National Football League Season Is Here...

 

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ

McALLEN, Texas | Most National Football League squads report for training camp today, the beginning of the 2023 regular season. Some are pasting their eyes on the Women's World Cup, real men are antsy for Macho, third & long football.

This from the NFL front office: [ The unofficial beginning to the 2023 NFL season will occur in late July as the league's 32 teams begin reporting for training camps. For many clubs, it's a point that can mark peak optimism - unsullied records, catastrophic injuries typically at a minimal threshold, and the expected contributions of incoming free agents and rookies very often framed with optimization.

So if you're eager to head out and see your favorite team (or teams) or are maybe planning a cross-country trip in that rented Winnebago, the following is a key list of dates to note as it pertains to summer football:

July 19: First full-squad team reports for training camp (Jets).

July 26: Final full-squad team reports for training camp (Steelers).

August 3: Hall of Fame Game, Jets vs. Browns at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.

August 10-13: Preseason, Week 1.

August 17-21: Preseason, Week 2.

August 24-27: Preseason, Week 3.

August 29: Deadline to reduce rosters to 53 players per team.

August 30: Deadline to claim players waived after roster cutdowns. Teams can begin signing up to 16 players apiece to practice squads.

September 3: All training camps must be concluded.

September 7: Regular-season kickoff game, Lions at Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. ]

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It's on!

Forget the soul-killing summer heat. Ah, the smell of football in the air. It's enough to rejuvenate you!

No, we're not Dallas Cowboys fans*, so that's the only mention of Da Boys you'll see here, for now.

Stay tuned. This season's start is one we need, if only to take our mind off the planet's hottest, freakin' summer in decades.

Let's go, Jets! (They have ex-Packers great Aaron Rodgers at QB this year)...

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[EDITOR'S NOTE:...*Okay, okay, We did select a lead photo of the RGV-loving Cowboys for this post. There it is atop the page. Happy now?...]