DLF Staff 2020 NFL Training Camp Perspectives

Ah, training camp talk. It’s refreshing this time of year when we get to hear that every player in the league is in the best shape of their lives. I have to say I understand the exaggeration, what else should coaches and other people say?

Hyperbole aside, I look forward to training camp every single season. Though this season is shrouded a bit by the impact of the coronavirus, I for one am still excited to see the players play. I thought I’d ask the staff an open question about what they like to look for in training camp. Are they looking at a particular position battle? Are they more interested in general camp happenings? Here are those responses.

“We are used to coaches speaking highly of every single player in the off-season… even the jugs machine has never been in such great shape. Take what they say with a grain of salt. In this shortened training camp and “preseason”, I am looking for what veteran players have to say about rookies and whether or not they are keeping up.” – Levi Chappell Author Page Twitter

Levi and I are on the same page here! Established veteran players may be the ones most likely to give honest answers on how the team looks. This is also quite an odd year for rookies with no preseason games, so we do need to watch rookie performances in camp even more closely. – Ryan Finley

“Who wins the Bears quarterback competition? Everyone assumed Nick Foles would win by default, but by all reports so far he’s been bad. I think people forget that Foles has generally not been great in his career outside of the year with Chip Kelly and the Super Bowl run. Whoever wins, I bet the Bears are targeting a QB next season.” – Bobby Koch Author Page Twitter

I swear Bobby isn’t just saying this because he knows I’m a Bears fan. As a local, I can attest that I have heard good things about Mitchell Trubisky in training camp – but then again we heard that last camp as well. I’m hopeful the Bears find a resounding winner of the job in any case. – RF

“This year, training camp takes on heightened importance. Covid-19 has caused drastic changes to the NFL off-season so we have to pay great attention to training camps and the reports coming out. I’m looking for player roles – who is being used in what situation? I’m also monitoring injuries and camp signings very closely this off-season.” – James Koutoulas Author Page Twitter

It does seem like our current situation is amplifying everything, doesn’t it? James says the same for training camp. We really have our work cut out for us this year. (Again, no preseason!) – RF

“Now, more than ever, training camp news is very important. With no preseason games or rookie minicamp on top of the impact of COVID and constant testing, I am watching for good or bad news on rookies, since this is all we will get on them before we actually see them play.

“Which rookie running back will break away from a predicted committee first to be the new lead workhorse? Who are the rookie receivers acclimating to NFL offenses and playbooks the quickest and developing chemistry with their new QBs? Are Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert on track for early debuts in 2020? Is Joe Burrow living up to his first overall pick and 2019 hype?

“This is the news I am really watching for during training camps this year.” – Addison Hayes Author Page Twitter

Another note on the heightened sense of importance in training camp reps this year. Ordinarily, we can wait to see preseason game action in order to see how things shake out, but no such luck this year. I like how Addison makes a special point around QBs – that might be the hardest position to move into without a preseason to get that rookie motor running. – RF

“Running back battles are always the biggest things to watch during training camp in my mind. The big three I’m watching this year are in San Francisco, Seattle, and Miami. Both San Francisco and Seattle are similar in that a lower-investment player (lesser contract or draft capital) was much more productive last year.

“Now that the bigger name is healthy again, we will see what happens. Out in Miami, you have a pair of veterans who are both new to the team. One of them is likely to be a pretty low-cost RB2, but the question is which one will it be?” – Jacob Feldman Author Page Twitter

If there’s one thing I love, it’s trying to guess right on less expensive running backs. Jacob points out a couple of good situations to try to find one. – RF

“I am keeping a close eye on the 49ers running back situation. Raheem Mostert had a breakout season, but Tevin Coleman wasn’t entirely ignored either. With Jerick McKinnon returning to the team in perfect health for the first time in three years, we could see a three-headed monster entering week one. Training camp should help give us some clues — or make things muddier. Either way, it’ll be fun to watch.” – Mike Havens Author Page Twitter

The 49ers are quite a hot team to watch this preseason. The new hotness has question marks around running back and folks love to chase their wide receivers as well. Amazing that a team that invested in both McKinnon and Coleman ended up having so much success with Mostert. This is a great storyline to watch. – RF

“I’m paying particular attention to the rookie wide receivers this camp. Between fluff pieces are actionable bits. This year it’s especially unique given the lack of OTAs before August camps. My top two rookie WR tiers go eleven deep. From May to now they’ve seen a ton of movement. For example, Bryan Edwards is rising while Denzel Mims is falling. I’m watching to anticipate and capitalize on this volatility.” – Frank Gruber Author Page Twitter

Good call here by Frank for calling out the lack of OTAs this year in addition to the lack of preseason games. This is likely to produce quite a bit more volatility in values for rookies overall. – RF

“Generally speaking, I think training camp is approximately 80% effort for about 2.5% reward: if you’re keen, you can gain some small edges and profit maybe a third-round pick (or second-round pick if you uncover a good player), but I prefer to go in expecting not much return for my effort. I’m watching less than usual this year with the pandemic, but when I do watch, I’m looking at the bottom end waiver churn – what spots would I stream with replacement-level players to begin with?

“I often spend my time looking for IDP linebackers and cornerbacks after neglecting it for most of my roster-construction – that’s when you can start to get an idea of the unsung players who might step into three-down linebacker roles. For zero-RB teams (of which I only have a few), I spend time angling for unheralded team RB2s, who might earn a workload via injury.

“I don’t watch for “workload signals for top-end players” – I don’t find these signals very useful.” – Tan Ho Author Page Twitter

It’s tough to swallow, but Tan is not wrong here. It’s a lot of effort for what’s usually a fairly minor return unless you really hit on someone. I like how Tan also takes the time to call out the other side of the ball. I’ve always thought you learn more about defense in training camp than offense! – RF

“With the shortened off-season and lack of preseason games, I’m anticipating rookies and free-agent signees on new teams struggling early in the year. As a result, I’m watching for positive reports on veterans who may not have “popped” yet. Think of Kendrick Bourne, Corey Davis, or Tre’Quan Smith types who are familiar with a team, system, and quarterback, who could seamlessly step into a more prominent role if they are called upon.

“I fear this will be a lost year for many rookies, and we can see value created by veterans (who can be flipped by savvy dynasty owners between weeks four and eight for future picks) at their peak resurgence.” – John Di Bari Author Page Twitter

John pivots away from the rookies and focuses his attention on the veterans in camp who maybe haven’t really hit just yet. It sounds like a great idea considering the environment this season. – RF

“The training camp I’m watching the closest this off-season has to be that of Washington, specifically the running back situation. With the dismissal of Derrius Guice and Adrian Peterson now 35 years of age and headed into his 14th season, there is definitely room for someone to grow into, and even fill, the void.

“Ultimately, I believe Antonio Gibson will be that player but don’t count out Bryce Love or newly-signed Peyton Barber. Whoever it ends up being, they can all be obtained for relatively little given the opportunity before them.” – TheFFGhost Author Page Twitter

Who the heck will come out of that backfield for the newly minted Washington Football Team? I’m one of those fools who keeps on buying Peterson cheap and getting what I can out of him. But am I really a fool? – RF

“I’m looking to see how Jalen Hurts progresses in camp. Typically around this time we’d have gotten to see a couple games from the back ups but with the times we live in, I’m just looking for positive buzz. I’d like to see the back-up job secured and find out if we’ll be seeing him in Taysom Hill-esque packages to start off.” – Adam Wilde Author Page Twitter

Adam goes deep to look closely at one particular rookie in Hurts. Rookie QBs have to be questionable this year, especially those who weren’t drafted into a starting role. So will Hurts have a clipboard, or will he be the primary backup? – RF

There you have it. Quite a few varied opinions here in this craziest of years. It’ll be fun to see how it looks when these teams break right into games that matter in a couple of weeks! So what are you looking for in this training camp? Comment below or hit me up on Twitter.