Training camp primer: Burning questions as NFL 2008 kicks off

John Beck (9) and Chad Henne will both have a shot at being the Dolphins starting QB. AP Related Links Training camp dates, locations for every team Don Banks's Mailbag Submit a comment or question to Don Banks. Name: Email: Hometown: Question: SEND Follow Don Banks on Twitter

Let's be honest; the NFL offseason borders on interminable. It's nearly six months long, and you can make it seven for those luckless teams that missed the playoffs. All that down time allows for a near-endless cycle of debate about the issues, questions and challenges facing each and every one of the 32 franchises that make up Roger Goodell's fiefdom. (A related note: That debate keeps me gainfully employed).

But eventually the footballs do start flying again, and when the full contingent of Washington Redskins report to training camp Saturday and begin practicing Sunday, the NFL will officially be back as part of our daily landscape from now until early February. To preview what's ahead in the coming six, sweat-filled weeks, I ask nine burning questions that might not have occurred to you:

1. How long until Vinny Testaverde shows up in the Dolphins' camp?

No, no, no. Bill Parcells wouldn't dare try that one again, even if the Tuna does have his well-known affinity for trusting only veteran quarterbacks with the keys to his offense. Besides, the 44-year-old Testaverde announced his retirement this offseason, and everybody knows once a quarterback hangs 'em up, that's the end of the story. There's no going back. It's finished and done.

Well, most of the time, anyway. Unless you get the "itch'' to play again.

No, Miami's next starting quarterback will be the winner of the Josh McCown-John Beck-Chad Henne derby, and I still say Parcells' Dolphins will wind up going against his history and entrusting the No. 1 role to the rookie from Michigan. Henne has a track record of being a quick study, and his offseason work with the Dolphins leaves him well-positioned to lock down the job with a solid preseason showing.

2. Which team will be switching its helmet logo to a red cross this summer?

Here's a hint: Early in camp, the Colts' PUP squad (those on the physically unable to perform list) might be the strongest team in the NFL, at least on paper. There's quarterback Peyton Manning with his left knee recovering from recent surgery to remove an infected bursa sac. There's defensive end Dwight Freeney still rehabilitating the Lisfranc surgery on his left foot that cost him the final eight games of last season. There's receiver Marvin Harrison returning from that lingering 2007 knee injury, and don't forget that Indy will also be cautious this summer with safety Bob Sanders, who's still getting over a shoulder problem.

If you thought the Colts were reluctant to play their starters much in the preseason in years past, you ain't seen nothing yet. And you certainly won't this year, when Indy happens to have an NFL-high five of those meaningless exhibition games to slog through. Get ready for a Jim Sorgi-palooza.

3. Will Matt Leinart be taking his Gatorade through a beer bong at Cardinals camp?

Hey, a party's a party, but Arizona's third-year quarterback faces a pretty sobering reality in the desert: Either he steps it up this year or Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt will be tempted to go back to that two-QB rotation that had Leinart seeing red early last season. Until Leinart proves he can handle every bit of Whisenhunt's offense, veteran Kurt Warner is going to be perpetually warming up in the bullpen.

Leinart broke his collarbone five games into last season and spent the rest of the year on the shelf. That makes this year's training camp doubly important for him. He's got to shake the rust off and reassert his clear-cut stature as the Cardinals' franchise quarterback. Generally speaking, year three for a young NFL starting quarterback means it's time to take the training wheels off.

4. Who will field the most motivated unit in the entire NFL this season?

Within the collective heart of the three-man Baltimore linebacking corps beats just one mantra this year: Show me the money. Ray Lewis might say he bleeds purple, but he's entering a contract year and he's desperate for his career's last big splash of green. The Ravens wisely didn't give into his entreaties for a new deal this offseason, and hope to get a monster year out of a player whose reputation has surpassed his production of late.

Baltimore's Bart Scott likewise is in the final season of his contract, and needs a bounce-back performance if he's going to remain in the Ravens' plans. And then there's Terrell Suggs, who the team franchised this offseason at $8.5 million, but failed to come to a long-term agreement with. An extension must now wait until after the season, when Baltimore figures to make him its leading priority in terms of potential free agency.

The linebackers' dash for the cash should make things interesting for Baltimore's veteran-laden defense this season. The Ravens, one would think, will benefit from the chase. At least before Lewis, Scott or Suggs do.