AFC East training camp preview Key players to watch

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AFC East training camp preview: Key players to watch   Published: Jul 16, 2018 at 05:51 AM           Digital Content Editor                                    Buffalo Bills      rookies and veterans (July 25).      St. John Fisher College in Rochester, New York.     Most important position battle: The entire offense? Where to begin with Buffalo? The celebrated their first postseason berth in nearly two decades this offseason by ... losing nearly every valuable offensive piece, willingly or not. Buffalo traded to Cincinnati for draft ammo, and two of the ' longest-tenured leaders on the offensive line, Eric Wood and Richie Incognito, retired -- or, in Incognito's case, . was shipped to Cleveland for a pick. Behind , the wide receiver room is a smorgasbord  Jason Hammel Jersey of unproven young'uns ( , Brandon Reilly) and veteran journeymen ( , Andre Holmes). is the one true mainstay, and now ,as the league is reviewing information pertaining to an alleged domestic violence situation. Buffalo is potentially entering the 2018 season with the league's worst position group at three offensive positions (QB, WR, OL), and nearly every slot in the starting XI is up for grabs. Gulp.        Newcomer to watch: LB . Aside from (more on him in a sec), Edmunds is the most exciting fresh face in Buffalo's locker room. After seventh overall in the draft, Buffalo used its bounty of picks to also at No. 16 overall, a sign the front office was smitten with his talent during the draft proce s. Those good feelings have bled into the preseason. Early indications are that Edmunds will start at middle linebacker come Week 1, flanked by and . Edmunds will be replacing , who, after four fruitful seasons with Buffalo, joined Glenn with the . In replacing Brown, who never mi sed a game, Edmunds will have to establish himself quickly as a young leader and volume tackler in the middle of Sean McDermott's defense, akin to what the second-year coach had in Carolina with . According to one fellow defender, Edmunds is .      Looming camp question: Who is the starting quarterback in Week 1 -- and does it matter? Presenting: , and , in the most lukewarm quarterback competition in recent NFL history! Angling to replace the departed Taylor, the members of the trio have six combined career starts (including the postseason), nine touchdowns and eight interceptions between them -- and  Alcides Escobar Jersey no one has the upper hand heading into camp. With the most experience and a shiny new contract under his belt, McCarron was thought to be the favorite to win the job. But reports from OTAs and minicamp pegged Peterman -- he of five first-start-first-half interceptions -- to be the most serious contender to begin the season under center. Buffalo appears to be slow-playing Allen's development, but it's not out of the realm of po sibility that the give their first-round pick a shot to start early on, or, at the very least, a preseason game. But in what is likely a rebuilding year for the , what does it mean for a quarterback to be named the Week 1 starter? Buffalo's long-term QB situation will likely remain unresolved even heading into September. Plus, the aren't playing to win two months from now; given the structural state of their offense, they're playing to win two years from now. This battle could last all season, and then some.     Miami Dolphins      rookies (July 18) and veterans (July 25).      Baptist Health Training Facility in Davie, Florida.     **Most important position battle: vs. . The intend to utilize Fitz's versatility in that manner, and the defensive back, still in pre-draft mode, to play wherever Miami needs him to play. The Swi s Army Knife should contend with and for safety snaps and with or for slot-corner snaps, Blaine Boyer Jersey  but it's difficult at this point to peg exactly which position Fitzpatrick will end up in. That is, if such a hybrid position even exists in Miami's current formation.     Newcomer to watch: RB . With long gone and in Kansas City, should be due for an uptick in carries in Miami. That's if veteran and Ballage, a fourth-round rookie, don't steal his touches. While the former is , the latter's performance in OTAs pleasantly surprised Miami teammates and coaches. According to Adam Gase, Ballage is "progre sing quickly." To OC Dowell Loggains, Ballage is how "you draw them up." The first-year runner has been described by our Daniel Jeremiah as the pa s-catching to Drake's hard-running . If Ballage continues to shine in training camp, Miami could enter September with a multi-dimensional, three-headed ground attack.     Looming camp question: Can Gase's reshaped offense, with a healthy , put it all together? The ' offseason was brought to you by "Turnover: The Good Kind." Gase got his wish when Miami shipped Ajayi, , Julius Thomas and out of town and replaced the departed with Gore, , , and . Now that the third-year coach has guys in the building and his quarterback back from injury after more than a season on the mend, what will Miami's attack look like? Last season's offense, piloted by Jay Cutler, was slow to get off the ground and one  Ryan O Hearn Jersey of the league's least efficient -- fourth-worst in scoring percentage (25.8) and dead last in third-down conversion rate (31.7). But reports out of camp are that the Fins intend to use more hurry-up this time around, a strategy that, with an improved RB room and newfangled slot threats Amendola and Wilson, could be effective. Loggains also intimated that Miami could use more 13 personnel (1 RB, 3 TE). Whether these play-calling and roster alterations help the develop into a top-tier offense with production worthy of its depth remains to be seen.         New England Patriots      rookies (July 22) and veterans (July 25).      Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Ma sachusetts.     Most important position battle: Wide receiver. ? In La La Land. ? In South Beach. ? Two of New England's leading receivers from 2017 won't be on the Week 1 starting roster -- nor will Edelman, who was sidelined all of last season -- meaning auditions to be 's new favorite target are underway, and it's an open casting call. , the lone holdover from last year, will secure one of the starting roles without a fight. The rest of the depth chart includes , Malcolm Mitchell (who mi sed 2017 with a knee injury), , (two starts in 2017), and -- for now. There's no telling yet who will emerge from that cavalcade as Brady's preferred preseason option, or who has yet to make a name for himself. (Remember ?)      Newcomers to watch: DLs and . The weren't quite undone by a lack of pa s rush last season -- ask -- but New England's quarterback pre sure hasn't been up to snuff for some time now. The have struggled to replace , who has tallied 28 sacks with Arizona since Bill Belichick traded him in 2016; meanwhile, has led the Pats with 13.5 total sacks over the last two campaigns. New England needed an infusion of pa s-rushing pop this offseason, and the Pats might have gotten it with Shelton and Clayborn. Sure, Shelton is a defensive tackle, but the and proved last season that consistent, disruptive pre sure up the middle is almost as effective in forcing bad offensive decisions as having an All-Pro edge rusher in your arsenal. Clayborn's stats were inflated by a six-sack performance against Dallas' backup left tackles, but he remains a proven threat on the edge. The Pats' summertime transactions don't always pan out, and Belichick makes his bones as an excellent midseason bargain hunter, especially for defensive sleepers. But that won't be nece sary if Shelton and Clayborn can make an impact early.     Looming camp question: Have the done enough to take advantage of 's final years? If Brady's offseason musings about retirement coming "sooner rather than later" and his wife's hints that the boyish quarterback is no longer having fun are any  Drew Butera Jersey indication, then fans should stop taking Brady for granted. Entering his age-41 season, the reigning MVP is in a league of his own in terms of sustained production over time. However, the warning signs are there -- they've been blaring this offseason -- that the future signal-caller is circling the close of his football career. Injuries aren't his i sue; aside from that nasty hand wound ahead of the AFC title game, Brady has no ailments to speak of heading into traini
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