the NFL's evolution or de-evolution...

[Irish George]

...away from hitting has pretty much changed everything. Time practicing in pads has strict limits. Live hitting in practice is limited. Tackling is barely practiced.

Understandable given the info we now know about the implications from concussions and the prospect of more former players bringing suit against the league. Then there are all the other injuries to consider. There is a much or more chatter here about Bradford's health than his abilities on the field.

With these changes comes a price to the NFL of taking away much of what made the game so popular in the first place.

So when fans bitch that Bradford only played one series in his first preseason appearance, they need to look at the reasons why. Its been carrying over to the regular season as well. Almost like the first couple of regular season games are still part of training camp.

[C from SD]

favors scoring points and offense

So, yeah, the first few regular season games are about shedding rust by the team as a unit, but the games count. In the 70s, they used to play 6 preseason games before anything real happened.

It means the 4th quarter ("playing all 60min") becomes the critical part of the real games since the teams that wear down will lose, even if they have a lead. Teams aren't pulling starters for scrubs, it is where the coaches and players earn their salaries and respect.

In the past, teams played their starters into the 3rd quarter of the 3rd preseason game just to get all the players back into the flow, particularly the starters as a unit. These days, both the offense and defense rotate players for various packages that it isn't a set group. More so for the defense, because the offense swaps out skill players but keeps the o-line constant, while the defense is far more fluid. For that reason, playing the starters is less important and even more to the point of avoiding injury.

Again, in the past, it took more time for the offense to gel in the regular season. All the complicated parts of having a good QB with a good line in front of him, a run game that keeps the defense honest, and WRs who can run good routes and get open, was much harder to get working cohesively than the defense who mainly had to react and stop the ball. Especially, if the offense was new for a team or had a new QB, their progressions were slower and NFL defenses were fast enough to shut teams down and dominate, particularly early in the season.

The de-emphasis on tackling and injuries then just tips the balance toward the offense and scoring. Really, it is a shift toward focusing on players who have more speed and can generate highlight plays but in previous years may be more injury prone while flashing amazing talent. That and the defense is more likely to commit a host of penalties, keeping more drives going. Even for the teams featuring the new offense or QB but that much more for veteran teams, the early season challenges aren't there as much anymore. Expect a lot more TDs.