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Green Bay’s top 5 position battles heading into ’08 camp (and more)

The Packers have an even stronger team in many areas than the 2007 squad that finished 13-3. With so much depth at numerous positions, there will be no lack of competition for playing time. The following are what I see as the top 5 position battles, followed by others to also keep an eye on. Let us know if you agree. Also try to predict which Packers will emerge victorious.

1. Linebacker (strong-side, a.k.a. “Sam”): Brandon Chillar, the Packers only significant free agent signing this offseason, will be in a very close competition to unseat ’07 starter Brady Poppinga at strong side linebacker. Regardless of who emerges as the starter, the Packers have added valuable depth, which should help improve what has been disappointing pass coverage against tight ends.
Who Wins: Chillar

2. Defensive tackle: Even after trading Corey Williams to the Browns, the Packers have four legitimate starters at defensive tackle. When healthy Ryan Pickett is great at plugging up the middle. But will last year’s first round pick, Justin Harrell, be able to beat out Colin Cole and Johnny Jolly for the second spot?
Who Wins: Pickett and Harrell

3. Cornerback (nickel and dime backs): Rookie second-rounder Patrick Lee will be battling with Tramon Williams, second season, and Jarrett Bush and Will Blackmon, both entering their third seasons, to determine who will serve as nickel and dime backs behind starters Al Harris and Charles Woodson.
Who Wins: Lee (nickel), Williams (dime)

4. Wide Receiver (6th spot): Chris Francies, Shaun Bodiford and rookie Brett Swain will all be fighting for a sixth receiver spot that may not even be there come the regular season. Last season the Packers kept six receivers on their roster, but they also went into the season with only two quarterbacks and two tight ends – a situation that won’t happen this year. It’s unlikely Ruvell Martin would lose out to any of these guys either.
Who Wins: Too close to call

5. Safety (both strong and free): Aaron Rouse is too big and talented to remain a backup for long. Rouse plays strong safety, so he would logically be competing against Atari Bigby, who is a hard hitter but showed weakness in coverage at times. But Rouse also filled in nicely at free safety last season when Nick Collins missed time with a knee injury, nabbing two interceptions in three games.
Who Wins: Bigby (strong), Collins (free), but Rouse will replace the weaker of the two by week three.

Also keep an eye on these position battles:

- Tight End (backup): Tory Humphrey, whom the Packers feel has great potential but has had an injury-riddled career thus far, will compete against rookie Jermichael Finley to back up Donald Lee.

- Guard: Junius Coston, Daryn Colledge, Jason Spitz and rookie Josh Sitton scrap for the two starting spots. Spitz and Colledge are the incumbents.

- Quarterback (number 2): Rookies Brian Brohm and Matt Flynn will be competing to determine which newcomer will fill in should Aaron Rodgers need relief.

- Running back (third down back): Who will spell Ryan Grant in passing situations? Will it be Brandon Jackson, DeShawn Wynn, Vernand Morency or Noah Herron? Very tough call. Morency might have a leg up.

- Full back: Korey Hall, John Kuhn, Ryan Powdrell or Corey White? Kuhn was solid last season.

- Wide receiver (3rd spot): After Donald Driver and Greg Jennings, who’s going to see the most balls? Will it be James Jones, who had a great ’07 rookie season, top draft pick Jordy Nelson or up-and-comer Martin?

- Punter: Can rookie Ken DeBauche out of Wisconsin oust third-year Packer Jon Ryan?

- Longsnapper: Two young and inexperienced players, Thomas Gafford and J.J. Jansen, are looking to fill the big shoes left after long-time Packer Rob Davis retired.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 13th, 2008 at 9:36 am and is filed under Aaron Rodgers, Training Camp, Offseason. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.