Klein: Training Camp Position Battles (AFC East)

All NFL training camps are now in full swing and a new season has begun. At each of the 32 camps across the United States there will be grueling two-a-days for the next month and plenty of positional battles to be won. For the next eight days I will visit each NFL division and give you the key things to look for at each camp. Here we go...

AFC EAST

Buffalo Bills- St. John Fisher College
The Bills' training camp us in Pittsford, NY will not be a quiet one due to the addition of WR Terrell Owens. The first of the positional battles comes at the wide out position for the receiver after T.O. and Lee Evans. The 3rd wideout position will be fought for by Josh Reed, Roscoe Parrish, and Stevie Johnson. Reed (597 yards) has been a stone in their offense for years now and is good for 550 yards in a season at his flanker spot in the depth chart. Expect for Reed to keep this role but his stats and looks to decrease because...well...T.O. is on the team. It is very clear that Parrish will not get this spot due to his trade request during the season and Johnson is still too young. The more important battle to watch in camp comes in the backfield. As you know, Marshawn Lynch will sit out the first 3 games of the season due to suspension to it is between Fred Jackson or newly acquired Dominic Rhodes to fulfill the backfield duties until Lynch returns. Although Rhodes can be a pretty durable back and is great when it comes to goal-line duties, I see Jackson as the starter in these first 3 weeks. Jackson (130-571 yards) has been a "stud backup" for the Bills when Lynch can't take the carries and his receiving out of the backfield is remarkable. A guy who averaged 8 carries a game as a backup last year will see 18-20 carries a game until Lynch comes back. Although his carries will decrease, you will see a steady workload going his way throughout the whole season.

BATTLES
3rd WR: Josh Reed vs. Roscoe Parrish vs. Stevie Johnson
Winner: Josh Reed

Starting RB: Fred Jackson vs. Dominic Rhodes
Winner: Fred Jackson

Miami Dolphins- Nova Southeastern University
The "Wildcat" offense will go through plenty of reps down at Nova Southeastern University where the 'Fins will practice each day for the next month. It is clear the they have plenty of depth at the wideout position but do they have talent in that depth? The 2nd WR position will be fought for between Greg Camarillo (55-613 yards) and Davone Bess (54-554 yards). Obviously Bess is a very, very athletic player but the only fault I see with him is that he is too similar to Ted Ginn Jr., the number one WR. Bess will be put in to make big plays but expect to see Camarillo splitting wide opposite of Ginn Jr. The outstanding thing about Camarillo is that before he was knocked out due to injury in '08 in Week 12, he was an outstanding player. He was on pace to nearly putting up 900-1,000 yards and that is pretty impressive for a young player like him. Another important battle to look for down at Nova will be what I like to call a "depth chart battle". Pat White and Chad Henne will fight for the role behind Chad Pennington at the quarterback position. The interesting thing about this is that the one who is not the #2 QB will be inactive on certain weeks. Coach Sparano has a huge decision to make, concentrate on the "Wildcat" and keep Pat White available or groom Henne to be the teams next man under center. Expect to see Henne inactive on some weeks as he stands with the clipboard and learns from Pennington. The 'Fins have invested too much into their offense to have White riding the pine in '09. Talent-wise, I see White to be an explosive threat on the ground and in the air while I see Henne as a quarterback who was not a huge threat in college and is extremely overrated.

BATTLES
2nd WR: Greg Camarillo vs. Devone Bess
Winner: Greg Camarillo

2nd QB: Pat White vs. Chad Henne
Winner: Pat White

New England Patriots- Gillette Stadium
The Patriots enter this season with plenty of questions but their two biggest concerns should be age and health. Firstly, we all know to keep an eye on QB Tom Brady's knee. It has been said that he is 100% now but that is doubtful. If Brady can make a comeback to the same great quarterback he has always been then the Pats will be in luck. The main battle I want to take a look at is in the backfield with the men lining up behind Brady. With the addition of veteran RB Fred Taylor (556 yards, 1 TD) and the return of injury-plagued RB Laurence Maroney (93 yards) the Patriots will have to find the starter in training camp. Let's not forget about RB Sammy Morris (727 yards, 7 TDs), who is poised to be in the mix as well. This is already looking like a disaster to me. Three decent RBs who combined for 1,376 yards and 8 TDs in 2008 will battle for a starting job for the "best team in the NFL". Who I think will be the starter and who WILL be the starter are two different players. If I was the coach of this team I would keep Sammy Morris in the backfield as the starter and make it his job to lose. Well, I'm not Bill Belichick and he will end up starting Fred Taylor due to his positive NFL track record.

BATTLE
Starting RB: Sammy Morris vs. Laurence Maroney vs. Fred Taylor
Winner: Fred Taylor

New York Jets- SUNY Cortland/Florham Park Facility
According to Rex Ryan "Viva la Sanchez" will have to wait a bit. Ryan announced a few days ago that pine-rider QB Kellen Clemens would begin training camp as the starter and Sanchez will follow behind him. It is clear the this is one of the biggest quarterback battles in the NFL this offseason and both players are going to have to make a name for themselves in camp to become the starter. Clemens has shown that he can win big games and I will NOT question that. Two years ago he came off the bench and lit up the Steelers' to lead the Jets to one of their four wins the whole season. He has pocket presence that gives him the opportunity to use his prolific arm and scramble when he is in trouble. The thing that will keep him behind Sanchez is his poor decision making, as shown in his touchdown to interception ratio (1:2). His QB rating in '07 was horrific (60.9) and only was able to complete 130 of his 250 pass attempts. Clemens is yet to mature as he has headlined the first few days of Jets training camp with his poor throws and dozens of interceptions. I think it is clear that the Jets want to have Sanchez in there as the starter but to be fair to Kellen they need to give him a chance. Ryan kept Sanchez with the starting team this past weekend and in 11-on-11 drills he lit up the Jets D for multiple touchdowns. Sanchez will NOT excel his first few games as a starter in the NFL, but watch for him to manage games and let the RBs do the offensive dirty work. Another battle on their offense can be found at the WR position. It is clear that the Jets enter the '09 season with a VERY weak receiving core so Chansi Stuckey or David Clowney has to step up. Ryan named Stuckey the WR2 for now in training camp but I definitely expect Clowney to step up his game and become a contender for that spot. Although Clowney will give Stuckey a run for his money, he will fall short. Here is my main reason why. I think Stuckey is ready to make huge plays in this offense (Clowney will get reps in there too). Stuck averaged 11.2 yards a catch last year in an offense where he only got a couple of looks every week. This guy is clearly a WR that can take up yards on the field. This is his best stat:

Week 1: 2 rec 37 yards (18.5 ypc)
Week 2: 4 rec 43 yards (11 ypc)
Week 3: 6 rec 42 yards (7 ypc)
Week 7: 2 rec 48 yards (24 ypc)
Week 13: 3 rec 30 yards (10 ypc)
Week 14: 4 rec 43 yards (11 ypc)
Week 17: 4 rec 50 yards (12.5 ypc)

In ONLY 1 WEEK where this guy had at least 2 receptions did he have less than 10 YPC. This is a great stat for a young wide receiver who is making the best of his looks in games. Watch for Stuckey to be a threat with Clowney right behind him.

BATTLES
Starting QB: Kellen Clemens vs. Mark Sanchez
Winner: Mark Sanchez

2nd WR: Chansi Stuckey vs. David Clowney
Winner: Chansi Stuckey