I managed to watch a lot of it and I was pleasantly surprised.
The games were intense and I thought in many cases, well played.
I didn’t see play suffer without having a preseason.
So glad they nixed PI reviews (I forgot they got rid of it)
The lack of fans didn’t take much away from anything.
The Eagles suffered a brutal opening loss (always enjoyable).
LOLJETS
Considering all the circumstances leading up to the return of football, I don’t think we could have hoped for more.
Now let’s get a win tomorrow night.
It was much ado about nothing.
It was much ado about nothing.
It was always about money, almost nothing to do with getting ready for the season. Going to be a hard sell to the owners to turn down 1-2 games worth of revenue and if that happens expect more games added somewhere to compensate.
But yeah the games were good.
But yeah the games were good.
I disagree, crowd noise is a big part of football to me. Without it would feel incomplete.
Here's to a great showing by Big Blue and a W tomorrow night.
But yeah the games were good.
Seconded. I like hearing just the game itself more clearly.
But yeah the games were good.
Don’t mind the noise but not to the point it drowns out the announcers
Maybe the lack of distractions? Most of these guys just trained at home or in small groups waiting for the season. No night clubs, no bars, etc.
Jesus
And the broadcasters also were fantastic across the board in an environment that is very different from their norm
I think if it were silent in there, it would be way more noticeable and "feel" more empty - which I think would kind of suck the life out.
Anyway - good points re: preseason in this thread. I think we see 2 games going forward. Preseason obviously isn't really needed from a player preparedness angle, but it does matter from a roster building standpoint. I think most teams would prefer to see their bubble guys in live action a bit against other teams to get a better feel for what they have on the backend of their rosters.
So, I don't think the NFL does away with preseason entirely - but I don't see any way they can justify 4 games ever again.
I think if it were silent in there, it would be way more noticeable and "feel" more empty - which I think would kind of suck the life out.
Anyway - good points re: preseason in this thread. I think we see 2 games going forward. Preseason obviously isn't really needed from a player preparedness angle, but it does matter from a roster building standpoint. I think most teams would prefer to see their bubble guys in live action a bit against other teams to get a better feel for what they have on the backend of their rosters.
So, I don't think the NFL does away with preseason entirely - but I don't see any way they can justify 4 games ever again.
Agree with this entire post.
It's not bad, I just don't think it's necessary. I've been to near empty stadium football games in my life and it's still great.
One play that was a 3yrd gain sounded like a touchdown was scored lol
Ps a first year coach (rivera) and second year qb (Haskins) beat the seasoned and stable eagles with all their familiar faces today. Maybe we will put that new coach new team struggling to bed too.
Regardless, pretty good football today, although Saints/Bucs got really sloppy and stupid Red Zone wouldn't turn away from it.
Ps a first year coach (rivera) and second year qb (Haskins) beat the seasoned and stable eagles with all their familiar faces today. Maybe we will put that new coach new team struggling to bed too.
Right, but the issue the Eagles had today was their absolute line was absolutely atrocious going against a top front 7 unit Us and the Steelers have very little to do with Skins and Eagles. The NFC East is trash this year. Not to say we can't win, but it's not very similar.
But yeah the games were good.
I think it was a little of both. Most of the time, it blended in really well and made me forget there weren’t people in the stands. The irritating part, most mundane plays, it would always sound like something big happened, when it was just a 2 yard run.
The Giants fanbase knows how important a strong OL is as much as anybody...the Eagles will have serious issues until Johnson comes back. Even after that, they're going to need to overcome the loss of Brooks and Peters. Eagles will be in trouble this year.
As for preseason games, 4 has always been insane, 0 not enough for roster development in my opinion. The number moving forward should be 2.
Also, Buck said during the Saints game that they're looking to get some fans in for the next home game so if things keep improving I'd imagine we'll see some more fans in the seats where possible.
I think the extra practice time and not preparing for preseason games is improving the quality of the games.
Officiating good in the games I watched as well.
NFL has done a good job all around. Players/coaches too.
Quote:
That football was gonna be complete trash this season. Heard that one a lot all summer. I guess we can put that one to bed.
Ps a first year coach (rivera) and second year qb (Haskins) beat the seasoned and stable eagles with all their familiar faces today. Maybe we will put that new coach new team struggling to bed too.
Right, but the issue the Eagles had today was their absolute line was absolutely atrocious going against a top front 7 unit Us and the Steelers have very little to do with Skins and Eagles. The NFC East is trash this year. Not to say we can't win, but it's not very similar.
Giants have a tough test tomorrow for sure. I wasn’t really singling out the giants as much as just in general I am 100% sure new coaches on new teams are at a huge disadvantage. I’m not sure of anything really lol, this is uncharted territory. Too lazy to check how all the first year or new head coaches did today. Off top of my head we know Carolina lost. Dallas is playing now. Doesn’t cincy have a new coach? They lost in ridiculous fashion. Who knows. Hopefully the giants show up tomorrow night and put the nfc East on notice as it looks a little vulnerable.
Very enjoyable Sunday
I actually was enjoying watching the replays of Redzone from week's 16 and 17 on Friday/Saturday more than the Texans-Chiefs.
Today felt more like football.
And the noise being pumped in is a good thing, but I hope they start to get more creative and use different tracks depending on the situation.......sometimes they were pumping noise in and I thought something happened (like a fumble) when it was simply nothing........
Doesn’t bode well for us, though.
As for the fake crowd noise, there’s obvious room for improvement. If they can make the fan “reactions” more situation- and site-appropriate, the noise should become a plus. Like others, I’d rather hear the sounds on the field - as one does at, say, a high school game. There are practical obstacles, though, including the likelihood of certain teams (Hello, Li’l Bill!) finding ways to eavesdrop.
Looking forward to tonight, with zero idea how we’ll do. Zero.
Plenty of bad calls by the refs, but I was happy that they canned the PI challenge.
The fake fan noise was decent, but I felt they didn't do it right at times.
The TV coverage was a little sloppy. Some issues with replays. But, with Covid I will give them a break on that.
You knew that was a precursor to eliminating some preseason games so that when they ultimately add more regular season games they can charge more per game than before.
I was thinking about this - went against the conventional wisdom entering the season. But maybe less tackling in camp and no tackling in preseason sets the defense back? Hoping they get up to speed quickly.
My favorite shot of the day (and I forget which game it was in) was a head coach holding his laminated card of plays in front of his mouth so that nobody could read his lips, but the camera man took a side view shot so you could see his lips moving anyway.
My favorite shot of the day (and I forget which game it was in) was a head coach holding his laminated card of plays in front of his mouth so that nobody could read his lips, but the camera man took a side view shot so you could see his lips moving anyway.
Could make it easier for teams (Pats!) to steal signs too. Obviously they can hear them during the game and potentially catch onto their calls, but teams would have to change their calls weekly if the opposition could study film and know their calls entering the game.
Ps a first year coach (rivera) and second year qb (Haskins) beat the seasoned and stable eagles with all their familiar faces today. Maybe we will put that new coach new team struggling to bed too.
Are you suggesting that a first-year veteran HC is the same as a rookie HC who has never been a HC at any level?
I'm not sure that's exactly comparable.
Thanks for the jump and mute buttons on the remote ... useful in keeping the focus on football only, where I want it.
TD and other celebrations seemed more constrained. A good thing, maybe the players have a bit more respect for the game that was almost taken from them.
The top QBs were outstanding ... Russell Wilson for week 1 MVP ... Can Minshew really be for real?
Not surprisingly, tackling was weak in many games and
unfortunately, there will be lots of injuries early on.
They're pros at it in Seattle...
I was incredibly impressed with the product that DAL/LAR put out last night.