We used to hear from the Pittsburgh Steelers of the 1990s, for example, that they practiced so hard, so fast, that the games almost felt slow in comparison. And it does make sense. The closer you can replicate actual game conditions, and game-level effort, the easier it will be to translate what you do on the practice field into a stadium.
That is how Cincinnati Bengals rookie wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase felt about his first game since 2019, after sitting out the 2020 season. “Practice was much faster than the game we played today”, he said following the team’s recent preseason debut, during which he caught one pass for 16 yards.