Klein: Training Camp Position Battles (AFC North)

AFC North

Cincinnati Bengals
Who 'dey going to be starting this year? I'll tell you. The first position battle I will analyze is one that has not been talked about yet, but come midseason you will hear plenty of talk. RB Cedric Benson opened some eyes last year with 3 games where he broke the century mark in rushing yards. Now, this stat doesn't seem too astounding and that is because it isn't at all! Benson only had 2 100-yard rushing games during his tenure with the Chicago Bears. Two of these games he had in '08 were the last two games of the season (63 carries-282 yards-4.4 YPC) so there is plenty of promise for the young man coming into '09. This does not mean that RBs Kenny Watson and newly acquired Brian Leonard will not give him a run for his money. With the addition of a top OT in the draft, the line will improve along with the running game. Expect to see Watson and Leonard join Benson and create a running back committee. Given that Palmer was out for most of the season, which lead to Benson having 3.7 YPC, the return of him will open up the backfield for bigger holes and a better running game. Don't be shocked if a 3-headed monster in born in their backfield. Another battle is found on defense at the strong safety position. The Bengals brought in All-Pro SS Roy Williams to the 'Nati this offseason to create a deeper and more talented secondary, something they have always lacked. Defensive coordinator, Mike Zimmer, was with Dallas when Williams was there and he seems to have his heart set on Roy being the starter. The man in the way of this is S Chinedum Ndukwe (1 INT, 3 sacks), a great cover safety coming off a monster season. Zimmer will give the nod to Williams but will regret it once he notices passes sailing over his head. The better player, Ndukwe, will be the starter come Week 3.

BATTLES
Starting RB: Cedric Benson vs. Kenny Watson vs. Brian Leonard
Winner: 3-headed monster

Starting SS: Chinedum Ndukwe vs. Roy Williams
Winner: Roy Williams

Cleveland Browns
The other Ohio team has a couple of fairly big decisions to make before Week 1. New head coach, Eric Mangina (I'm a Jets fan, I can call him that), has already gotten on Cleveland's bad side so some good decisions are hopefully on the horizon for this squad. The first battle is obviously the biggest, the quarterbacks. One-season-wonder QB Derek Anderson was benched last season to make way for a man they traded into the 1st-round for in the '07 draft, QB Brady Quinn. In 3 starts last year Quinn threw for 518 yards, 2 TDs, and 2 INTs. The stats I did not put in there was his QB-rating of 66.6 and his completion percentage of 50.5%...yeah, not good. The two of these QBs were in and out of the starting job last year due to each being injured and/or bad. A few days ago Mangini made a very, very interesting statement. He told the press that he would switch quarterbacks throughout the season. Is this guy insane?! Does he understand how to build team chemistry. This "method" does NOT work at any level of football, even pee-wee. I honestly think Mangini wants Ratliff as the starter and wants Anderson and Quinn to fail. There is a reason why he brought the young QB from New York to Cleveland and I guarantee that he will be the starter by some point in the season. Please do not count Ratliff out of the starting quarterback position in training camp or the regular season. The bottom line is that you will see Quinn as the starter Week 1 to fill seats and then he will bum out. After that you will see Anderson come in, get injured, and bum out. That is when Brett Ratliff becomes the starting, end of story. There will be another battle on the offensive side of the ball, the #2 WR. WRs Brian Robiskie, Mohamed Massaquoi, and David Patten will all fight to split out wide opposite of Braylon Edwards. With Robiskie and Massaquoi both being rookies I expect them to fight for time in the slot. A vet like Patten is needed for two quarterbacks who are dueling it out in training camp. Patten was a bit off last year down in New Orleans, but I think that was because of the overload at the wide out position. In '07, Patten caught close to 800 yards, which shows that the talent is still there. While he will seal up the #2 spot, the #3 spot will get interesting. Robiskie will claim this spot and even get moved to Patten's spot at times. Robo caught 97 passes in his last two years at OSU, 19 of them were touchdowns. His 4.46-speed and immaculate route running make the future #1 wide out for the Browns.

BATTLES
Starting QB: Derek Anderson vs. Brady Quinn vs. Brett Ratliff
Winner: Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn (Weird, huh?)

2nd WR: Brian Robiskie vs. David Patten vs. Mohamed Massaquoi
Winner: David Patten

3rd WR: Brian Robiskie vs. Mohamed Massaquoi
Winner: Brian Robiskie


Pittsburgh Steelers
Not really much competition at the Steelers training camp this August. Their offense and defense stayed in tact for the most part but there will definitely be some depth-chart crawlers. Back in the secondary there is a heated battle between CBs William Gay and Deshea Townsend. After CB Bryant McFadden left the Steelers to play for the team he beat in the Superbowl, the Cardinals, there is a huge hole at the starting cornerback job. Gay will probably get the first look at the starting role due to his speed and how young he is. Tomlin and Co. seem to be very excited about Gay after he has gotten limited playing time in his three years in Pittsburgh and has only shown signs of greatness. If Gay turns out to struggle, the coaching staff will feel safe with the vet, Townsend, taking the man-to-man duties. Other than this position battle there really is not much going on.

BATTLE
Starting CB: William Gay vs. Deshea Townsend
Winner: William Gay



Baltimore Ravens
The Ravens training camp could be one of the most exciting in the NFL this season. With a lack of talent at wide receiver there will be plenty of trash talking between the core. But come on, when will they sign a big name wide out?! They had perfect opportunities to up their offensive game in the AFC and they didn't take up any of them. No offers were made to Brandon Marshall, Anquan Boldin, or Braylon Edwards...weird. Marshall and Edwards are probably still available for trades but someone their should key in on is vet WR Marvin Harrison. Aside from their stupidity, they have to live with what they have. They will settle for mediocrity again at the position by lining up WR Derrick Mason, who returned from retirement, and WR Mark Clayton. The two totaled 8 touchdowns in the '08 season, which is actually acceptable. Their slow-paced offense calls for wide outs who will not make mistakes and will allow QB Joe Flacco to manage the game. Although it has worked, imagine what they could do with a big play threat splitting out at flanker. The battle I want to key in on is between WR Demetrius Williams and WR Yamon Figurs for the 3rd spot in the slot. You are probably wondering why I would even think of putting Figurs in the same sentance as a guy like Williams but his 4.30-speed says it all. Williams doesn't fit in the slot because of his height, 6'3", and his speed doesn't allow him to run long routes. Figurs will make a push at the slot position and I expect him to win it. Another great battle will be on defense to see who fills in for LB Bart Scott. This spot is quite sacred for the sole reason that you are playing next to one of the best MLBs of all time, Ray Lewis. It is clear that Lewis can elevate your game to a whole new level. Fighting for the job will be Tavares Gooden and Jameel McClain, two young backers. The winner will most likely be Gooden due to his great athleticsism that fits perfectly in the Ravens defensive scheme. Let's not forget that he went to The U also, so Ray-Ray may favor him too-haha.

BATTLES
3rd WR: Demetrius Williams vs. Yamon Figurs
Winner: Yamon Figurs

Starting OLB: Tavares Gooden vs. Jameel McClain
Winner: Tavares Gooden