Brodie Croyle

The one-time “quarterback of the future” in Kansas City will now need at least one major injury this season to see any playing time. He’ll enter training camp in a battle with Ingle Martin to be the Chiefs’ No. 3 passer.

Croyle enters camp as the starter, though he really struggled last year. The ability to throw the intermediate pass was supposed to be his strength, and it was, though that’s not saying much: 74.8 FAS QB rating. Compare that, though, to his pathetic 4.4 YPA on first down and 5.5 overall, and you wonder why the Chiefs didn’t show more urgency in finding an alternative to their former second-round draft pick. Huard is at least a very competent backup. His YPA of 6.8 is about average, and he was efficient on first down (7.8 YPA) and showed good a good arm (84 FAS QB rating). Note that the Chiefs didn’t significantly alter their downfield passing no matter the QB – 22.6 percent of Huard’s attempts were 11- to-20 yards from scrimmage compared to 23.2 percent for Croyle. The Chiefs have a new offensive coordinator in Chan Gailey, who has been out of the NFL since 2001. Gailey’s Dolphins offenses in 2000 and 2001 were very run heavy even though they had the non-descript Lamar Smith at tailback. So there’s no upside in this passing game, despite some decent weapons, most notably second-year wide receiver Dwayne Bowe and, of course, veteran tight end Tony Gonzalez.

Fantasy owners and Chiefs fans alike will keep close tabs on the open quarterback competition brewing between Brodie Croyle and Damon Huard this summer. It’s a battle of youth vs. experience, with Huard and his 10 years of NFL expertise attempting to delay Croyle’s coronation as Kansas City’s quarterback of the future. Coach Herm Edwards doesn’t shy away from playing young guys with talent, and Croyle will have every opportunity to win the starting job. He has the arm strength, accuracy and leadership skills to be a productive pro starter, but don’t be too quick to discard the possibility that Huard begins the year as the starter before ceding the role to Croyle sometime midseason. If and when Croyle does get the job, he’s going to take some time to adjust, and with the Chiefs’ receiving corps in a state of flux (Eddie Kennison and Tony Gonzalez are getting up there in years, while youngsters Dwayne Bowe and Jeff Webb are still developing), expect to see a lot of handoffs to Larry Johnson and few productive fantasy outings for Croyle.

Viewed as the team's future when Trent Green eventually retires, Croyle will be likely open the season No. 3 on the depth chart.