18 Game Season a Done Deal?

Colts President Bill Polian stated yesterday the 18 game season is pretty much a done deal. No doubt as fans this is a good thing. The four weeks of pre-season are meaningless and we really get nothing out of it. I read somewhere that Dungy believes it will hurt player development and draft picks, but I think otherwise, it should actually help. Don't tell me that a kid coming out of college is growing by playing his first four NFL games against other guys in the same boat as well as guys who went undrafted or are practice squad caliber. OTA's and Mini-Camps will obviously have to start a bit earlier and this is where the work is done. Priority one is learning your team's scheme, playbook, assignments, and learning to break down film. Rookie Mike Williams played with the Buccaneers starters pretty exclusively and he has 2 TD in three games. Dez Bryant missed a lot of this "development" time and came out making an immediate contribution since he has returned. There are numerous examples, and it all boils down to the player's ability and work ethic, not how many pre-season games they get to play in. I think Dungy is trying to make a case for the players by making this comment and maybe setting up a bargaining argument. Though it is pretty easily debunked if that's the case. Bottom line, it is a good thing if the players are compensated for all their extra time and the extra injury risk.

Fantasy wise this also has obvious rewards such as more fantasy football! Certain changes might have to made to the settings and your strategy as well. Roster size....two more games could mean your number one RB getting that dreaded ACL tear earlier on...or right before the playoffs. Depth will be more necessary to combat the possibility of injury at all positions. The Draft...with only two pre-season games I've got to assume most drafts will happen on game two, leaving only one game to evaluate where players are going to be used. Teams will most likely show their starting line-up's in game one but mini camps become all that more important when it comes to fantasy. Could we expect better coverage by the networks on individual camps instead of the pageantry and gloss that passes over as coverage? We should see more coverage and it should get us more involved in the month leading up to the season. The bigger the league, the more attention fantasy owners will need to give. A Gap between elite and average......Two games isn't going to make a huge difference, but it should elevate some of those number three WR's and RB to number two status now that they will have two more games to put up points. The biggest benefactors should be QB's, giving Brees and Rogers two more chances to score 25-30 fantasy points. Does this make them more important? We will have to wait and see what it all feels like when it happens. But one thing is for sure, more football is a good thing.