by Ryan Mercier
Ever watch the NFL Preseason and not know what to look for? Perhaps you’ve watched one of these exhibition games rooting for your favorite team to win while questioning all of your life choices. It’s important to keep in mind these are not actual football games. It looks like football, it sounds like football, but this time if something looks and quacks like a duck, it’s not a duck.
The scoreboard doesn’t matter. Repeat after me: THE SCOREBOARD DOESN’T MATTER. Good. Now, you’re ready.
Ready to watch rookies, mostly. Ready to check in on training camp battles and players getting buzz. Preseason can be fun but in a different way. Just look at what may have been the best Hall of Fame Game of all-time this past Thursday. Haynes King and Carson Beck put on a show. Here are a few things to look out for.
Cleveland Browns Wide Receivers
When the Cleveland Browns lead off an article, you know it’s preseason, baby. The Browns drafted KC Concepcion with their second selection in the first round in the NFL Draft. By all accounts it seems he’s off to a good start for a rookie.
However, the real player jumping out seems to be their second round choice, Denzel Boston. Concepcion is listed at 5’11” but it’s the 6’3” Boston making all the noise thus far in Cleveland. The big-bodied pass catcher is looking to be the No. 1 option with veteran Jerry Jeudy being his biggest returning competition.
This is exactly what the preseason is for. It’s easy to watch and somewhat analyze what wide receivers can do in a game. If Boston shows up on these exhibition game days the same way he has in practice, it could indicate a successful upcoming year when the real games start.
Fernando Mendoza and Ty Simpson
What’s easier to watch than wide receivers? How about quarterbacks!
The Raiders are steadfast in telling everyone that Kirk Cousins is their starter and will have you believe Mendoza won’t see the field all year. It’s a cute story. Still, Mendoza is guaranteed to have plenty of reps in these fugazi games and it will be fun to watch the No. 1 overall pick take his first fake snap soon.
How about something messy? After all, TV and movies are compelling when things are not going so well for the characters involved. This could be the case when Simpson takes the field for the Los Angeles Rams against the Kansas City Chiefs next Saturday.
This is a guy who was the 13th overall pick in the entire draft and it could look flat out ugly. He is likely going to be the third string quarterback all season long. Safe to say, this is a highly unusual situation for a player picked so high. The great thing for Rams head coach Sean McVay and Simpson is how it is perfectly fine for things to be messy this early. It can also be fun to watch.
Running Backs
One of the easiest positions to watch have success which can actually translate into the regular season is running back. Just pick one and watch him, really. Jeremiyah Love of the Arizona Cardinals is an obvious choice as he was selected No. 3 overall in April. Same with the Seattle Seahawks selection of Jadarian Price.
How about the Denver Broncos Jonah Coleman? Denver already has J.K. Dobbins and last year’s pick RJ Harvey on the squad, but the 4th rounder is making some waves.
Jonathon Brooks of the Carolina Panthers was a fairly high 2024 draft choice whose career has been railroaded by injuries. It remains to be seen if he will see any action in the preseason, but keep an eye out.
Finally, the San Francisco 49ers. There is no specific player to mention here, but Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch seem to unearth a random back who ends up on fantasy teams nearly every year.
Defense
This side of the ball naturally gets the short end of the stick, but here’s just a list of dudes to check in on this August:
-EDGE David Bailey – New York Jets
-EDGE Ruben Bain – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
-LB Sonny Styles – Washington Commanders
-DT Peter Woods – Kansas City Chiefs
-CB Riley Moss vs. CB Jahdae Barron – Denver Broncos
-S Dillon Thieneman – Chicago Bears
-EDGE BJ Green II and CB Jabbar Muhammad – Jacksonville Jaguars
Struggling Actor Sports 