There is a quarterback competition taking place in Philadelphia, but it is not for the starting spot not is it for the backup job. Instead one of the heated position battles for the Eagles is for the third spot on the depth chart as both Tim Tebow and Matt Barkley seek to make the team in 2015. Sam Bradford and Mark Sanchez sit at the top for the quarterbacks, but Chip Kelly told the media that Tebow is stating his case to earn the third spot in 2015.
The Eagles shocked the world by signing Tebow in the offseason. It was just the final move in a series of questionable quarterback adjustments after Nick Foles was traded for Bradford and deals for Marcus Mariota were all denied. Kelly stressed that he had faith in Tebow and liked the battle between him and Barkley as the former New York Jets and Patriots quarterback has shown major improvements.
"I have seen an improvement from Tim since the day we got him in terms of his knowledge of what we're doing, understanding where everybody is," Kelly said, via the Delaware County Times. "There's a whole process, and for him what we have done is different than what he's done anywhere else. So in terms of learning our terminology and how we do things, I think each week you've seen an incremental bump in him, so we're excited to see where that takes him and it'll be a good competition as we get into August."
The addition of Tebow has Barkley fighting trade rumors. However, according to NJ.com there is little to no interest in the quarterback who has seen almost no field time in his short career in the NFL. Barkley told the media that he had every intention of winning the No.3 spot on the roster, but Kelly appears to be favoring Tebow and what he brings to the offense.
The other exciting position battle for the Eagles is taking place at the running back spot, but again it is not to see who will be the starter but more so who will be the backup. Ryan Mathews signed onto the team before DeMarco Murray arrived. They join Darren Sproles who is expecting to get his share of carries despite the presence of the leading rusher in the NFL. Sproles and Mathews will likely compete for time on the field. Sproles told the media that he was informed his number of carries and passes would not change despite the additions to the roster.
"It was frustrating," Sproles said, via Philly.com, "but you really just got to deal with it. They told me that my role wouldn't change."