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Preseason zeal is nice for some, but others cry foul
So I just finished watching the replay of the Steelers' 12-10 win over the Commanders from Saturday night, and it was nice to see some spirited action, which included a frenzied Mark Brunell leading his team into position to win the game, only to see procedure penalties, game mismanagement and poor execution fell the Commanders. OK, maybe I buried the lede (yes, it's "lede" in journalism terms) a bit, but I was more struck by what I see as a recurring theme this preseason: teams really going for it.
I have yet to see compelling evidence that good performance in the preseason means teams will carry that over into the real games, or vice versa. But this competitive spirit I have noticed -- am I alone on this? -- seems to have quelled the scores of season-ticket holders who ***** this time of year about having to pay for two meaningless games in their season package.
But not everyone is impressed. Speaking of ledes, check out the bias that Mike Klis is slinging! My Broncos friend called me last night and said that Wade Phillips was far too aggressive for a preseason game. My response was that new head coaches often will play a more complete game, get their starters more action and blitz more, that sort of thing. He disagreed; he thought Phillips was over the line and that the Broncos' injuries were a direct result of the coach's decision to blitz and whatnot.
Then my buddy, like some of the Broncos, suggested that Wade Phillips took extra special pleasure out of beating the snot out of the team that fired him. So that's bad, but Mike Shanahan isn't allowed to enjoy beating the Raiders, who canned him about, oh, 79 years ago? Folks -- and this means you, Brian -- this is ancient history. Trust me.
I am glad that preseason appears to have a little more pizzazz than it normally does, at least by this completely unscientific sense of mine. But for me, preseason games are like Methadone. It'll never substitute for the real thing, of course. So no matter what whiny Broncos fans -- or whiny beat writers -- say, it's good to see this kind of spirit in these games. Injuries are going to happen, just as a matter of fact. Don't blame it on a zealous coach, please.
Posted by Eric Edholm on August 19, 2007 3:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
So I just finished watching the replay of the Steelers' 12-10 win over the Commanders from Saturday night, and it was nice to see some spirited action, which included a frenzied Mark Brunell leading his team into position to win the game, only to see procedure penalties, game mismanagement and poor execution fell the Commanders. OK, maybe I buried the lede (yes, it's "lede" in journalism terms) a bit, but I was more struck by what I see as a recurring theme this preseason: teams really going for it.
I have yet to see compelling evidence that good performance in the preseason means teams will carry that over into the real games, or vice versa. But this competitive spirit I have noticed -- am I alone on this? -- seems to have quelled the scores of season-ticket holders who ***** this time of year about having to pay for two meaningless games in their season package.
But not everyone is impressed. Speaking of ledes, check out the bias that Mike Klis is slinging! My Broncos friend called me last night and said that Wade Phillips was far too aggressive for a preseason game. My response was that new head coaches often will play a more complete game, get their starters more action and blitz more, that sort of thing. He disagreed; he thought Phillips was over the line and that the Broncos' injuries were a direct result of the coach's decision to blitz and whatnot.
Then my buddy, like some of the Broncos, suggested that Wade Phillips took extra special pleasure out of beating the snot out of the team that fired him. So that's bad, but Mike Shanahan isn't allowed to enjoy beating the Raiders, who canned him about, oh, 79 years ago? Folks -- and this means you, Brian -- this is ancient history. Trust me.
I am glad that preseason appears to have a little more pizzazz than it normally does, at least by this completely unscientific sense of mine. But for me, preseason games are like Methadone. It'll never substitute for the real thing, of course. So no matter what whiny Broncos fans -- or whiny beat writers -- say, it's good to see this kind of spirit in these games. Injuries are going to happen, just as a matter of fact. Don't blame it on a zealous coach, please.
Posted by Eric Edholm on August 19, 2007 3:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
