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Fantasy Football: Training Camp Battles You Must Watch For All 32 Teams

Fantasy Football: Training Camp Battles You Must Watch For All 32 Teams

As of the time I’m writing this article, we are just a few days away from rookies reporting to training camp, while the veterans will join them a week later. With that being the case, it’s an awfully important time for fantasy football, as we closely watch some of the positional battles that are about to ensue.

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There are many people who take the offseason “off” from football, because, after all, it is the offseason. But because of that, you’re likely behind on some of those battles that are taking place. Fortunately, we’ve been paying attention so that you can hop right in and know exactly which battles you should be watching. I’m also going to give you my best guess as to what is going to happen in these battles. Let’s take a look at all 32 teams in alphabetical order.

Arizona Cardinals
There are a few positional battles to watch here, as J.J. Nelson, Jaron Brown, and rookie Chad Williams compete for the No. 3 wide receiver role behind Larry Fitzgerald and John Brown. The Cardinals also chose not to re-sign Chris Johnson, making it unclear as to who David Johnson’s backup is. They did draft T.J. Logan, but still have Kerwynn Williams and Andre Ellington on the roster. My prediction: J.J. Nelson takes the No. 3 wide receiver job and Kerwynn Williams wins the No. 2 running back job.

Atlanta Falcons
I don’t really consider it a competition for the starting running back job, as it should be Devonta Freeman. Outside of that, every other starting position is solidified with the Falcons. My prediction: Devonta Freeman remains the lead back.

Baltimore Ravens
It appears that the starting trio of wide receivers is set with Jeremy Maclin, Mike Wallace, and Breshad Perriman, but the starting tight end position remains up for grabs after Dennis Pitta re-injured his hip and was released. Veteran Ben Watson will compete with third-year tight end Maxx Williams and soon-to-be free agent Crockett Gillmore. It’s a fantasy position you want to be in the know on, as Pitta saw 121 targets, the third-highest total among tight ends. Some will say there’s a battle between Terrance West and Kenneth Dixon, though I believe it’s Dixon’s job upon returning from his four-game suspension. My prediction: The Ravens want to cut Watson but can’t because of Darren Waller’s suspension. Williams is the dark horse to lead the tight ends in targets. Dixon turns out to be a top-20 running back in points per game.

Buffalo Bills
The only competition on the Bills would be among the wide receivers behind Sammy Watkins. The Bills would likely want second-round pick Zay Jones to win the job, but they did sign both Andre Holmes and Corey Brown in free agency. Rookies are typically never given jobs, so it’ll be interesting to see this one play out. My prediction: Jones wins the No. 2 job and starts opposite Watkins, or at the very least, is the No. 3 wide receiver and plays the slot when they go three-wide.

Carolina Panthers
In what seemed obvious at the time, it seems as if there is a competition over which running back will see more carries. Veteran Jonathan Stewart or No. 8 overall pick Christian McCaffrey? It appears that Devin Funchess is set to take the field in two-wide sets, though some are saying that rookie Curtis Samuel will eat into his snaps. Considering this is a team that just fired their GM, changes are bound to happen. My prediction: McCaffrey leads the team in touches, but surrenders goal-line work to Stewart and Cam Newton. Funchess does start in two wide receiver sets and finishes inside the top 50 wide receivers at year’s end.

Chicago Bears
This is one of the more interesting battles, as former No. 7 overall pick Kevin White is seemingly healthy, but the Bears may have found a gem in Cameron Meredith, who is the highest-drafted Bears receiver at the moment. They also added Victor Cruz, Kendall Wright, and Markus Wheaton in free agency, so it’s quite clear that nobody knows which three wide receivers will start for the Bears opening day. Zach Miller will also have to compete for snaps with rookie Adam Shaheen who is a massive man with strong hands. Oh, and don’t get caught up in a “competition” between Mike Glennon and Mitch Trubisky. There isn’t in 2017. My prediction: The Bears give White every opportunity to succeed, Meredith splits time with Wright in the slot, and Cruz mixes in with all of them. Zach Miller is the No. 1 tight end this year, with Shaheen working with Trubisky throughout the season.

Cincinnati Bengals
Easiest one to watch is Joe Mixon versus Jeremy Hill, as this has major fantasy implications. You also want to see if John Ross can find his way into the starting lineup, which may be harder than expected considering the surgery he had that caused him to miss time. He’ll battle Brandon LaFell, who the team re-signed this offseason, and Tyler Boyd, who was extremely underwhelming in his rookie year, but does play the slot most of time. My prediction: Mixon wins the job as starting running back, with Hill giving him breathers, as well as getting a majority of the goal-line work. Ross needs to get into practice as soon as possible, and learn to play the slot, as it’s the easiest role to overtake. He doesn’t get it right away.

Cleveland Browns
There are two battles to watch on the Browns and they both include rookies, as David Njoku will compete with Seth DeValve for the starting tight end spot after they cut Gary Barnidge immediately after the draft, and the other being Cody Kessler competing with DeShone Kizer for the starting quarterback job. My prediction: Njoku leads the tight ends in receiving, but DeValve will still have a fairly significant role. Kessler starts the season, but ultimately gets pulled for Kizer after two bad outings.

Dallas Cowboys
There is a fair competition at wide receiver between Terrance Williams and Brice Butler to play opposite Dez Bryant, but there is also a competition at slot wide receiver between Cole Beasley and Ryan Switzer. A lot of people are also curious as to who Ezekiel Elliott’s handcuff is with all the speculation about a looming suspension. Jason Witten did sign an extension, but there is also a lot of buzz surrounding Rico Gathers this offseason, a name to pay attention to in dynasty leagues. My prediction: Terrance Williams and Cole Beasley retain their starting jobs they had last year, while Darren McFadden takes the backup duties for Elliott. Lastly, Gathers starts to make a name for himself this year.

Denver Broncos
Who would have thought Jamaal Charles is involved in a battle for backup duties? He is battling with Devontae Booker for sharing time with C.J. Anderson and handling backup duties. Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch are reportedly very close in the competition for starting quarterback. Also, rookie Carlos Henderson is trying to beat out Bennie Fowler and Cody Latimer to work his way into three-wide sets alongside Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders. My prediction: Charles remains with the team and gets 8-12 touches per week, while Booker is straight depth at this point. Henderson lands the No. 3 job and starts to actually threaten the massive workloads of Thomas and Sanders, because he is that good with the ball in his hands. Siemian gets the nod due to experience, but he’ll be on a short leash.

Detroit Lions
The Lions rookie wide receiver Kenny Golladay will try to work his way onto the field over guys like T.J. Jones and Jared Abbredaris. It’ll also be interesting to see how the Lions use Ameer Abdullah and Theo Riddick in tandem. My prediction: Golladay is on the field in three-wide sets and Abdullah approaches the 225-touch mark while Riddick goes back to basically being a slot receiver.

Green Bay Packers
We all know what we’re watching here, as Ty Montgomery, Jamaal Williams, and Aaron Jones compete for the starting running back job. The starting trio of wide receivers is determined (Jordy Nelson, Davante Adams, and Randall Cobb), but you want to keep an eye on those behind them, should an injury occur. Geronimo Allison, DeAngelo Yancey, and Trevor Davis should all be in the mix for that job. My prediction: Montgomery gets the starter nod at running back, but doesn’t reach 200 carries for the season. Instead, Williams is relied on for clock-killing and short yardage work. Allison wins the No. 4 job and is one of the deep sleepers in fantasy leagues.

Houston Texans
The battle we’ll be watching is the one at the quarterback position between Tom Savage and Deshaun Watson. While Watson is much more talented, this one should be interesting because of how complex Bill O’Brien has said his offense is for rookies to grasp. My prediction: Watson gets the starting gig, simply because Savage isn’t even competent.

Indianapolis Colts
There isn’t much competition on the Colts roster, but there are things to pay attention to. Recently acquired free agent Kamar Aiken will look to overtake the underperforming Philip Dorsett for the No. 3 receiver spot, and rookie Marlon Mack will try to earn touches out of the backfield. Robert Turbin is also reportedly in line for more work after his solid showing last year. My prediction: Aiken passes Dorsett on the depth chart, Mack doesn’t have a significant role out of the gate (but will over time), and Gore will continue to lose goal-line work to Turbin.

Jacksonville Jaguars
You’ll see T.J. Yeldon and Chris Ivory battling for work behind Leonard Fournette, as well as rookie Dede Westbrook trying to earn snaps over the oft-injured Allen Hurns and Marqise Lee. The absence of Julius Thomas should make for competition at the tight end position between Marcedes Lewis, Mychal Rivera, and Ben Koyack, but that’s not likely to impact fantasy leagues. My prediction: Yeldon takes the third-down role, while Ivory is strictly Fournette’s backup. Westbrook doesn’t see a significant role unless Lee or Hurns goes down, and Lewis is the primary tight end.

Kansas City Chiefs
One of the battles that a lot hinges on in fantasy football is the one in Kansas City between Spencer Ware and Kareem Hunt as Andy Reid’s lead back. Whoever walks away with the starting role will be a must-start every week. There is also a battle for the No. 2 and No. 3 wide receiver spots behind Tyreek Hill. It’ll be Chris Conley, Albert Wilson, Jehu Chesson, and Damarcus Robinson competing for those two spots. Oh, and similar to the Bears, there is no quarterback controversy here. My prediction: Ware holds on to the starting role, but Hunt will be involved with 8-10 touches per week. Chris Conley will start as the No. 2 wide receiver and Wilson will be the No. 3, but Chesson is closer than he’d like.

Los Angeles Chargers
The battle to watch here is the one between No. 7 overall pick Mike Williams and last year’s breakout star Tyrell Williams. The rookie missed much of rookie mini-camp and is having back issues. It’ll also be interesting to see if Hunter Henry passes Antonio Gates on the depth chart, though I don’t think preseason will answer that (don’t see Gates playing much). My prediction: Tyrell gets the nod over Mike, but he will have minimal room for error. The rookie will still see the field, but nothing significant right away. Henry and Gates split much of the work, with Henry pulling ahead as the season goes on.

Los Angeles Rams
After the Rams signed Robert Woods, we automatically assumed he’d play the slot for the Rams, but them drafting Cooper Kupp threw a wrench into those plans. Rumor has it that Kupp looks impressive early on. Tyler Higbee will also be competing with rookie Gerald Everett for the starting tight end position in Sean McVay’s offense. My prediction: Kupp and Woods both get on the field in three-wide sets, with Woods getting the nod in base formation. Most tend to overvalue rookie tight ends and you never want to bet on them, so I’m expecting Higbee as the starter.

Miami Dolphins
It’s pretty clear that the Dolphins will be rolling with Jarvis Landry, Kenny Stills, and Devante Parker in three-wide sets, but we want to know if Parker can get onto the field in two wide receiver sets. If so, we could find ourselves watching a budding star. Outside of that, we want to pay attention to find out who will be Jay Ajayi’s backup, Damien Williams or Kenyan Drake? My prediction: The Dolphins go three-wide often, making it somewhat of a moot point, but it wouldn’t shock me if Still and Parker were the two on the field in base sets. Parker does indeed pass Stills on the depth chart, regardless. Williams gets the nod over Drake, though it’d likely be a timeshare if something happened to Ajayi.

Minnesota Vikings
After signing Latavius Murray in free agency, most thought he’d have the starting job for the Vikings. Then they drafted Dalvin Cook, throwing out that idea. They’re saying it’s a competition, while Jerick McKinnon is also in the mix. The other competition to watch is the one between Laquon Treadwell and Michael Floyd, though it was cleared up a bit when Floyd was suspended for the first four games. My prediction: Cook leads the running backs in touches and approaches the 225-touch mark, while Murray gets goal-line carries, and McKinnon mixes in with Cook for the passing down role. Treadwell starts and finishes the year as the Vikings No. 3 receiver.

New England Patriots
Not that Bill Belichick will give anything away in training camp, but we do want to see who’s running with the first-team offense. Between Mike Gillislee, James White, Dion Lewis, and Rex Burkhead, we have a lot of questions about this backfield. After signing Brandin Cooks, there’ll be a battle for the team’s No. 3 wide receiver gig between Chris Hogan and Malcolm Mitchell. You probably also want to pay attention to the battle between Danny Amendola and Andrew Hawkins, as it’s unlikely they both make the roster. My prediction: Gillislee takes over for the departed LeGarrette Blount, White fills the primary receiving role, while Burkhead and Lewis spell them whenever needed, or if they were to struggle. Mitchell should win the No. 3 receiver role after his performance last year, but Hogan won’t just go away, and Hawkins beats out Amendola.

New Orleans Saints
The Saints have that one receiver seemingly every year who’ll post three or four solid performances a year, but be useless for the rest. You want to watch the battle between Ted Ginn, Brandon Coleman, Tommylee Lewis, and Travin Dural, as at least one of them will have relevance in best-ball leagues. Some seem to think Adrian Peterson and Mark Ingram are a battle, but they really aren’t. Instead, the battle is between Alvin Kamara and Travaris Cadet for the scat-back in the Saints offense. Most don’t realize that Cadet totaled 40 receptions for 281 yards and four touchdowns last year. My prediction: Ted Ginn is the primary deep threat, but Coleman and Dural should be competing for the No. 4 spot. Peterson gets the goal-line work, but Ingram is still a top-24 running back, and Kamara beats out Cadet as the primary receiver out of the backfield.

New York Giants
Some won’t look at it this way, but Sterling Shepard is battling both Brandon Marshall and Evan Engram for playing time. He doesn’t need to beat both, but just one of them. Engram may have the tight end designation next to his name, but he plays the slot role that Shepard occupied last year. Paul Perkins appears to be the lead back, but there is plenty of competition between Shane Vereen, Wayne Gallman, and even Orleans Darkwa, who made some noise in OTA’s. My prediction: Shepard plays more than Engram, but slightly less than Marshall. It still wouldn’t shock me if he outperforms Marshall on a per-target basis. Perkins runs with the job, while Vereen mixes in and gets a lot of the passing-down work.

New York Jets
Where to begin? Bilal Powell will be battling Matt Forte for the starting job, while the Jets still want to see what they have in rookie Elijah McGuire. It should be Josh McCown starting at quarterback, but apparently the Jets want Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty to compete for the job as well. Quincy Enunwa is the clear No. 1 with Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker out of town, but Robby Anderson, ArDarius Stewart, Jalin Marshall, Marquess Wilson, and Chad Hansen are all fighting to earn more playing time. There is also competition at the tight end position between Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Jordan Leggett. My prediction: Powell gets the starting nod, but it’s close to a 60/40 timeshare. Stewart makes his way onto the field as the No. 2 wide receiver with Anderson right behind him. Seferian-Jenkins gets a fresh start and earns the starting job.

Oakland Raiders
There isn’t much competition on the Raiders roster, outside of maybe Cordarrelle Patterson pushing Seth Roberts for snaps out of the slot, and DeAndre Washington trying to earn the role of backing up Marshawn Lynch over Jalen Richard. My prediction: Patterson earns trust as the season goes on, but Roberts starts the year as the No. 3 receiver. Washington moves up to No. 2 on the depth chart, while Richard remains in a similar role to the one he had last year. Nothing more, nothing less.

Philadelphia Eagles
After a year in disarray, the wide receiver corps appears to be set in Philadelphia with Alshon Jeffery, Torrey Smith, and Jordan Matthews. The competition is at the running back position, as the Eagles are expected to cut Ryan Mathews, leaving LeGarrette Blount, Darren Sproles, Wendell Smallwood, and Donnel Pumphery to compete for touches out of the backfield. My prediction: Blount is an extremely touchdown-reliant fantasy play who sees a very inconsistent number of carries, while Sproles gets 8-12 touches per game, and Smallwood is mixed in sporadically.

Pittsburgh Steelers
The lone competition with the Steelers is an important one, as rookie JuJu Smith-Schuster will compete with Eli Rogers the team’s No. 3 receiver. Over the last few seasons, there have been some phenomenal performances out of that role. My prediction: The Steelers find ways to get all four wide receivers on the field, but Rogers starts the year in three-wide sets, though Smith-Shuster gains ground as time goes on.

San Francisco 49ers
As crazy as it sounds, there is apparently going to be a battle for starting running back duties between Carlos Hyde, rookie Joe Williams, and Tim Hightower. Yeah… The wide receiver depth chart behind Pierre Garcon and Jeremy Kerley is wide open, so you’ll want to watch the competition between Marquise Goodwin, Aldrick Robinson, Trent Taylor, and Aaron Burbridge. There has been reports all offseason that the 49ers want to cut Vance McDonald, but they haven’t done it just yet, so pay attention to him and rookie tight end George Kittle. My prediction: All the offseason drama turns out to be nothing as Hyde and McDonald are both starters, and Robinson’s familiarity with Kyle Shanahan’s system gives him the edge over Goodwin.

Seattle Seahawks
Despite the offensive line being the worst in football, we do want to know more about the battle for the starting running back position between Eddie Lacy, Thomas Rawls, and C.J. Prosise. Paul Richardson and Tyler Lockett will both be pushing to knock Jermaine Kearse out of the starting lineup. The best part about this team is that they don’t hide anything. We’ll know who comes out on top before the start of the season. My prediction: Prosise turns out to be the best running back to own due to his consistency in the passing game. I do think Rawls surprises people and passes Lacy on the depth chart, and the reason that happens is because Pete Carroll doesn’t care about who is getting paid what. He proved that when he started Russell Wilson over Matt Flynn years ago.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Rookie Chris Godwin will attempt to pass slot wide receiver Adam Humphries in training camp, while rookie O.J. Howard will try to live up to the hype and pass last year’s breakout tight end Cameron Brate. The competition at the running back position is important as well, as the Bucs will be without Doug Martin for the first three weeks. Charles Sims, Jacquizz Rodgers, and Jeremy McNichols will compete to earn playing time during that time. My prediction: Humphries remains the slot receiver, while Howard and Brate split snaps, making both of them very inconsistent fantasy options. Rodgers takes the early-down work, while Sims has a similar role as the passing-down back with both Rodgers and with Martin when he returns.

Tennessee Titans
What an overhaul to the wide receiving corps in Tennessee, eh? It’s clear that Eric Decker will be on the field in base formations, but there is a battle for the remainder of wide receiver slots. No. 5 overall pick Corey Davis, third-rounder Taywan Taylor, last year’s No. 14 wide receiver Rishard Matthews, and Tajae Sharpe will all compete for a significant role in 2017. Derrick Henry isn’t in competition with Demarco Murray just yet, but it’ll be more of a timeshare this year. My prediction: Decker, Davis, and Matthews will be the top three receivers, while Taylor beats out Sharpe for the No. 4 job.

Washington Redskins
One of the more interesting teams to watch, the Redskins will have some choices to make after training camp. Terrelle Pryor, Josh Doctson, and Jamison Crowder will compete to be Kirk Cousins’ No. 1 target, but they’re all competing with each other to be on the field in two wide receiver sets. Last year’s starter Rob Kelley has competition in Samaje Perine, who has been generating a lot of buzz this offseason, including being compared to Michael Turner. My prediction: Pryor is the 1A, while Crowder is 1B in terms of target share, but Pryor churns out more fantasy points. Doctson surprises people and finishes inside the top 50 wide receivers, limiting the ceiling of both Pryor and Crowder. Perine takes over for Kelley in fast order, and maybe before Week 1.


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Mike Tagliere is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Mike, check out his archive and follow him @MikeTagliereNFL.

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