Normally the release of the NFL Preseason schedule is cause for—well, a yawn, maybe, or a frustrated season ticket-holder's latest trip to StubHub. But the St. Louis Rams' 2011 preseason opener, against the Chicago Bears on August 7 at Canton, Ohio, is able to bathe in a little of the NFL Lockout's reflected drama. Will there be a Hall of Fame game at all? If a Hall of Fame game falls in the forest, and nobody's there to watch it, does anybody make a sound?
If the Hall of Fame game doesn't go on as scheduled, it'll be the first skipped year since 1966. The Rams haven't participated, themselves, since 2001, when they won 17-10 against the Miami Dolphins. The Bears haven't made an appearance since 2005, when they topped the Dolphins 27-24. The Dolphins could not be reached for comment.
I think this might be the agreement the NFL and the NFLPA (and the fans) are looking for: Pretend to disagree long enough to extend the NFL lockout through the preseason, and then come to an agreement that the preseason will be shut down forever. I'm in.