Projecting New England Patriots' Most Heated Roster Battles This Offseason

We've come so far along in the 2015 NFL offseason, but things are only just getting started. Now comes the important part, where teams begin to finalize their rosters by trimming down from 90 players to 53 and sorting out their depth chart between starters and backups.

That all takes place over the next four months during organized team activities, mandatory minicamp and training camp. 

For some teams, the outcomes of these battles are foregone conclusions. For the New England Patriots, some battles are predetermined (Jimmy Garoppolo isn't going to beat out Tom Brady for the starting quarterback spot, notwithstanding Brady's four-game suspension), but others are still undecided.

Which position battles figure to be the most heated, and most important, of the summer?

Cornerback

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Winners: Logan Ryan, Malcolm Butler, Robert McClain

After a thorough upheaval of their roster at cornerback, the Patriots look primed for one of the most unknown training camp battles they've had in recent memory.

For now, we can call the Patriots secondary the "Legion of Whom."

With Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner, Kyle Arrington and Alfonzo Dennard all gone, the Patriots are hosting a battle that features holdovers in Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler, veteran additions in Robert McClain, Bradley Fletcher and Chimdi Chekwa and rookies in Darryl Roberts, Jimmy Dean, Brandon King and Eric Patterson. 

Ryan and Butler may only have 14 regular-season starts between them (13 for Ryan, one for Butler), but the inside track goes to the veterans who already know the system and have executed it effectively. Of the other cornerbacks, McClain has the most NFL experience and also has the most versatility.

Guard

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Winners: Tre' Jackson, Ryan Wendell

Unless the Patriots re-sign Dan Connolly sometime between now and the beginning of the 2015 regular season, it's a safe bet that this is how the training camp battle at guard will play out.

Florida State guard Tre' Jackson may be only a rookie fourth-round pick, but he should already be considered a front-runner to start at left guard. He played in 49 games in his college career with 42 starts and was considered one of the best guard prospects in this year's class before a mediocre 2014 campaign. 

The question mark is at the other spot. 

For now, Ryan Wendell should have the inside track at right guard, but his natural position is center, and he is costing $2.45 million against the salary cap this year. If the Patriots go with someone like Josh Kline at right guard instead, they could save that money and insert a player who can approximate Wendell's level of play. After the inconsistency this line showed last year, though, it's fair to wonder whether that would be a wise decision. 

Defensive Tackle

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Winners: Dominique Easley, Malcom Brown

The Patriots just drafted Texas defensive tackle Malcom Brown with their first-round pick, but he's not automatically assured of a starting spot on the defensive line. The Patriots have plenty of talent up front, between last year's first-round pick Dominique Easley and veterans Alan Branch, Sealver Siliga and Chris Jones. In the end, the "winners" may not matter much, as the line could be rotating frequently each week.

That being said, the two workhorses by the end of the season should be the two youngest, most dynamic players on the line: the two first-round picks. The Patriots line has dominated when it's been stocked with first-rounders; just ask Richard Seymour, Ty Warren and Vince Wilfork. The duo of Brown and Easley has the talent to be on par with the trio of Seymour, Warren and Wilfork.

Siliga is a close runner-up and could be a big part of both the 3-4 and the 4-3 alignments due to his ability to play on the nose (0-technique) or anywhere between the guard and center (1- to 3-technique).

Strong Safety

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Winner: Patrick Chung

Between Patrick Chung, Tavon Wilson, Duron Harmon and rookie Jordan Richards, the Patriots have more safeties than they could possibly put on the field at the same time. There's a high likelihood that the team will cut one of them—and that's disappointing, given the high investments in each player.

In the long run, Wilson is the most likely to be cut. His primary role has been on special teams, but his role on defense has dwindled to nothing. Wilson started four games as a rookie, but he gave up a couple of long passes and quickly wound up on the bench. Steve Gregory got the starting nod, and the Patriots drafted Duron Harmon the next year. Wilson played only 188 snaps on defense in 2014, fewer than any Patriots safety besides special teams ace Nate Ebner. 

Surprisingly, Chung was the winner of last year's training-camp battle with Harmon, and he played well enough to earn a contract extension through the 2017 season. Chung remains a strong in-the-box safety, but his coverage ability is still lacking. He yielded completions on 61 percent of throws into his coverage with six touchdowns, one interception and four passes broken up. 

For that reason, it's likely that Harmon will come in off the bench on passing downs to perform more coverage-based responsibilities, while Chung resumes his role on first and second down. 

Defensive End/Outside Linebacker

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Winners: Chandler Jones, Rob Ninkovich

This battle is a little hard to put into words because of the scheme-versatility within the Patriots defense. The Patriots could be running a 3-4 base defense one week and a 4-3 the next. The game plan will have a heavy impact on the personnel groupings. 

Whether it's a 3-4 or a 4-3, the Patriots have their clear-cut front-runners at the top of the depth chart on the edge of their defense in Chandler Jones and Rob Ninkovich. Jones could play defensive end in the 3-4, but he struggled in that role for much of the early part of the 2014 season when teams would run in his direction. Ninkovich could play outside linebacker in either a 3-4 or a 4-3, but he has played defensive end in the Patriots' 4-3 in recent years.

The Patriots added a litany of pass-rushing edge talent to their defense this offseason in the form of free agent Jabaal Sheard and draft picks Geneo Grissom (Oklahoma), Trey Flowers (Arkansas) and Xzavier Dickson (Alabama); Dont'a Hightower could factor into the mix at 3-4 outside linebacker, as well.

In short, it's going to be a deep battle, but in the end, the two more experienced veterans should win out. Sheard has the potential to be the first one off the bench in either a 3-4 or a 4-3 front, and the rookies can fill in the blanks. 

Unless otherwise noted, all salary cap and contract information provided by Over The Cap and all advanced statistics provided by Pro Football Focus.