Don't read too much into preseason opener

In 1970, when one-hit wonder Edwin Starr famously asked the question, "War, what is it good for?" his emphatic response was, "Absolutely nothing!"

If we asked Bears coach Marc Trestman a similar question — such as, "First exhibition games, what are they good for?" — would he have the same response?

Trestman was asked the question and he responded: "Practice is really important, but we'll go out Friday night and give them a chance to see what they do against an opponent at a different level because it's under the lights with an audience."

In other words, Friday night's opening preseason game against the Carolina Panthers will be a glorified practice with contact, at full speed, in which most of the guys who will make the final 53-man roster will see little or no playing time. It's a chance to start to identify who might be the 40th to 53rd players on the roster, and the next group that makes the practice squad.

Bears opener tonight is worth watching

Generally, the only thing that matters in a first preseason game is how quickly we get to the final whistle and the health of all involved when it arrives. But this Bears team is different in a number of ways, and it's possible the preseason opener tonight at Carolina will be, too.

Regardless of which players he's coaching, it will be Marc Trestman's first time in the driver's seat on an NFL sideline, and I'm sure we'll form certain impressions that will stick with us for a while. Nothing is worth the ridiculous ticket prices NFL teams charge for these exhibitions, but it will be well worth our time to observe how the new sheriff in town runs the show.

More than that, though, what fascinates me about this Bears team is I can't remember the last time the Bears entered the first preseason game with so many starting positions up for grabs.

Rivers unscathed in Chargers opener

SAN DIEGO — Philip Rivers made it through his first appearance of the exhibition season without committing a turnover or getting sacked.

It was a small victory even though the San Diego Chargers did lose to the Seattle Seahawks 31-10 Thursday night.

Mike McCoy, who made his head coaching debut, said he's pleased with how the first-team offense and defense did, even though they were on the field just a short time.

Rivers completed 5 of 6 passes for 45 yards in leading the Chargers on an opening 74-yard drive in 13 plays capped by Nick Novak's 28-yard field goal.

He even gained 5 yards on a third-and-6, scrambling when he couldn't find anyone open.

Rather than going for it for a second time on fourth down, McCoy chose to have Novak kick the field goal.

"I would have liked to see him pick up the first down," McCoy said Friday