Summer Scramble: NFC North Position Battles to Watch

It's July, the slowest month of the year for the NFL, and it's driving you nuts. You need a fix. A hit. Anything NFL to pull you through the dog days. FanHouse is here to help with an in-depth look at each division that should have you plenty prepared for training camp. We're calling it the Summer Scramble, and today we look at the NFC North's looming position battles.


·Detroit Lions Quarterbacks: The competition is, ostensibly, between No. 1 overall draft pick Matthew Stafford and veteran Daunte Culpepper. The Lions are thrilled with Culpepper's conditioning and the way he looked in off-season workouts. Offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, who coached Culpepper during the QB's glory days in Minnesota callled the competition a "win-win" in an interview with FanHouse at the conclusion of the team's minicamp a couple of weeks ago. But it's clear from listening to Lions people talk about this situation is that this is really a battle between Stafford and Stafford's learning curve. If Stafford proves to the Lions' coaching staff during training camp that he's capable of starting in Week One, then he'll probably start in Week One.

Now, there are some ancillary issues that will go into the decision. For example, the Lions have big questions on the offensive line, and if those can't get answered, it'd be smarter to put a veteran like Culpepper back there than it would to subject the face and future of the franchise to the expected beating. But the Lions also have plenty of positives on offense (strong running game, star WR Calvin Johnson, rookie TE Brandon Pettigrew) that would help a rookie get his feet wet in the NFL. Assuming, of course, that he can stay on said feet.

PREDICTION: The Lions must want Stafford to win the job, as they look to shed the memory of last year's 0-16 record as quickly as possible. Unless he's a total disaster in camp, that desire should help him in their evaluation. And when you have a receiver like Johnson on your side, you're unlikely to be a total disaster. Stafford starts Week One.

·Green Bay Packers Nose Tackle: With the No. 9 overall pick in the draft, the Packers selected Boston College NT B.J. Raji, a massive run-stopping force perfect suited to play in the middle of the defensive line as Dom Capers transitions the Packers from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4. The weird thing about that plan, though, is that the Packers already have Ryan Pickett slated to play nose tackle. So if Raji is to be the man in the middle in Green Bay, he's going to have to show enough to warrant his taking playing time away from the veteran Pickett. Given Raji's size and talent, that could happen eventually, but it appears the Packers aren't expecting it to happen in training camp. During off-season workouts, the Packers used Raji at defensive end, lining him up on the field alongside (not instead of) Pickett. Whether that can work will depend on whether Raji can play on the outside in the pros, and as of now the answer to that question is a guess.

PREDICTION: Raji has enough speed and athleticism that the plan to play him at end has merit. But he's a natural NT, and he's likely to get enough playing time there to show that he's the Packers' future at the position. Pickett starts at NT at the beginning of the season, but Raji gets more playing time at the spot in 2009.

·Chicago Bears Free Safety: This is the competition to succeed popular veteran Mike Brown, who was let go by the Bears in the off-season and signed with the Chiefs. There's no obvious solution. Second-year man Craig Steltz, who played strong safety in college, lined up alongside starting strong safety Kevin Payne in minicamp and is thought to have a leg up in the race for the free safety spot. His primary competition will come from Corey Graham, a cornerback trying to make the conversion to safety. Graham is quicker and has more range, but Steltz is a harder hitter, reads defenses well and has good instincts for the position. If neither is impressive in training camp, players such as Josh Bullocks and Danieal Manning could get into the mix.

PREDICTION: Steltz seems to have the inside track, but Graham's superior athleticism earns him the starting job during training camp.

·Minnesota Vikings Right Tackle: Ryan Cook was the Vikings' starting for all 16 games in 2007 and for the first half of last season, too. But a miserable run of false start penalties and breakdowns in pass protection led to a midseason benching. Injuries got Cook the job back, and he started 14 of Minnesota's 16 games at RT, but the Vikings, looking for an upgrade, picked the gargantuan Phil Loadholt in the second round. As of minicamp, right tackle was being painted as a direct competition between Cook and the rookie Loadholt, but the general feeling is that Loadholt is the favorite to win the job. Cook's best bet for playing time could be at the center position, though John Sullivan looks like the odds-on favorite to win the right to snap the ball to Brett Favre.

PREDICTION: Loadholt wins the starting RT job, and Cook gets work at the center, guard and tackle spots to make himself an all-around backup on the right side of the line.

Tomorrow: NFC North Burning Questions and Prediction.
Thursday: AFC North Position Battles to Watch.
Friday: AFC North Burning Questions and Prediction.