I'm a season kind of guy - not the preseason but the regular season.
In NFL preseason, the coaches don't use 10% of the playbook. They don't game plan. They do nothing. They don't give anything away for the regular season. They try to get everybody safely through it without anybody getting hurt.
I got the nickname in the preseason of my rookie season. I was playing for the Suns at the (Great Western) Forum. I got a block or a steal or a dunk and (TNT broadcaster) Kenny Smith went crazy. He called me 'The Matrix. ' Who wouldn't like it? Players go through their whole career without having a nickname.
In preseason camp, there are no friends. when newcomers arrive trying to take not only your job, but maybe your best friend's job, you work together to try to help each other. Everyone is an outsider until you're given a uniform.
Preseason is just a way to screw fans out of money.