The Heat of Training Camp Battles

At this point in training camp, all coaches and fans have to go on when it comes to player evaluation is performance in practices. By all accounts, rookie quarterback Will Levis performed well on Monday. The next day, he got reps with the second-team offense for the first time. Maybe it was a coincidence (Denard Walker) thinks so, perhaps it was not (that's John Glennon's belief). What is certain is that one of them will be in position to lead the offense if Ryan Tannehill is injured this season, as he was in 2022. ... There are other position battles that are developing too. One is at right tackle, where the recent addition of veteran Chris Hubbard increased the number of candidates by one. ... Inside linebackers Monty Rice and Jack Gibbens have different strengths but it seems one of them will be a starter alongside Azeez Al-Shaair. ... The Titans don't want to pay big money for a kicker which is why they have two youngsters, Caleb Shudak and Trey Wolff, in camp. If history is any indication, performance in preseason games will go a long way toward determining who gets the job. ... Despite efforts to build depth through the draft, the Titans have a decided lack of experience and certainty behind starting safeties Kevin Byard and Amani Hooker. If someone does not emerge as a reliable performer (or performers) in the coming days and weeks, the front office likely will have to look for a free agent or another team's castoff.