Written by John Clayton at ESPN.com
The best 2016 quarterback battle is in Los Angeles.
Case Keenum is the projected starter. Nick Foles, who received a $6 million roster bonus earlier this year, is still on the roster, but the Rams might not keep him around much longer. No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff is the future and could be the present. Goff versus Keenum should be the most interesting battle to follow this spring and summer.
I can’t remember a year in which there were so many strange battles. You have starting jobs assigned to quarterbacks who might not evenwant to be on their teams. In a league that loves to rush QBs into starting jobs before they are ready, Goff might be the only rookie starter in Week 1.
The NFL is feeling the effects of the rise of spread and Air Raid offenses in colleges. Quarterbacks from those offenses enter the NFL needing to learn how to run a huddle, take snaps from center, read defenses and get play calls from a listening device in their helmets. Because of this, more teams are advised to sit these quarterbacks until they are ready.
Over the next two drafts, there might be as few as two or three highly rated quarterbacks coming from schools that run pro-set offenses. This QB-driven league is moving into a challenging era.
Here’s a look at the best quarterback battles headed into the 2016 season:
Los Angeles Rams
Jared Goff’s transition from an Air Raid offense into a pro-style, run-first offense with the Rams should be fun to watch. Case Keenum, who is on a one-year deal, is theoretically the bridge quarterback until Goff is ready. Los Angeles is shopping Foles in trade talks. The team that trades for Foles would get him with only a $1.75 million salary, a pretty good bargain. But if Foles stays and has a good training camp, the Rams’ battle will be even more fascinating to watch.
Coach Jeff Fisher isn’t one to rush a rookie quarterback. He has one of the best young running backs in football, Todd Gurley, to take the pressure off. The Rams plan to run. It’s up to Goff to catch up quickly, learn the offense and see whether he can win the job. What adds to the entertainment is the Rams being on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” during the preseason. This battle will play out on the field and on television screens.
Advantage: Keenum gets the first chance but Goff is likely in charge no later than October.
San Francisco 49ers
Don’t jump to the conclusion that this is Colin Kaepernick’s job to lose. In fact, this could end up being one of the best battles of the summer. Kaepernick is coming off three surgeries and is just beginning to throw. Blaine Gabbert is in charge at the moment. Despite his failures in Jacksonville, he has resurrected his career in San Francisco. Tight end Garrett Celek said this week that Gabbert is doing a good job of taking control of the offense.
Kaepernick’s first battle was with management. He wanted out in a trade, even though Chip Kelly wanted to work with him. The trade push failed. What adds further intrigue is Kaepernick’s standing in the locker room; he lost the support of some of the players last year. He probably needed to get a fresh start someplace else.
Advantage: Gabbert has the early lead, but Kaepernick can come back.
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