players."
But over the last couple years it hit me - preseason games aren't really "games" at all, they're just glorified practices. If I were commissioner for a day I might even change the term to "preseason scrimmages", except that it's not really a scrimmage with full pads and full contact. Yes, you always want to win, but it's not the same. The regular guys aren't giving it their all because they know it doesn't matter what you do. The back-ups try harder but just don't have as much talent (if they did, maybe they'd be starting.) And there's no consistency because of the constantly shifting line-ups. The coaches want to see who works well together so they rotate guys in and out. A team can't gel like that.
So I probably will watch the replay on NFL Network sometime this weekend, but mainly because I can't bear to know there's Pats football on TV and I'm not watching it. (Unless I've already seen it.)
Thank you.