Once you reach a certain age as a Jets fan, you know you’re going to be disappointed. Part of the experience of an NFL season is that you don’t yet know the manner and timing of the disappointment. Will it be injuries? A totally lost season? A chance to make the playoffs that goes poof in December? Or will they hold out for a bitter playoff loss?
This year, the Jets had a promising off-season. But over the weekend, Zach Wilson (second-year quarterback and future of their franchise) went down during a preseason game. Early indications are that Wilson avoided the worst, and that he should be back in a few weeks. But it does, to me, underscore the stupidity of preseason football.
Everybody knows the games are meaningless, and compared to preseason baseball, there’s a significantly greater risk of an injury that could knock a player out for a significant portion of the season.
If players need more practice and the NFL needs more revenue sources before the season starts, they can think of creative ways to create fun pre-season events. How about combine-like skills events? Races? Throwing competitions? Flag football scrimmages?
As players get bigger and stronger there has to be a way to get players in shape for the season that does not involve putting their bodies at risk for games that don’t count.