From today’s b the paper…

And they’re off and running. A week and a half into the three-quarterback horse race for the right to get clobbered behind a crumbling offensive line on September 7, the question on the mind of every local armchair quarterback is “Who’s leading the pack?” The answer to the big question isn’t going to be satisfying.

There isn’t a frontrunner right now. And no, that’s not because they’re all tearing it up at McDaniel College. It’s actually been far from it. If this really were a horse race, Kyle Boller, Troy Smith and Joe Flacco would all be looking like Big Brown. The Belmont Stakes Big Brown. At least that’s better than their blindside protectors, who look a lot like Eight Belles. Enough of this ridiculous extended metaphor. Let’s talk football.

The Ravens’ offense has failed to get on track for myriad reasons. It’s easy to chalk up the struggles to injuries on the offensive line, Cam Cameron’s new offense or those mean bullies on defense who have stolen the offense’s lunch money for years. I’m sure those are all factors to some extent, but the real issue here is quarterback play.

All three passers have been inconsistent since the start of training camp, spraying passes all over the place, throwing behind receivers and chucking up interceptions. Where’s Stoney Case when you need him? OK, it hasn’t been that bad.

What makes this particular position battle interesting to watch is that each quarterback brings something different to the offense. The former Heisman winner Smith has mobility and moxie. The QB of the future Flacco has a rocket launcher for a right arm. And the former starter Boller — who looks like he’s simply trying to not lose the job by throwing short underneath coverage — has experience on his side, even if some Ravens fans would like to wash that from their memory banks.

I’m not resigned to the fact that the trio is totally mediocre just yet. In fact, I actually think the Ravens will be in good hands at the quarterback position — a year from now — when Flacco is ready to take the reigns in 2009 with the more-than-capable Smith waiting in the wings if he should falter.

Some other interesting position battles are shaping up with three newcomers giving veteran starters a run for their money. Ray Rice has really stood out, which is no small feat for a 5-foot-8 running back charged with the task of zigzagging through giant interior linemen. The Ravens are utilizing Rice in a lot of different ways, including screen plays, short passes and punt returns. It looks like they plan to use him on third downs, provided he can adequately help out with pass protection. Meanwhile, Willis McGahee has watched Rice get the majority of snaps the past couple of days. McGahee better get his act in gear soon or Rice will be cutting into his playing time during the season, too.

Sixth-rounder Haruki Nakamura, a safety from Cincinnati, has a great attitude, a good work ethnic and plenty of smarts. He has an outside shot of unseating Dawan Landry at strong safety.

And finally, the unthinkable could happen. Matt Stover, Mr. Raven himself, has been in heated camp competitions before, but he may have met his match. Stover is trying to fend off Piotr Czech at camp, but his biggest opponent might be Father Time. Stover never had a big leg, but at 40, he is struggling with long-range kicks while Czech is booming them through the uprights — Czech nailed a 56-yard field goal yesterday morning.

Matt Vensel is a content creator for b. Contact him at matt@bthesite.com

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