Hall of Fame Game Cancellation Good For Packers (and Colts)
To be honest, I would have been lucky to see this game anyways, as I have my full-time job as a cook in a bar which might have been crowded enough to keep me occupied during the game. But, that's not why I'm not totally disappointed it's cancelled.
Would I have enjoyed seeing brief glimpses of the green and gold honoring Brett Favre (and Kevin Greene for that matter) in Tom Benson stadium? Yeah, it would have been okay. But just okay. No Aaron Rodgers, no Jordy Nelson, no Eddie Lacy, no Clay Matthews and Julius Peppers. In other words, no Packers whose jerseys are sold. It would have been QB Joe Callahan leading the charge, with Marqueis Williams taking the second half, James Starks in the backfield, and Jared Abbrederis as the likely number one receiver. Doesn't that sound an awful lot like the fourth game in the preseason?
Now we all have to wait five more days until Friday, when the first REAL preseason game begins. And honestly, that game probably won't contain many of the aforementioned players either. After the Jordy Nelson injury last preseason that saw him slip on Heinz Field (of course) and tear his ACL, the Packers are and should be taking extra precautions with injuries this preseason. The loss of a guy like Jared Abbrederis is not good news, let alone a Sam Shields, Mike Daniels or Bryan Bulaga, and playing an extra 60 minutes of football puts them at risk, good field or not.
This game is solely a money-grabber, and a way to help the city of Canton have enough money to pay off the $11 million in stadium renovations. If anybody should be disappointed outside of the NFL, it should be the city of Canton, since (no offense) but they don't really have anything else. It would be like Green Bay, without the Packers.
But, life goes on, and the Packers still have 240 minutes to prepare for the NFL season, like the rest of the league. And the Packers (and Colts) should be thankful, because nobody knows who may or may not have been injured and what type of injury it would be, had the game been played.
