The NFL has done a great job of making sure you’re always paying attention to it. Don’t get me wrong, it makes my job much more relevant so I’m not complaining. However, there’s no question we do a bit of overdone analysis in the offseason. Yet, in some ways that creates all the better theatre for when the season does actually kick off. The anticipation created is unparalleled since we discuss every possible outcome of the upcoming season, both the hyper trivial and meaningful, by the time the games are set to start.
My mentor Sigmund Bloom calls it “the big reveal” and that’s fitting of the theatrical nature of the season’s kick-off. As with any season, I’m ready for that big reveal and with each passing day the excitement only grows. Concepts we’ve only been able to discuss in hypotheticals suddenly become reality playing out before our eyes. The guesses we’ve made will suddenly have concrete answers.
Marshawn Lynch’s marriage with his hometown Raiders is one of the reveals I’m most looking forward to. We can hypothesize how he’ll look in his new home and back from retirement, and argue back and forth just how productive he can really be, but the big reveal will render all that just noise once it comes to pass.
The same too with other big storylines: How will Carson Wentz progress with a new set of weapons? Can the Rams defense transition to a 3-4 front under legendary coordinator Wade Phillips? Will the Titans split up the touches between DeMarco Murray and tantalizing young talent Derrick Henry? Can Cam Newton and the Panthers offense truly evolve?
We’ll all offer opinions that ultimately amount to nothing more than educated guess, despite us asserting them as authoritative, prior to the September kick-off, but the big reveal will make all things clear when the season begins. I greatly look forward to that moment when it all becomes real. Until then, we pass the time with our hopefully well-researched conjectures and hypotheticals.
Matt Harmon lives in Los Angeles, California and is a writer for NFL.com. You can follow Matt on Twitter at @MattHarmon_BYB or visit his site at Footballguys.com.