Well we talked earlier about how some of the battles for starting jobs have been decided already. But that doesn't mean there aren't any good battles remaining with 2 preseason games remaining. So let's quickly talk about 2 of the more interesting ones.
SAFETY
Right now, the Dolphins currently have 6 safeties in camp: Yeremiah Bell, Jason Allen, Keith Davis, Chris Crocker, Renaldo Hill, and Courtney Bryan. Bell is squarely locked in as the team's starting strong safety. And Davis is very much locked in as Bell's backup - as well as being a key cog on special teams.
But over at free safety, things aren't quite as clear cut. We all thought that Jason Allen would finally take that step this season and become at least a reliable free safety in this new defense that Paul Pasqualoni is installing. However, over the past few days, Chris Crocker has actually been working with the 1st team defense in place of Allen. What might this mean? Possibly nothing. But Tony Sparano does offer up this compliment of Crocker:
"I think Crocker probably has some of the best cover skills that we have back there at the safety position, which helps us from a flexibility standpoint."
Perhaps Crocker could come in on clear passing downs in place of Allen? Maybe it's just a vote of confidence for Crocker in case he ever has to play in place of Allen due to injury? Either way, this might be more of a positional battle than we originally thought.
And I haven't even brought up the two 3rd teamers (right now): Renaldo Hill and Courtney Bryan. Bryan is likely a goner prior to September. But Hill might not be. The question here is if the Dolphins will want to keep 5 safeties on the roster. And in the end, it could simply come down to the numbers game.
WIDE RECEIVER
It's likely that both Ted Ginn and Derek Hagan will end up as the team's starters come week one. But outside of those 2 spots, it's anyone guess as to who makes the team and who doesn't - and in what pecking order.
Davone Bess worked out of the slot with the 1st team offense last week, but failed to really cement his spot. Ernest Wilford, however, has been possibly the biggest disappointment in all of camp. And Greg Camarillo has had his moments, but really hasn't done much to really make a case for himself.
So where does that leave us? It leaves us with at least 3 roster spots that have to be filled - and possibly 4 depending on how the numbers break down. And other than those 3 above, David Kircus is also in the mix for a spot on the 53-man roster. He was the standout WR of the first preseason game, but was non-existent last week. So that means at least 4 players are battling for 3 roster spots. And we haven't even taken into consideration undrafted free agent Jayson Foster and former AFL receiver Anthony Armstrong. Though it's probably likely that one of those two - Foster and Armstrong - are battling for a practice squad spot.
So who you got? Right now, I'll say it's Wilford, Bess, and Kircus - in some order.