Problem with the NFL preseason

Raise your hand if you like the NFL preseason.\nOK. You can put your hands down now, Raiders fans. \nDon’t get the joke? Let me explain.\nPreseason sucks, unless your team sucks. You see, for all the good teams, the preseason is just a “let’s not get our star hurt” joke period where Shane Falco can lead the just-not-good-enough second-string players to a surefire beating.\nBut if your team sucks, preseason is a chance to chalk one up in the win column. Your scrubs are the cream of the crop since your starters just barely beat them out for their No. 1 positions in the depth chart. You can capitalize on the teams who are merely practicing to boost team morale before dealing with an inevitable 3-13 season.\nSo why play the preseason?\nPeople always answer that by saying the preseason is very important for the players. And I can definitely understand that. Peyton Manning does need to play that one set of downs for four straight games and then watch Jim Sorgi finish the game from his sideline bench seat. \nSpeaking of Sorgi, every time I see him play, I wonder what it’s like having a terrible quarterback run a team. When I ask my friends who are Bears fans about it, they always tell me that it’s only painful come playoff time. I still think Rex Grossman was the Super Bowl MVP for the Colts last year.\nBut back to preseason. What really gets me about preseason is the ticket prices. Season ticket holders have to pay full price for preseason games whether they want to or not. It should be larceny to charge $100 a ticket to watch a Matt Cassel/David Carr match-up decide a tough game in the fourth quarter when no one knows anyone who is playing. That is, if you make it to the fourth quarter. I’d rather watch Major League Soccer. \nSo what’s the solution?\nCut the preseason to three games. Play two of the games in small arenas or on practice fields with enough seating for the media and diehard fans to attend. Play the third game on the regular field where any fan who desires can attend.\nI understand this idea means that half the teams will not play the third game at home, but I will gladly nominate the Colts to be one of the away teams. We haven’t won a preseason game in two years, so Colts fans can deal with waiting for the regular season. \nBut what is going on now needs to stop. It’s unfair to all the fans. \nThink about it. My parents have two Colts season tickets. The two home preseason games that are forced on all the season ticket holders cost roughly $400 total for the \ntwo seats.\nWith my system, my parents could be saving that money and spending it on me instead.\nDo you know many Qdoba burritos $400 can buy?