The NFL preseason has mercifully ended

TEMPE, Ariz. — Our long national nightmare is over. The NFL preseason has ended. I think I speak for many fans and players in celebrating this fact. I know I speak for fellow media members.

Preseason games aren’t going away. We may only be subjected to two in future years if commissioner Roger Goodell and the league’s owners get their way and put the players through the meat grinder of two more regular season games, but they still have value to the league and teams.

They are a controversial source of revenue (have you seen those ticket prices?) and they have value to coaches in the critical evaluation of personnel, particularly players on the roster bubble.

“You need those games to see who you want on your team,” Cardinals QB Carson Palmer said last week. “You can’t just do it in practice. It has to be in live tackling situations and special teams and all those things.”

But there is no value to you, the fan, or to us, the media, or even to many of the players who know they have locked up a roster spot or a starting role and view these games as little more than an opportunity to get injured.

The Cardinals concluded a dismal preseason with a 38-17 win over the Denver Broncos on Thursday at University of Phoenix Stadium in which most of their significant players did not play. I’d like to tell you this 1-3 preseason meant something — that we should be concerned with the first-team offense’s lack of rhythm, that we should be concerned with the cornerback spot opposite Patrick Peterson (we probably should) or we should be concerned with Drew Stanton’s aim-high preseason campaign that looks much better in an Air Force uniform.

The truth is, reporters are forced to construct meaning out of preseason games — meaning we often don’t believe. What we really want to write after each game is this: “Everything you just saw, aside from the injuries, means nothing. I was forced to be here. See you next week.”

If you think I’m overstating this case, listen to an old pro.

“The preseason is drudgery,” receiver Larry Fitzgerald said last week. “You’ve got to go out there and play but it doesn’t mean anything.”

Aside from the lack of game planning, the vanilla offenses and defenses you see and the cameo appearances by starters, there are numerous examples to support the claim that preseason results mean nothing. From 2010-15, the Washington Redskins were tied for the best preseason winning percentage (.750). Their regular season winning percentage was .385.

“I remember the Detroit Lions years ago when they went 0-16,” Fitzgerald said. “They were 4-0 in the preseason.”

Those are just two examples — not nearly enough evidence to form a legitimate conclusion, but I’m not interested in in-depth research during the preseason. It’s not worth the effort. I’m just glad it’s over. And like that mind-numbing professional training session your HR department organizes, I’m glad I only have to endure it once a year.

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