Is it too much to ask to have your top three draft picks healthy for the regular season? How 'bout just one of them?
Although their second-round pick, offensive tackle Mike Adams, has seemingly recovered from his preseason knee injury, the Pittsburgh Steelers may be without first-round guard David DeCastro and third-round linebacker Sean Spence for at least a large part of the 2012 regular season after DeCastro and Spence both suffered serious knee injuries during the NFL's mandatory four-game preseason.
Debates over the value of preseason games when the injury risks associated with them are weighed in have waged for years among football fans, and a rash of injuries to promising young Steelers this preseason has gotten many Pittsburghers clamoring for less August contests, even if that means more regular-season ones in January.
However, some fans want four preseason games AND an addition of two regular-season games. (What's wrong with more football, right?)
But most understand that asking for more from the league's players would be unfair. Even a compromise of two preseason games and a move from 16 to 18 regular-season games is seen by many to be unfair to the players, most of whom, especially veterans, are accustomed to not playing much in the preseason.
What do you say? Should the NFL stay put and continue with a four-game preseason schedule and a 16-game regular-season schedule? Should preseason games be eliminated altogether?
Perhaps more importantly, will the league's owners, who make money off of all 20 games, be willing to give some of the games up?
Vote in our poll above, and tell us why you voted the way that you did in the comments section below.
