For most NFL football fans, the preseason can be a rollercoaster of emotions.

At first, there is excitement because football is back after a long hiatus and it’s the first opportunity to see notable rookies and star players on their new teams. And it’s OK that the regulars are taken out of the game after a few trips because, you know, football is so back! (I can’t be the only one who’s tired of hearing that.)

But come Week 2 of the preseason, you’ll have to convince yourself to watch. You might get a glimpse of the next Puka Nacua, and building a list of potential gems could be beneficial for your upcoming fantasy football drafts.

Then there is the brutal third week of the preseason, when most teams play without their regular players and in some cases not even their substitutes because many head coaches have already set game day lineups with 48 players.

Can you believe that not so long ago there were four preseason games? Well, the NFL probably wants to remind you because it’s pushing for an 18-game schedule. With so many boring preseason games, maybe the league will use this as an example of why the regular season should be extended to 18 games and preseason should be shortened to two games.

Yes, the preseason can be tough, but you have to admire how passionate and loud the Detroit Lions and New Orleans Saints fans were in their respective preseason finales.

But before we can truly say, “Football is back,” let’s recap the preseason with a few takeaways from this weekend’s games.

Anthony Richardson’s rollercoaster week should not be given too much importance

The Cincinnati Bengals’ trash talk about Anthony Richardson during a joint practice game was apparently loud enough to convince the football public that the 2023 first-round pick is the Uncle Rico of quarterbacks, and many jumped ship from the Indianapolis Colts bandwagon.

That’s all it took to turn the Colts from surprise contenders into questionable teams that might not make the playoffs. It wasn’t Richardson’s injuries from his rookie year that set off alarm bells in Indianapolis. It was trash talk at a competitive joint practice where reporters were close enough to hear and tweet about it. We’re talking about practice here. Not a (regular) game… OK, I’ll stop quoting Allen Iverson.

Verbal taunts are a constant on the football field. But hey, write off the Colts just because the Bengals criticized Richardson’s tough workouts. And I’m sure the new Colts doubters felt reassured after Richardson threw an ugly pick-six in the preseason game against the Bengals’ reserve defense and forgot the almost perfect opening drive, which ended with a 9-yard touchdown pass to rookie wideout Adonai Mitchell.

There’s no sneaking around the interception deep in enemy territory. It doesn’t matter if there was a miscommunication with tight end Kylen Granson. Richardson never should have thrown the ball there. You could argue, though, that Colts coach Shane Steichen should have taken the starters out of the game after the first touchdown drive. But Steichen was aware that his inexperienced quarterback only played in four games last season and spent most of the offseason recovering from shoulder surgery.

Dealing with adversity and shaking off preseason rust could pay off when games count in less than two weeks. Giving Richardson extra work certainly had nothing to do with the second-year quarterback having to prove himself to the Bengals’ talkative defense. Richardson already showed he has plenty of potential in four games last season, which is why the Colts were a popular playoff favorite for most of the offseason.

So ignore Bengals cornerback Cam Britt-Taylor telling Colts fans, “That’s all he does is run.” Because at 6’4″ and 240 pounds, he runs very well and is hard to bring down, especially near the goal line. Remember, quarterbacks don’t run much in practice.

Now imagine ultra-athletic running option Richardson playing nonstop with Jonathan Taylor in his backfield and Steichen, one of the NFL’s best offensive minds, calling the plays. The QB-RB duo only played two snaps together last season.

The Colts’ offense will be a problem in 2024, even if Richardson makes occasional mistakes. He may never be a traditional pocket passer, but Richardson resembles Cam Newton, a former league MVP.

The new-look Titans could be a surprise team

Tennessee Titans coach Brian Callahan gave his starting offense, which features many new faces, some extra work in the last preseason game against the Saints. There were impressive drives for Will Levis & Co. and perhaps a sign of things to come in the coming season.

Callahan showed off a number of plays that suited his athletic second-year quarterback, including bootlegs and designed screens to get Levis into a rhythm. Experienced freshmen Calvin Ridley, Tony Pollard and Nick Vannett all contributed to an impressive nine-play, 84-yard opening drive that ended with a 1-yard touchdown run by Pollard.

There are a lot of new roles for the rookie head coach, but it’s a strong sign that Callahan already has chemistry with his offense. Callahan was instrumental in building a productive offense for Joe Burrow during his time as the Bengals’ offensive coordinator.

Levis could have everything he needs to make a big jump in his second NFL season after a busy offseason with the Titans.

After boring preseason finals, a schedule of 18 games is on the agenda

The NFL has made some quick decisions this preseason.

They got avid football fans to sign up and pay for their NFL+ app so they could watch the preseason games. And let’s not forget that they still require season ticket holders to pay for the preseason games in order to get the entire 17-game regular season schedule.

I don’t know what’s more ridiculous: networks putting a plus sign on apps instead of coming up with a better name, or the amount of apps we have to pay for in the streaming age. It makes you wonder why many people left cable and satellite providers in the first place.

Money-making sucks, especially when the product isn’t the best. The NFL has made a lot of money from preseason games and will now try to make even more money by moving to an 18-game regular season before negotiating billion-dollar deals with television and streaming networks.

The NFL may soon declare that three preseason games are no longer necessary after charging a premium for them in an attempt to convince the public that an extended regular season would benefit everyone. Well, except for the health of NFL players.

Sure, the Week 3 preseason games were poor, but the regular season performance could drop if the league gets an 18-game regular season.

Trey Lance’s bumpy preseason ends with five INTs against the Chargers

One year ago today, the San Francisco 49ers were criticized for trading Trey Lance to the Dallas Cowboys for just a fourth-round pick after giving up several first-round picks to make Lance the third pick in the 2021 draft.

Now it’s easier to understand why the 49ers agreed to trade Lance for such a low fee. It definitely helped that they had Brock Purdy and he was healthy at the start of last season. But they knew better than anyone that Lance was nowhere near capable of developing into a true franchise quarterback, and with very few shots of him in the NFL, a fourth-round pick was probably the best they could get for Lance.

Now, a year later, Lance is firmly established as the Cowboys’ third quarterback and had no chance of overtaking Cooper Rush in the preseason rankings and becoming Dak Prescott’s backup. But being third gave Lance plenty of playing time in the three preseason games, which he needed since he had very little experience in the NFL.

However, Lance had three rough games and finished the preseason with five interceptions against the Los Angeles Chargers. He kept plays alive with his agility, but accuracy and reading the defense remains an issue. With mixed results, it’s not a given that Lance will make the Cowboys’ 53-man roster before Tuesday’s cuts.

The transfer of Jahan Dotson makes sense for both NFC East teams

I always laugh at the exaggerated graphics that get posted on social media after a big name player is traded, ignoring the reason for that player’s transfer.

But hey, let’s all forget how good these teams are after each trade and ignore the teams that gain draft picks.

Based on some social media graphics from last week, some believe the Philadelphia Eagles have the best trio of wide receivers after signing Jahan Dotson from the Washington Commanders. Dotson, the 2022 first-round pick, should help AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith, but this is more about depth than signing a difference-maker.

Brown and Smith will still play important roles in Philly’s offense, but if Dotson takes hold as a third option, the Eagles will certainly be in a better position, as they have had a constant turnover at the No. 3 wide receiver position.

On the other hand, Dotson wasn’t a consistent playmaker for the previous Washington regime and failed to impress new head coach Dan Quinn and his staff. It says a lot that the Commanders had no problem trading Dotson to a division rival. It says even more that Washington doesn’t have enough depth at the wide receiver position and wasn’t willing to make it happen with the former first-round pick.

Maybe Dotson will find a role with the Eagles and the Commanders will turn Philadelphia’s third-round pick into a future playmaker for Jayden Daniels. It’s a good trade for everyone involved, but maybe not the kind of transaction that requires fancy graphics with three exploding head emojis.