My Favorite NFL Position Battles In 2014

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There are tons of position competitions going on this year in the NFL. Some involving a platoon on young players and some others involve rookies pushing for a veteran player’s job. I have my eye on a few of them that might turn out to be very exciting over the course of the preseason.

The first one I am intrigued by is Johnny Manziel and Brian Hoyer. If you ask me, the whole competition is a sheared and this is Johnny’s job to lose. Hoyer had an exciting three game win streak but it is apparent he is not the future of the Browns franchise. The Browns as well as the rest of the football world know that Johnny Manziel has the upper hand in this battle. The only way I see Brian Hoyer starting the regular season number one on the depth chart is if Manziel is adjusting slower than expected. The Cleveland Browns fans will chant and rant for Johnny Football the minuet things are going south with Hoyer. Unless you are going to sit him the entire season, I see no reason why Johnny Manziel should not be the starter on opening day.

Another interesting position battle is taking place right in my backyard with the Oakland Raiders. On one side, you have the veteran trying to resurrect his career in Matt Schaub and on the other side; you have the unproven rookie with good potential in Derek Carr. The Raiders have been searching for a replacement for Rich Gannon for over a decade. Not saying either of these quarterbacks will ever win an NFL MVP award or make it to a Super Bowl but for the first time in years, they have what appears to be a legit quarterback competition. I believe the Raiders should give the starting job to Schaub simply because I do not believe either quarterback puts them over the edge this season. Unless Carr is clearly outplaying Schaub I believe Schaub should at least begin the season as the starter.

The last position battle I have my eye on is between two very talented young running backs in Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill. Bernard opened many eyes with his play last season. Although his touches were limited, Bernard made the most of his opportunities with 695 yards and 5 touchdowns on only 170 carries. Jeremy Hill is a young stud out of LSU with tremendous upside. I think they will ultimately share carries after all is said and done. I do not believe either back is significantly better than the other is but they are both good at different things. Bernard is a more of a scat back while Hill is more of a between the tackles runner. I think Giovani Bernard will be the starter on the depth chart but these two backs complement each other well which leads me to believe they will use both backs throughout the season.

There are tons more position battles going on in training camp and this year’s preseason but these are the ones I find most intriguing as of now. With the NFL season, lurking just around the corner it will be very interesting to see who rises and who falls in these position battles.