The Oakland Raiders are heading into the 2013 season with battles at various positions and one that is very interesting is at punter with veteran Chris Kluwe and strong-legged Marquette King, as both players have shown that they are deserving of the starting spot but only one will end up being selected by head coach Dennis Allen.
According to ESPN.com, both players have done well in workouts and practices leading into the preseason and after King played better in the opening preseason game, he could end up ahead when it comes to the starting job. Kluwe was released by the Minnesota Vikings earlier in the year after the team drafted a punter (and were likely sick of him being outspoken) and he signed with the Raiders in the hopes of getting the starting job there after Shane Lecher left for the Houston Texans and that was a big void to fill for the Raiders, as he is likely a Hall of Fame caliber player.
Dennis Allen said that he was improvement from King after the opening preseason game and said that both King and Kluwe are battling at the position and it could be either one heading into the season. The Raiders like King for his potential and his strong leg, but they also like the consistency and dependability of a veteran like Kluwe. King may end up getting the nod so that Raiders can hang onto him and his potential and the starting job could be decided with the way the two players look in the second preseason game this week.
The Raiders are hoping to get back rookie DJ Hayden and get him medically cleared for contact as he is recovering from surgery and it is likely that he will return for the third preseason game against the Chicago Bears. Hayden was the top draft pick for the team and he has high expectations heading into 2013.
"I've seen improvement," Oakland coach Dennis Allen said of King on Monday. "I've seen his consistency get better and I think that's a good battle. I think that's a good competition between him and Kluwe. Marquette, he's a guy that's working extremely hard and he's gotten better. The consistency with him as far as the punts, as far as the get-off times -- the little details are the things that we're still hoping to see him continue to improve. I think the last week or so, I've seen a lot of improvement out of him, so I think it's a nice competition we have going there."
