Quick Snaps: I Know It's the Preseason But...

As we approach the end of the Sports No [wo]Man's Land of August, the NFL regular season is finally almost upon us!  To reflect on what we've seen so far in 2012, I'm not one to read too much into the half-speed, experimental tea leaves of preseason football, but I think there's enough to offer a few stray observations on what we do know at this point.  Courtesy of our Twitter-happy universe, I present to you 10 Quick Snap judgments about what we've seen in the preseason to date:

1) The Jets QB situation is truly the stuff of nightmares - Sometimes there are extreme anomalies in how a team performs in the preseason.  The 0 - 16 Lions of 2009 were 4 - 0 in August, for example.  Still, there is nothing encouraging about Sanch-Bow under center in the Meadowlands.  This team has yet to put a touchdown on the scoreboard in three games, meaning the kangaroo court of Jets fans are going to anoint and promptly eviscerate Tim Tebow once they realize the Wild Cat is so 2000 and late.

2) Steve Smith may be the real Superman in Carolina - Speaking of NYJ, their defense sure put a hurting on the Carolina Panthers' A-Team this past weekend.  Yes, one game does not statistical significance make, but Cam Newton looked awful flustered and indecisive without injured WR and security blanket Steve Smith.

3) The only thing scary about the Saints' defense right now is how scary they made Blaine Gabbert look - A triple-digit passer rating for a man who would've flinched at the site of a golden retriever in the pocket last year?  Seven missed tackles in a quarter?  Exploding knee injuries for the whole newly acquired linebacker cavalry? This Saints fan is managing expectations for now and hoping for some very quick turnarounds in September.

4) How about that Andrew Luck? - I get that this is totally cliche and will alter no one's opinions or expectations about Draft Pick No. 1 this year, but wow does Andrew Luck look great.  I was especially impressed with his performance against the Steelers in Pre-Week 2 during which he was sacked and intercepted multiple times.  Despite some rookie mistakes, he responded resiliently and stayed clutch.

5) David DeCastro's ligament woes could spell disaster for the Steelers - Pittsburgh's offensive line has been about as stable as a nuclear isotope over the past few years.  It takes a special kind of blocking machine to protect Ben just-five-more-seconds-of-scrambling Roethlisberger.  With injuries to his ACL and MCL last week, David DeCastro's absence could make for a really rough offensive game for which to fire Todd Haley.

6) The tight end revolution is on - Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Graham became household names among fantasy football GMs last season by serving just as much in a wide receiver role as they did in the traditional blocker backup role.  I think the TE repurposing revolution is about to take place all over the NFL this year.  Look for guys like Aaron Hernandez (NE), Jermaine Gresham (CIN) and Jared Cook (TEN) among others to have a big 2012 too in a similar role.

7) Terrelle Pryor will have his day - I predict there will be a changing of the guard at the Raiders' QB position in Week 8 or so.  Carson Palmer continues to prove he's damaged goods with inconsistent play that is just too sloppy for a veteran of his stature.  Pryor's got the arm strength to dazzle a desperate team into trying something new.

8) Michael Vick is made of glass - The O-Line coaching shuffle from Juan Castillo to Howard Mudd has not paid off for anyone in Philadelphia, least of all Unbreakable supervillian-cum-quarterback Michael Vick. I get it, there's no sense in taking extra risks by playing hurt in the preseason.  But when you take yourself out for a hangnail in Pre-Week 1 and then get your ribs smashed to pieces a week later, it looks like both will and skill are working against the Eagles' passing game this year.

9) Julio Jones is money - A year of pro experience and a more well-oiled connection with Matt Ryan has served WR Julio Jones well.  I absolutely shudder to think how NOLA's defense will handle this deep threat if he stays healthy this season.  Maybe Coach Mike Smith will take some sympathy with his questionable play-calling.

10) Poor Billy Cundiff - I know he's just a kicker--and a lonesome kicker at that after last year's AFC Championship--but I think Baltimore was more than a little harsh in ousting Billy Cundiff in the preseason since he's been mostly reliable with field goals and outstanding with touchbacks during his tenure with the Ravens.  Ever since these guys let their native son Matt Stover go (to Indy of all places), they've seemed a little trigger happy with a position that's not as expendable as it may appear.  Ask anyone who's had a Grammatica kick for their team before...


And that concludes our preseason hijinks-- up next, my very first regular season Week 1 game predictions!!!!!!