Game Girl

OK, three down and one to go. The most important preseason game each year is in the books, and it seems to me we're left with a few more questions than answers.

Like, Beck or Grossman? To many, that is THE question. And it's a valid one, for sure. But it's certainly not the ONLY question. I'm wondering a few other things of note, like what will become of the defensive line now that Jarvis Jenkins is gone? Will that push up front become weak like last year? And how about DeAngelo Hall -- he's an interception machine but gets beat in coverage way too often...and without a strong push up front, will he be even more exposed? And what about the health of Cooley and Landry, among others?

Yes, the offense looked pretty efficient against Baltimore last night. Can't deny that, although I'd like to have seen a few more visits to the end zone from the first-string offense. And the defense held up pretty well, except for the secondary getting beat more than I personally feel comfortable with. And our special teams looks solid, which is also good news. And how about Gruden and the gang fawning over our team's "hustle" and overall strength. That was all pretty positive.

So why do I feel sort of luke-warm about the whole thing? I guess becuase I still don't really get what this team is about. OK, I know now we are a zone running team, and a 3-4 defense (with MUCH better personnel this year). We play with heart, and with quick tempo. All good.

But who, exactly, ARE we? Who will lead this team? Who will quarterback this team? Who will help us move from the bottom of the NFC East cellar and into respectability.

I'm still waiting. Guess we'll find out on September 11th against the Giants...

All I'm going to say is, don't get too crazy yet. It's just ONE preseason game. Remember that ridiculous Osaka, Japan blow-out with Steve Spurrier back in the day? When he ran up the score, and we all got excited about the team, and they wound up just absolutely stinking the joint up ("Well, 5 & 11, not verrrry goooood", I believe was the parting shot Spurrier gave us during his infamous press conference exit...)

So, yes, the team looked good. Crisp. Fast. Tight and precise. Kept the penalties to a minimum and the offensive plays to a mazimum. All good, I agree. But, and this is a very big BUT -- it's ONE preseason game. With Rex Grossman at the helm, against a very vanilla Steeler's defense that wasn't exactly bringing any serious blitzes to knock him on his tailbone.

Don't get me wrong. I think the value of preseason for evaluating your own team -- their strengths and weaknesses, their knowledge of the playbook, their overall mental acuity and physical toughness -- has it's place. But I don't think it's necessarily an indication that our team is going to play well in their regular season opener against the Giants on September 11th. Rather, I think it's a good indication that the Shanahan gang knows how to run an efficient training camp, which seems to translate to a very visible quickness on the field that is hard to ignore.

Let's just say that at least our starters played well, for the most part. And our rookies had their moments, too...some better than others. Leonard Hankerson needs to learn to hold on to the ball, for example. But honestly, the team we all watched on Friday night could have, and for all intents and purposes, SHOULD HAVE, looked a lot more flat and confused and crappy. But they didn't.

So, I guess that's a good start. Let's see what Friday night's game against a very weak, Payton Manning-less team tells us this Friday.