By Dave Begel Contributing Writer Published Aug 25, 2015 at 1:02 PM

The injury to Jordy Nelson of the Green Bay Packers, as well as other injuries to players on several other NFL teams in the last couple of weeks, is a blow to the teams as they approach the regular season.

They also point to the continuing folly of having four preseason games, a relic of the past that serves no purpose other than to provide additional revenue to owners of teams in the most popular and highest revenue sport in the country.

Simply put, there is no reason – absolutely no good reason – to keep having four exhibition games.

Let’s take a look at some of the debate.

Players today are always in shape

A lot of people will tell you that preseason is a time for players to get back into shape to play the game once the regular season starts. That may well have been true 20 years ago. But in this day and age, football players work out around the year. They have personal trainers, nutritionists and even sports psychologists. They work out in groups and individually. Quarterbacks work with receivers. Running backs work with tires being dragged behind them. Linemen work with blocking sleds. Indeed, many players work against other players. Wide receivers and tight ends against defensive backs. Almost all players show up for the first OTA in great shape. Players know that every minute counts, and they are always in shape to play football. About the only "conditioning" exercise needed is to stretch before and after practice.

The actual odds of finding undiscovered talent

Coaches claim that they need the exhibition games to find that "diamond in the rough" and judge the players who were drafted in the seventh round or signed as free agents. It’s important to understand that coaches realize how important every decision they make is to the performance of their team. If they had their way, coaches would probably like six or seven preseason games before everybody got down to business.

Technology has helped to make the question of player evaluation more of a science than the days when "gut feeling" was the measure. Coaches now have video, scouting reports, test results and gossip to help them make decisions. The chances for the interloper to make the team while playing against scrubs with other scrubs are between slim and none, and slim just left the building.

Practices already do the job

Some people (especially coaches) will tell you that football is a rough game and that they need the preseason for players to get back into "hittin shape." I don’t know if you’ve ever seen a normal NFL practice during the dog days of summer, but there is plenty of hitting that goes on. Not only dummy bags but each other. You only have to watch the occasional fights that break out between teammates to realize that hitting is not a foreign activity in practice.

The games aren't up to par

You hardly ever see much of the best players on a team during preseason games. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell even took note of it when he gave a recent speech at Harvard. "The preseason just does not meet the standard of quality that the NFL is all about," Goodell said.

It's a limited look at the team

What fans see during the preseason is only part of what a team is going to look like once the regular season begins. Coaches are very protective of all their individual genius. They won’t try out new formations or schemes during the preseason, fearful that opponents will get a scouting report and the advantage of surprise will be gone. Forget that there is really nothing all that surprising in the NFL. If coaches think they’ve got a big secret, they're not spoiling it in the preseason.

In short, the only thing that preseason games are need for is to put more money in the pockets of owners. Every other reason is just useless make believe.

Dave Begel Contributing Writer

With a history in Milwaukee stretching back decades, Dave tries to bring a unique perspective to his writing, whether it's sports, politics, theater or any other issue.

He's seen Milwaukee grow, suffer pangs of growth, strive for success and has been involved in many efforts to both shape and re-shape the city. He's a happy man, now that he's quit playing golf, and enjoys music, his children and grandchildren and the myriad of sports in this state. He loves great food and hates bullies and people who think they are smarter than everyone else.

This whole Internet thing continues to baffle him, but he's willing to play the game as long as OnMilwaukee.com keeps lending him a helping hand. He is constantly amazed that just a few dedicated people can provide so much news and information to a hungry public.

Despite some opinions to the contrary, Dave likes most stuff. But he is a skeptic who constantly wonders about the world around him. So many questions, so few answers.