Pre-Season Football By ESPN Kids Writer

Training camps are over. Pro football teams are back in their home stadiums, putting on their uniforms and playing games against other teams. True, teams will only be playing pre-season games until the regular season starts in September, but it won't be long now. It won't be long until all the excitement of pro football is back every Sunday!

Exhibition Games: Each pro football team plays four exhibition games to get ready for the season. Teams play these games in full uniforms in their home stadiums. The seats are usually filled, and fans get excited to see how their favorite teams are looking this season. Many times, the returning starters and big-name players only play for the first quarter. After that, rookies and other players competing for a spot on the team take the field to show what they can do.

A Clean Slate: Another exciting part of pre-season football games is that every team believes it has a shot of winning the Super Bowl. Last season ended bitterly for a lot of teams, with tough playoff losses or poor regular-season records. All of that is in the past now. Every team has a 0-0 record and an equal shot of making the playoffs. At the beginning of the season, anything can happen.

Predictions: For football fans, the pre-season is a time for guessing what is going to happen during the upcoming year. They look at the players that changed teams in the off-season and new players that have been drafted to predict what teams will be in the playoffs, and who might win the Super Bowl. Fans wonder who will win the MVP award and who the best quarterback will be.

ESPN Kids Writer Predictions: While fans, reporters and other writers are making predictions, I'll do the same! It's hard not to pick the Steelers to win the Super Bowl again. They are the defending champs and bring back a load of talent. But the AFC will be tougher this year, with a healthy Tom Brady leading the New England Patriots. In the NFC, Eli Manning and the Giants look strong, and quarterback Jay Cutler will be a strong addition to the Chicago Bears. But when it comes down to it, my pick is &. The Atlanta Falcons! A surprise pick, but Matt Ryan looks like an MVP-caliber quarterback throwing to a talented group of receivers. Michael Turner is a solid running back and the defense was very good last season. At season's end, let's see how my prediction holds up.

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