The Most Important Faces of Preseason NFL Action

As much as season-ticket holders dislike the concept of exhibition football, preseason games serve a vital role in shaping rosters and revealing what the upcoming NFL season may look like.

While guys spend most of August on a practice field, there is no way to truly evaluate players, especially at quarterback, until they see live action where the red non-contact jersey comes off.

Here are the most important faces of the 2013 NFL preseason. 

Eddie Lacy, Green Bay Packers

Eddie Lacy had a rough start to his first training camp, having set the Twitter world ablaze after a rather unflattering photo of him ignited speculation that he had already eaten himself out of a starting job.

However, coach Mike McCarthy is not nearly as worried about Lacy’s weight as everyone sitting at home, telling the assembled media that he “had no concern” about Lacy’s conditioning, according to Chris Wesseling of NFL.com.

McCarthy’s explanation is certainly plausible. Lacy’s build has always been on the thicker side, and other photos of him are much more profile-picture worthy than the one that went viral.

Even if Lacy’s conditioning is as fine as his coach says it is, in the realm of professional sports, Lacy is subject to the laws of ancient Rome where the accused are guilty until proven innocent. If Lacy truly is in shape, the public will need to see it in action before believing it.

Plus, Lacy is also in direct competition with fellow rookie Johnathan Franklin for playing time.

As a result, the only way Lacy is going to make this headache go away is to produce in the preseason and carry his production into the regular season. If he can win the starting job or at least earn the lion’s share of carries in the Green Bay Packers offense, Lacy will look back on this and laugh. 

EJ Manuel, Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills took the biggest risk of the draft when they made EJ Manuel the only quarterback to be taken in the first round, and the time has come for the Bills to see exactly what they have in the Florida State product.

The early returns on Manuel are promising. Peter King of Sports Illustrated noted that Manuel has “been good in all regards” through his first week of camp. Coach Doug Marrone told the media that Manuel was “coming along nicely,” according to the team’s website.

Still, as promising as Manuel has looked in shorts and a red non-contact jersey, all of his efforts are meaningless if he cannot translate it to live action when the hits are real and the stakes are higher.

This month's preseason games will be a huge indicator of exactly how far Manuel is in his development, particularly from a mental standpoint.

Outside of a clunky delivery and some footwork issues, Manuel has a lot of strong physical traits that made him a first-round pick in the first place. If the Bills are going to start Manuel in the season-opener, they will need to ensure that he can set protections, understand coverages and make the right decision in a few split-seconds like quality NFL starters can do. 

The Buffalo Bills took the biggest risk of the draft when they made EJ Manuel the only quarterback to be taken in the first round, and the time has come for the Bills to see exactly what they have in the Florida State product.

The early returns on Manuel are promising. Peter King of Sports Illustrated noted that Manuel has “been good in all regards” through his first week of camp. Coach Doug Marrone told the media that Manuel was “coming along nicely,” according to the team’s website.

Still, as promising as Manuel has looked in shorts and a red non-contact jersey, all of his efforts are meaningless if he cannot translate it to live action when the hits are real and the stakes are higher.

These preseason games will be a huge indicator of exactly how far Manuel is in his development, particularly from a mental standpoint.

Outside of a clunk delivery and some footwork issues, Manuel has a lot of strong physical traits that made him a first-round pick in the first place. If the Bills are going to start Manuel in the season opener, they will need to ensure that he can set protections, digest coverages and make the right decision in a few split seconds like quality NFL starters can do. 

A.J. Jenkins, San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers have not made many personnel mistakes under Trent Baalke’s watch, but the selection of A.J. Jenkins in the first round last year is starting to look like one.

According to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com, Jenkins has “not distinguished himself in practices.” Pro Football Talk's Michael David Smith notes that he has been dropping passes, running bad routes and “generally not even looking like the fifth-best receiver in camp.”

As Michael Crabtree continues to recover from his torn Achilles, the 49ers need Jenkins to play like his first-round pedigree more than ever.

With Crabtree, Mario Manningham and Kyle Williams all on the PUP list, Jenkins should get plenty of reps in the preseason as the 49ers try to seize every opportunity to continue his development.

If Jenkins continues to play like a pedestrian receiver and fails to land a significant role in the offense, it would be hard to label Jenkins as anything but a bust.

Geno Smith, New York Jets

Expectations are at an all-time low for Rex Ryan’s New York Jets this year, but a lot of their troubles will be washed away if Geno Smith emerges as their quarterback of the future.

Smith appears to be in control in the early stages of the battle with Mark Sanchez. According to Rich Cimini of ESPN New York, Smith is outplaying Sanchez through the first week of practices, noting that he has “sparkled with his accuracy”—an area of the game where Sanchez struggles.

He was also given three drives with the first team to Sanchez's one in Saturday's scrimmage, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News notes.

While this is a wide-open battle, an even finish will likely favor Sanchez’s chances of starting. After all, it is much easier to bench a fading veteran than it is a young rookie. Rex Ryan can always insert Smith into the lineup later in the season—going the other way around is much more complicated.

Either way, Smith will have the entire preseason to build on his promising start to begin a new era of quarterbacking in New York.

Sam Bradford, St. Louis Rams

Now entering his fourth season, the time for Sam Bradford to start producing like a former first overall pick has expired.

In his first three seasons, Bradford had legitimate excuses as to why he was regressing from his promising rookie season. His offensive line was among the worst in the league on a yearly basis. His only reliable receiving threat to work with, Danny Amendola, missed 22 games in four seasons.

While the St. Louis Rams did lose Amendola to free agency, they have made every effort to fix Bradford’s environment and put him in a position to succeed.

Jake Long was recruited in free agency to finally solidify the left tackle position. To replace Amendola, general manager Les Snead traded up to draft West Virginia speedster Tavon Austin.

As Brian Quick and Chris Givens continue to develop, the Rams, at least on paper, have an NFL-quality offensive line along with a young, fast and athletic group of receivers.

All of this looks great on paper, but the chemistry between all of these new, young additions will need to jell in the preseason. All eyes will be on Bradford to see whether or not his lackluster supporting cast was truly the reason why his development has plateaued.

Chip Kelly, Philadelphia Eagles

Chip Kelly has not even had a chance to strut the sidelines of Lincoln Financial Field, and he already finds himself in the middle of several controversies.

Barely a week into training camp, and Kelly is faced with a delicate and unusual situation in regard to Riley Cooper and the racist comments he made at a Kenny Chesney concert over the summer.

Unlike a DUI or a “typical” offseason incident, Cooper’s actions have the emotional fuel to destroy an entire locker room. In an effort to get a better sense as to how his players were reacting to Cooper’s comments, Kelly had an intense, open meeting between some Eagles players, according to Albert Breer of NFL Network.

Kelly has experience dealing with outrageous incidents with players from his days at Oregon, including the infamous LeGarrette Blount punch. He cannot afford to make the wrong decision with Cooper, as it would jeopardize the possibility of any success in his first NFL season before it even started.

Meanwhile, Kelly has yet to name a starting quarterback going into the first preseason game.

Since starting out as a wide-open competition between Michael Vick and Nick Foles, it appears as if Vick is starting to gain some ground. Vick has been getting the majority of first-team reps as of late, as John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.com reports.

Starting Vick was always the more likely option based on his experience and athletic ability, but Vick’s job is far from secure even if he does win the job in the coming days or weeks.

Either way, there is an inordinate amount of pressure on the rookie head coach before an exhibition game has even been played.

Darrelle Revis, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

After making the marquee trade of the offseason, it is time to find out whether or not the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going to get the dominant version of Darrelle Revis that they traded a first-round pick for.

The Buccaneers have not made a decision on Revis’ playing time in the preseason, according to Rick Stroud of The Tampa Bay Times. In fact, there is a good chance that the Buccaneers will take the same route the Minnesota Vikings did with Adrian Peterson and hold him out of exhibition action altogether.

If Revis does play, it will certainly be worth noting how easily he can cut, how much man coverage he plays and how much the Buccaneers are willing to test him on his infamous “island.”

If Revis resembles his old self in the preseason, Revis Island will be closed for business once again.

Jonathan Martin, Miami Dolphins

Despite all of their offseason acquisitions in free agency, the Miami Dolphins season could be in serious jeopardy if Jonathan Martin does not develop into a serviceable left tackle in a hurry.

The first week of training camp has not gone well for Martin, who has been beaten handily by defensive end Olivier Vernon "a lot," according to Miami Herald reporter Armando Salguero.

This is only Martin’s second training camp, but he looks like he could be the 2013 version of Wayne Hunter, who was a debacle for the Jets at right tackle last preseason and was traded as a result.

If the Dolphins cannot protect Ryan Tannehill, the addition of big-play targets like Mike Wallace and Brandon Gibson will go to waste without time to get downfield. Wallace is fast, but he's not that fast.

Martin has time to improve before the season, but general manager Jeff Ireland has to be worried that his all-or-nothing spending approach this season will be ruined by poor play at left tackle.

Brandon Weeden, Cleveland Browns

Don’t look now, but the Cleveland Browns have a complete roster that is capable of winning a lot of games—if they could solidify that pesky quarterback spot.

This is a make-or-break season for Brandon Weeden, who will be 30 by mid-October. In addition to his age, the fact that a new regime in charge had no hand in drafting him gives Weeden daunting odds of keeping his job beyond 2013.

However, Weeden is in position to succeed in the short term. Not only does he have young, talented players around him in Trent Richardson and Josh Gordon, but he is working with one of the best offensive minds in the game in Norv Turner.

Weeden’s ceiling for success in the NFL will always be limited for his age, but he is in a great position to show improvement from his rookie season this August.  

Denard Robinson, Jacksonville Jaguars

There is no question that the Jacksonville Jaguars needed be more dynamic on offense than they were last year. What better way to fix a stagnant offense than to add one of the most electric players in all of college football?

The Jaguars are clearly excited about Denard Robinson’s potential in their offense, as he is officially listed as an “OW” (offensive weapon). As pictured above, the Jaguars are also experimenting with Robinson as a Wildcat quarterback, according to Vito Stellino of the Florida Times-Union.

However, as the Associated Press reports, ball-security issues have halted Gus Bradley’s grand plans for Robinson, at least in the short term as the Jaguars have narrowed his role in light of his fumbles. 

However, if he can prove that he can hold onto the ball in live competition, Robinson will certainly earn more playing time in the regular season.

Robinson is sure to get plenty of playing time in the preseason at a variety of positions. While the Jaguars will certainly save their best play designs for the regular season, it will be interesting to see whether he lines up more as a running back or a wide receiver and how much the coaches are willing to trust him and his ball-security issues.