by Andre van der Merwe
Daily Lobo
Ah, preseason. A time where world-class athletes with $1 million contracts get to screw up countless times before the regular season starts; a time where teams start looking for a go-to guy; a time where contracts are signed and players are cut; a time to start the damn season already.
So far, thanks to the NFL Network, I've seen nothing but pieces of what I'd call professional football. However, some of those pieces in this preseason have been phenomenal.
Exhibit A - Running back Reggie "Everything's in slow motion" Bush has shown bits of brilliance out of the backfield. Bush looks like he easily has what it takes to be well worth his multi-million dollar deal. Bush will do for the New Orleans Saints what LaDainian Tomlinson has done for the San Diego Chargers. But Bush will do it twice as fast, twice as crafty and with twice as many replays on "SportsCenter's" top 10 plays. Too bad the same can't be said for other players such as Drew "Too old" Bledsoe, Terrell "I put the me in team" Owens and Alex "I have hands the size of a fifth grader" Smith.
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Exhibit B - Wide receiver Hank Baskett has proven to be the single best Cinderella story, especially after not being drafted at all. Baskett went from battling for a spot on the Philadelphia Eagles' roster to first-team stud in a matter of weeks.
Exhibit C - San Francisco 49ers tight end "Click Clack" - aka Under Armour spokesman Vernon Davis - is another exciting player. Davis is built like a linebacker with wide receiver hands and blazing speed. With Davis' combined athleticism and body size, I would definitely give him a nine out of 10 on the soil-myself scale. Not only does he have the potential to be the next great tight end, he looks like the new age predator.
Exhibit D - We have a veteran on the impact-player list, a safety that hails from Baltimore - Ed Reed of the Ravens. Not only does he deliver career-ending tackles, Reed also has a better ability to rack up points on defense than any other defensive player in the league.
Exhibit E - We have another impact player, who is a quarterback with a cannon for an arm. No, not Vince Young, who apparently donated his brain cells for research. I'm talking about Peyton Manning. Manning has the potential to break several more quarterback records before he even reaches the top of his game.
Thanks to the NFL preseason, I've been able to watch each one of my exhibits tear up his opponents with more destructive force than Vince Young tearing up his Wonderlic test results.
