Nonsense practice is not the same as game time action and neither are those controlled practices.
No its not. Not even close. Preseason isn't "game time action". There is no where near the intensity or high stakes or the players out there remotely close to what will be there for 4 quarters come September. The only thing similar is that they are in full pads.
It's a penalty filled slop fest with guys doing whatever the hell to make a team.
And “didn’t affect” them when they had a bunch of vets as 1’s who had played together? You think that’s the same as the team they will be putting out there against the Seahawks?
Of course not. Most of these dudes won't be on the team in a couple weeks.
Got their asses kicked for them last year so yeah I think it affected them last year too.
And they also kicked ass for 5 straight years game 1 using this same method. One outlier season and all of a sudden it's a vital part of the process?
Not playing your 1’s in preseason is the same as playing not to lose. The attitude is they area afraid to get someone hurt.
Oh stop. Almost every team does that. Cooper Kupp already got hurt in camp. What would've been if he got an acl making a cut or a horse collar in a pointless preseason game by some schmuck DB not knowing what he's doing? They've done this for years not playing their 1s. 1 series isn't gonna do anything.
Wins and losses in the first month are just as important as in the last.
Sure. If that first month is September. Wins in August mean nothing. They just don't. The Ravens had a 24-0 record in preseason or something right? What do they have to show for it?
The Colts and Steelers aren't gonna smash this year b/c what they did tonight. The Eagles aren't gonna stink b/c they sat Jalen Hurts.
Coaches don't care about preseason. Which is why they don't play their 1s.
The league doesn't care about preseason. Which is why after 2020 they only keep 3 preseason games.
The fans USED to not care about preseason, but suddenly since 2020 they've become this all important precursor to the regular season. Your team is losing b/c they are hurt. Or the players don't respect the coaching or decision makers. Or maybe they just plain stink compared to other teams.
What matters is the practices. Training. Coaching. Game planning. Studying. Practicing. All of that is what wins football games. Not a single bare bones set of plays and just going through motions against a bunch of backups.
