Positional Battles: Where do they stand with cuts looming?

The third preseason game usually draws a lot of attention. Teams open up a little more of their playbooks, get a longer look at their starters, and get a more accurate image of what their team will look like going into the season. The Cardinals may have pulled the short end of the stick on Sunday night, but you could see the distinction between the players who are leading their positional battles, and the guys who are chasing that player. Let's take a look at a few battles that have drawn quite a bit of attention from the fans and media, and see where those are as of last night.

Kicker:

For awhile there, Catanzaro was leading the race without any sort of competition from Jay Feely. Then Catanzaro was hit with a wave of poor practices, and fans quickly wondered if Feely would pull it out yet again. But despite his poor practices, Catanzaro has showed up in games. Catanzaro has connected on all of his field goal attempts this preseason, while Feely has missed one for 48 yards. Catanzaro's kick offs have been "solid" whereas Feely's have been "adequate" according to Bruce Arians. Can Catanzaro keep this up? As of now he looks to be the clear favorite, with Feely having a short week, to catch up, if he can make it past tomorrows cuts.

Swing-Tackle:

The battle between last years left tackle Bradley Sowell, and newly signed Max Starks looks to be going until next week. Sowell has been atrocious the last two games, being called for four false starts in two weeks, and typically coming off the ball slowly. I have not seen much from Starks, but if I had to choose, my guy would be Starks with the veteran presence he brings.

3rd and 4th Receiver:

If last nights snap counts are any representation for the season, it looks as if the Brown Bros. (trademark pending) are ahead of Ted Ginn Jr on the roster. Jaron and John have both had excellent camps and with Ginn being the teams primary punt and kickoff returner, the two look primed to be ahead of him on the depth chart.

Were there any other battles that you were watching last night? Let us know in the comments!