Back Page: QB battles heating up

By Bob Harris, Special to SI.com

By the end of this weekend, all 32 NFL teams will be hard at work in training camp. Which, of course, means it's time to crank up my annual position-by-position preview of this year's camp battles.

As always, there's no shortage of pertinent situations for Fantasy owners to follow, so I'll get right to it. We'll kick things off this summer with some of the more interesting battles among NFL quarterbacks.

Miami: A.J. Feeley vs. Jay Fielder

Jay Fiedler threw for 2,138 yards with 11 touchdowns and 13 interceptions last season. AP

Fiedler's grip on the starting job is tenuous at best following an offseason trade that brought Feeley from Philadelphia to Miami. This despite the fact Fiedler's .679 winning percentage as a starter ranks behind only Tom Brady (.739) and Kurt Warner (.700) among active players with at least 25 career starts.

However, Fiedler missed five starts to injury last year as Miami's offense ranked 26th in yardage (174.5-yard average), 22nd in completion percentage (57.1) and tied for 25th in touchdowns (17) with the combination of Fiedler and (the since departed) Brian Griese under center.

Meanwhile, the strong-armed Feeley started to come on strong the first week of June and both men will receive an equal number of reps when camp opens on July 31.

However, this situation might not be as competitive as advertised.

As SI.com insider Don Banks advised readers last week (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2004/writers/don_banks/07/21/offseason.part2/index.html), "Unless Feeley, the former Eagles third-stringer, comes in and looks like a fish out of water, he's the guy to look for under center when Tennessee comes to town for the Sept. 12 season opener."

I couldn't agree more.

As Banks further noted, head coach Dave Wannstedt and general manager Rick Spielman would not have traded a conditional second-round pick for Feeley if they didn't believe he represented upgrade over Fiedler.

To his credit, Feeley did win four of five starts in 2002 after Donovan McNabb and Koy Detmer were hurt. The Dolphins were reportedly impressed by tapes of those games.

But as the Miami Herald recently suggested, "There might be a reason Feeley started only eight games his entire college career and failed to beat out Koy Detmer for Philly's backup job. It is a dubious gamble to assume the new man will fall in line with the Kurt Warners and Tom Bradys."

Unfortunately, I couldn't agree more again.

New York Giants: Eli Manning vs. Kurt Warner

Selected by the Chargers with the first pick overall, Manning wound up getting his way when San Diego shipped him off to New York in exchange for Phillip Rivers and an assortment of draft picks. His arrival prompted the Giants to released Kerry Collins.

However, the subsequent addition of veteran free agent -- and two time NFL MVP -- Warner seemed to cloud the youngster's immediate future.

Some observers still believe Warner will start early in the season before giving way to Manning once the newcomer fully understands the offense.

However, after signing the youngster to a whopping six-year, $54 million contract Thursday -- a deal which reportedly includes a signing bonus of $20 million (the largest ever for a rookie), management will be looking for immediate impact.

Along those lines, head coach Tom Coughlin recently noted: "I told [Manning] this on the day we drafted him that he's the future of the New York Giants at quarterback, whether it's game one, game eight, game 15."

Based on recent workouts and his timely signing, I suspect it'll be much close to Week 1 than 15.

Oakland: Rich Gannon vs. Kerry Collins

This one might have been over before it started. ... According to observers, Gannon had one of the most productive offseasons of his 17-year career as he recovered from surgery to repair a tear in his shoulder. He threw the ball almost every day this spring and swears he is 100 percent healthy.

He also claims to be unconcerned by the addition of Collins.

There had been speculation the Raiders might have a problem with his $7 million salary but so far, team officials are talking nice.

"I've seen Rich from the other side of the field numerous times," new coach Norv Turner said. "He's one of the more accurate guys I've ever been around."

Gannon, Collins and Marques Tuiasosopo will split repetitions evenly through the first four or five days of workouts because the team has many players at other positions to evaluate. By the middle of next week, however, Turner said he would go predominantly with Gannon and Collins.

But as the Sacramento Bee suggested early Thursday, the minute it looks like Gannon isn't throwing at full strength -- and Collins flashes his cannon of an arm -- and the debate as to whether Collins should wait until 2005 to start is on.

The worst nightmare for Fantasy owners would be watching that debate become a weekly issue during the regular season.

San Diego: Phillip Rivers vs. Drew Brees

The Chargers' decision to trade Manning to New York sent a clear-cut message that Rivers is their quarterback of the future.

This, as you can imagine, didn't go over especially well with Brees.

"It was disappointing to have that happen, because I think that was maybe the writing on the wall that says this is my last year in San Diego," Brees admitted shortly after the draft. "This is the last year on my contract, and they're going to pay this guy $15 million or whatever it is that the fourth pick in the draft gets, so I know what that means."

The truth is, team officials have lost confidence in Brees and they can't wait to turn the offense over to Rivers. In fact, offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and general manager A.J. Smith are said to be enamored with Rivers' quick release and solid decision-making skills.

However, their confidence hardly ensures he'll fare well as a rookie starter, especially working behind a piecemeal offensive line and a situation at wideout that's unsettled at best.

I'll also remind you that Rivers still has to absorb a new offense and prove his side-armed delivery will work in the NFL -- neither of which we'll know until he gets to work.

Contract talks are ongoing and Rivers expressed confidence earlier this week his deal would be struck close to Friday's first practice. That would be a nice start.

That's all for now. ... Next week: Running backs.

Bob Harris is Editor and Webmaster of the TFL Report and Senior Editor for Fantasy Sports Publications.