Here are some updates on where things seem to stand on some of the more interesting LB battles, as far as I've been able to dig up:
Giants - Goodson MIKE, Casillas WILL, Kennard SAM. All these seem set, none of the beat writers talk about any competition at LB. Keenan Robinson is viewed as a pure nickel player so the battle might stand between Casillas and Goodson for the second nickel job. Casillas had play-calling duties last season but Goodson has been prepping to take over that role so at this time it seems that Goodson is headed for a three down role, although things can change. If Goodson is free, go grab him. I'm also picking up Casillas in deeper leagues.
49ers - Bowman MIKE. Malcolm Smith is currently the first team WILL with Foster mainly playing 3rd team WILL, with Coyle and Armstrong as the 2nd team LBs, but Foster didn't participate in minicamps or OTA so he's still basically in installation and will have to work his way up. By all reports Foster has had a great start to TC and he's been grabbing a bunch of interceptions this first week so he seems to be coming on quickly. Today he got some 1st team MIKE snaps as Bowman sat out and Coyle went down with an injury. Foster was first promoted to 2nd team MIKE for the day, but then got elevated to 1st team MIKE with Coyle out and got a chance to call the plays. He made a couple sacks but also made some mistakes playcalling, which is to be expected.
Bills - Brown MIKE, Alexander SAM, Humber WILL. Ramon Humber is a career special teamer who finally has an opportunity to fight for a starting job, similar to how Alexander got a late career shot. But I have to believe that there are more talented players behind him that will come gunning for that WILL job. Ragland has been playing 2nd team MIKE and interestingly enough he's ONLY learning the MIKE position so if he can't beat out Preston Brown he's not going to be starting, and Preston looks comfortable in that role. Newcomer Gerald Hodges started with the 3rd team but is now mainly the 2nd team WILL, but today he also got some 2nd team MIKE snaps over Ragland... As for the rookies Vallejo is the one who has impressed more early, mixing in with the 2nd team and even getting some 1st team SAM snaps when Alexander had a day off, while Milano has been stuck on the 3rd team.
Chiefs - Johnson ILB. The second ILB spot next to Johnson seems to be up for grabs. Ramik Wilson is the returning starter, after he took over when Mauga got injured, but it seems to be an open competition. Mauga is back, Justin March-Lillard has starting experience, they traded for Kevin Pierre-Louis who has already gotten some 1st team snaps, and rookie Ukeme Eligwe has been flashing early and drawing coaches' praise. Ramik still has the upper hand and the majority of first team snaps, but it's a situation to monitor and they are clearly testing different combinations.
Colts - Morrison ILB, Bostic ILB. I'm not sure why, but I was expecting Edwin Jackson to return as a starter and for Sean Spence to go from being a nickel LB in Tennessee to getting a full time gig with the Colts, but so far it has been Jon Bostic and Antonio Morrison who have gotten the vast majority of first team snaps. Morrison seems to be close to locking one of those spots in, judging by how the coaches are talking about him. Spence, Jackson and Walker have all been rotating in with the 2nd team. Given that Spence and Walker are both new to the team they for sure have a shot to ascend, but I can't say that it looks promising for Jackson.
Dolphins - Alonso WILL, Timmons SAM, Raekwon MIKE. As a 20-year-old rookie Raekwon has grabbed the bull by the horns and they've thrown everything at him so far. He was learning all three LB positions already back in OTAs and he's now calling plays as the MIKE and has pushed Timmons out to SAM. Given how some highly drafted rookies like Foster and Cunningham are still running with the 2s and 3s I can't help but to be impressed with how quickly Raekwon has progressed. The Miami coaching staff have been quite high on Neville Hewitt so while it was a thin LB core it's not like Raekwon had a free lane to a starting gig. The interesting battle will be to see how the fight for nickel snaps shapes up. Alonso is a given so it's going to be either Timmons or Raekwon who goes off the field in sub. At this stage Timmons has the upper hand but they seem to be giving every opportunity for Raekwon to ascend as quickly as he can handle so we'll see where things stand by mid season.
Falcons - Jones MIKE, Campbell SAM, Riley WILL. Campbell has been moved to SAM but they seem to be planning to play him at nickel WILL. The battle for WILL base is between Riley and Ishmael where Riley seems to be tightening his grip. Riley is primarily viewed as a sub-linebacker so if Riley turns on I would think that Campbell's sub-package snaps would be in danger rather quickly. Another interesting thing to watch is if Beasley will now be more of a pure DE as his services will hardly be needed at SAM base any longer, either as a pure sub-package rusher or as a base LEO. (see here for a great discussion on Beasley's fit as a base LEO vs the running game:
https://boards.atlantafalcons.com/topic ... ing-to-dq/)
Lions - Davis MIKE, Whitehead WILL, Williams SAM. Davis has grabbed the reigns and is not looking back while Whitehead has moved to WILL base and is in line for nickel snaps. However, in a defense hungry for youth and speed Reeves-Maybin should come gunning for those nickel snaps and more as he figures things out, which might take a little while as he had offseason shoulder surgery and is starting from scratch in TC.
Raiders - Marquel Lee MILB, Cory James WILB. Tyrell Adams started as first team MIKE but was quickly overtaken by Lee on the 2nd day of TC, and Lee seems to have taken control for now. There's been a lot of speculation about whether or not they will bring in more FAs, but given the cash they've already dished out on their defense, and some big contracts coming up in the next couple years, they might need to build from within and try to make it work with some of these guys from cheaper tax brackets. Jelani Jenkins and Adams are currently running with the 2nd team, while returning starter Ben Heeney is on NFI. Obi Melifonwu looks in line to mix in at LB for some nickel snaps so it will be interesting to see how the snaps ultimately are divided.
Ravens - Mosley MILB, Correa WILB. Correa looks set in that role, which could be an attractive one for IDP. All the buzz is that he's had a great offseason and he's continuing to show up in TC.
Redskins - Compton ILB, Foster ILB. Zach Brown and Spaight are running with the 2nd team, but I wouldn't necessarily read too much into that. If you own Zach Brown you'd obviously like him to come right in and take charge, but it's quite natural that the returning starters are given some rope at the start of TC. Brown's talent should shine through before too long and the reports are that it would be on Foster's expense.
Saints - AJ Klein MIKE. The Saints have been clear that they are shifting guys around at the start of TC to see different fits, but Klein and Payton have said in separate interviews that AJ Klein will settle down at MIKE as we get closer to the action. The other options are Anthony (WILL), Te'o (MIKE), Robertson (MIKE), Anzalone (WILL), Stupar (SAM). There's been some talk that Klein could be shifted out to SAM in base but play MIKE in nickel, which might be the solution that allows them to get their best guys on the field. If that's the case there should be a battle between Anthony and Anzalone for WILL and a battle between Te'o and Robertson for MIKE base, and who knows who the second nickel LB would be.
Texans - McKinney ILB, Cushing ILB. We've been waiting for years for Cushing to be done, and the drafting of Cunningham was the confirmation we all needed. However, thus far Cushing is his usual vocal self and the energy pulse of the training camp while there's barely a word about Cunningham's development. They clearly view McKinney as a core building block so he's not going anywhere, and at this point it seems like it might take an injury before Cunningham will get his chance. Cushing is given plenty of rest days so there should be first team snaps up for grabs, but so far I can't find any word on Cunningham playing with the 1s. The buzz is that he has been solid and that the coaching staff is riding him - which is a good signal - but Cunningham might need to bulk up and wait for his opportunity. Given his cover skills and tackle production history he could be an IDP superstar if and when he hits, but he has not come flying out the gates like Jarrad Davis or Raekwon.
Many of these situatons are bound to change, due to injury or performance, but a week into training camp this is a snap shot of where things seem to currently stand.