The Preseason Important or Not?

[beastson]

To me it is. The past 2 has been underwhelming, it was brushed off, but our season went with it.

 

Training camp on is under a microscope

[Jakob]

Yes.

[MasterAwesome]

Of course it's important...as in it serves a purpose. That purpose being to get your starters re-acclimated to the game after a long offseason and to put your untested players in a game simulation to sort out the bottom of your roster.

If your question is more along the lines of "will our performance in preseason games foreshadow that of the regular season", then no.

[jtnc]

Yes, but too many pre-season games. Three is enough.

[Ricky Spanish]

Sure it is, but it sure as hell ISN'T worth the same price as a regular season ticket dammit.

[LinvilleGorge]

It's absolutely important. Not so much for established guys, but it's very important for shaping the depth chart and getting down to the final 53.  Some guys are just gamers.  They may not look great in practice, but when the action goes live they show up at their best.  How would you find those guys if you couldn't get them some snaps in preseason?  A guy like Jake Delhomme never makes an NFL roster if he had to rely on training camp performances to do it.  10 out of 10 observers would've picked Weinke as our starting QB if they just went and watched a practice at training camp knowing nothing about the Panthers.  They would've assumed Jake was just some undrafted rookie free agent brought in as a camp arm.

[Mage]

The performance in the preseason is important in context (but still don't put too much weight on it; remember when our pass rush was looking BEASTLY the '10 preseason?).

 

Wins and losses, however, are completely irrelevant.

Now of course if we are getting pummeled in preseason games or like what happened to the Chiefs, our starters sucking vs a teams backups, then we have an issue.  But I mean if we are just average and all, don't care.  

[DaveThePanther2008]

Final Score isn't a factor for me.  I usually take what the halftime score is as a basis on our future.  And that is still taken with a grain of salf because no game planning is done. 

 

Second half is game time experience for rookies and players fighting for a spot.  I look for individual performance after that.

 

I would not be surprised to see some of the players fighting for roster spot starting.  Best time to see what they do against frontline players.  We don't get a good gauge unless you put them against top tier talent.

[Zod]

Yes, it is important.No one has ever said it wasn't.

 

 

WHY its important is up for debate.

[Achilles]

Let's not overlook how important the preseason is it terms of revenue for teams and the league. TV, advertising, marketing, merchandizing, ticket sales, etc.  It's a huge money maker.  Sometimes I think the profit generating system that the NFL has created becomes more important than the welfare of players.  THe preseason seems to symbolize that for me more than anything.

 

It is also important as a way to assess talent and acclimate players to full speed game situations.  It's a good time to see what works and what doesn't in a relatively risk free environment (from a coaching standpoint).

 

For players, though, it isn't ideal.  Who really wants to play in games that have little consequence and risk injury.  Often the very best players in the league sit out long stretches in the preseason.  The on-field product that fans are practically forced to pay for is of a decidedly lesser quality.

 

To me the solution to all of this is to reduce the number of preseason games to 2.  Only week 1 and 3 of the preseason are truly useful for all parties involved (week 2 is usually more experimental and week 4 is for scrubs).

 

I would love it if the league went to an 18 game schedule, but I can live without it.  4 weeks is too many.  That is where it becomes mostly about profits and self-promotion.  Change it to 2 (18 games or just 16) and I think the league would be even sharper and more attuned to the needs of fans, players, and owners.

[89 Bottom Line]

It's important just to see if pickles still remembers how to throw a football.

[DaveThePanther2008]

It isn't important to the fans and veterans guaranteed a spot on the roster. But the players fighting for a roster spot it is very important.  A solid preseason game can mean the difference from being cut or place on the practice squad.

[lovelett]

Let's not overlook how important the preseason is it terms of revenue for teams and the league. TV, advertising, marketing, merchandizing, ticket sales, etc.  It's a huge money maker.  Sometimes I think the profit generating system that the NFL has created becomes more important than the welfare of players.  THe preseason seems to symbolize that for me more than anything.

 

It is also important as a way to assess talent and acclimate players to full speed game situations.  It's a good time to see what works and what doesn't in a relatively risk free environment (from a coaching standpoint).

 

For players, though, it isn't ideal.  Who really wants to play in games that have little consequence and risk injury.  Often the very best players in the league sit out long stretches in the preseason.  The on-field product that fans are practically forced to pay for is of a decidedly lesser quality.

 

To me the solution to all of this is to reduce the number of preseason games to 2.  Only week 1 and 3 of the preseason are truly useful for all parties involved (week 2 is usually more experimental and week 4 is for scrubs).

 

I would love it if the league went to an 18 game schedule, but I can live without it.  4 weeks is too many.  That is where it becomes mostly about profits and self-promotion.  Change it to 2 (18 games or just 16) and I think the league would be even sharper and more attuned to the needs of fans, players, and owners.

 

I also like the idea of a shorter pre season but it would suck for some of these bubble guys and undrafted guys that have half the time to make a name for themselves.

[EMSMedic79]

The question shouldn't be is preseason important..... it should be are we going to have a training camp/preseason with some intensity? That was the biggest reason for the slow start last season. no one really seemed to be motivated or challenged in camp. Maybe with Riveria's head on the chopping block the team will show up with some attitude.