(Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
The NFL sees its fair share of quarterback competitions every summer. 2009 will be no exception.
All around the country from New York, to San Francisco, to Tampa Bay, and many cities in between, quarterback competitions are heating up.
New York Jets (Mark Sanchez/Kellen Clemens)
Mark Sanchez was the fifth overall pick in April's draft. The Jets traded up with Cleveland to snatch up the USC quarterback.
At Southern Cal., Sanchez started just 16 games, and entered the draft after his junior season. Sanchez completed 64.3 percent of his passes at Southern California and tossed 41 touchdowns.
Sanchez is projected to have the upper hand in the competition.
Former second-round pick Kellen Clemens is the other combatant of the battle. Clemens has started in eight games, all coming in 2007. His career completion percentage of 52 percent and he has thrown five Touchdowns. Clemens has also thrown 11 interceptions.
"Clemens and Sanchez are really battling, I knew it was going to be a dogfight and right now, you can tell it really is," said new Jets head coach Rex Ryan. "We probably won’t know until…whenever it becomes obvious, that’s when we’ll make the decision."
Sanchez agreed to a five-year deal earlier this month with $28 million guaranteed.
"I understand that with him getting the money, but the job as a coach is you’ve got to play the best guys and what gives you the chance to win," Ryan said. "I have to do what’s best for our football team. If that means we play a rookie, so be it. If we play Kellen Clemens, so be it. The guy is going to have to earn that job."
The fight between Clemens and Sanchez will certainly last through the dog days of summer, and it will be a tough decision for the coaching staff to make.
In the end, I see Mark Sanchez edging Clemens for the job.
Cleveland Browns (Brady Quinn/Derek Anderson)
The situation in Cleveland will be one of the most watched during training camp and preseason.
Quinn, the heavy fan favorite, was taken 22nd overall in the 2007 NFL Draft. He spent his rookie season holding the clipboard for starter Anderson. In 2008, Quinn got three starts before suffering a season-ending injury. In '08 he completed 66.6 percent of his passes while tossing two touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Browns were 1-2 in his three starts.
A former Pro Bowl quarterback, Derek Anderson is the other half of the Browns' competition. Anderson had a surprise 2007 season, completing 56.5 percent of his pass attempts for 3,787 yards and 29 touchdowns. Anderson also was picked off 19 times.
After eight starts and a 3-5 record to start 2008, Anderson was replaced by Quinn. When Quinn went down week 12, Anderson replaced him before being injured himself and ending his season.
At the conclusion of Browns mini camp, Quinn had a slight lead in this fight for the starting job.
"We're looking for...someone to get into the huddle, call the play, get the people lined up," said new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. "The next thing is decision-making. Who can perform under pressure?"
With Quinn being young and an Ohio native, the fans are certainly pulling for him. But the competition continues and will continue until the coaching staff finds the clear cut winner.
After it's all said and done I believe Brady Quinn will be starting opening day.
San Francisco 49ers (Shaun Hill/Alex Smith)
Former first overall pick Alex Smith is fighting for perhaps his last chance to start in the NFL. The 25-year old Smith has started 30 career games and has just one full season under his belt. He has a career completion percentage of 54.4% percent.
His touchdown-to-interception ratio is just awful: 19 touchdowns and 31 interceptions over his career.
"Before the off-season started I wasn't really sure where Alex was," said head coach Mike Singletary. "He's been through a lot in four years."
Despite being around since 2002, Shaun Hill has just 10 career starts. He started two games in 2007 and eight in 2008. His 64 percent completion percentage for his career is very good.
However, he has thrown for just 2,547 yards in his eight seasons. Hill also has 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions over the past two seasons.
The competition in San Francisco is probably the closest in the league. Nobody really has a clue of who will be the starter come week one.
"The playing field is level now," Singletary said. "I don't think anyone is leading the competition."
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