When the Skins take the field in Jacksonville tonight for the final pre-season game, most starters will be looking on from the sidelines.
In many ways, this last exhibition game is truly that; not much will be decided. But for some players and at some positions, that's certainly not the case.
Tonight really is a huge night for Colt Brennan and Chase Daniel. How they play tonight will help decide who's going to be the third QB when the team makes its final round of cuts this weekend.
Will they go with last year's hotshot rookie, their sixth-rounder from Hawaii? Or will they go with the hotter play of this year's undrafted free agent, Mizzou's former QB?
Daniel hasn't played much, but when he has, he's outplayed Colt, although it's really hard to get a read off someone in just eight pass attempts -- even if six of them were complete, and two went for touchdowns. Meanwhile, Colt's thrown three picks and has never looked in command.
Colt's struggles have been a slap of reality to his supreme confidence.
It's definitely going to be a battle. The Skins likely can only carry one of those QBs. The other is doomed to the practice squad.
But that's where a wrinkle comes in. Practice squad players can be claimed by other teams. If the Skins try that with Colt, won't some QB-starved team take a chance on him. Would the Skins risk losing him and whatever potential he has?
With Daniel, since he went undrafted, and his experience consists of just a handful of throws against some third and fourth stringers, the chances of him reaching the practice squad are higher. The same questions that prevented him from being drafted -- notably, his diminutive size -- would prevent many teams from taking a chance on him as their third QB.
So with an average performance, Colt likely has the inside shot. But if he craps the bed and Chase shines, all bets are off.
