During an NFL season a backup can come in and take a starters spot. They could enter the game, and propel themselves into the every week lineup, because of injury, or bad play by the person in front of them, or just because they’re outplaying them while sharing carries. Like, when Dak Prescott came in for the injured Tony Romo and pretty much ended his playing career.
These are three backups that if given an opportunity they will steal a job away from the person in front of them.
3: D’Onta Foreman, RB, Houston Texans
Foreman was the Texans’ third-round selection in the 2017 NFL draft. He currently sits third on Houston’s depth chart, behind Alfred Blue and last year’s starter, Lamar Miller. However, as proven last year, both are injury prone which would open the door for Foreman to literally take the ball and run with the job.
Early reports out of Houston’s rookie camp is that Foreman will be competing with Blue for the backup role during Summer camp. If he’s able to outperform him during camp, and preseason games, this will open the door for his ascension to the lead back for the team.
As his draft profile said about the rookie running back, “Proved he could shoulder heavy workload while cranking out consistent production week after week. Had tremendous conversion rate when short yardage was needed.” he would be a welcome addition to an offense that struggled to convert on third-down. As the team ranked 22nd overall, converting only 37.3% of the time.
2. Jaylon Smith, MLB, Dallas Cowboys
Jaylon Smith was the Cowboys second-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. However, an injury in his final game as a member of Notre Dame, sidelined him for the entire ’16 season. Now, he’s been working out and seems ready to return to the field for Dallas. He’s listed behind Anthony Hitchens on the Cowboys depth chart, currently.
However, if Stephen Jones’s assessment on how Smith is rehabbing is correct, he could overtake Hitchens during the 2017 season. “Where he sits today he is definitely going to be a big contributor for us,” Jones said recently on KESN ESPN 103.3 FM.
“What our medical people believe, he should only improve. He gets more and more nerve functions every day. He is only going to get better. As we watch him move and gain confidence, it’s certainly encouraging. We just believe he is going to be a big time contributor for the Dallas Cowboys.”
1. Kevin Johnson, CB, Houston Texans
Kevin Johnson enters the 2017 behind Kareem Jackson, as the two battle to see who can replace the void that A.J. Bouye left when he departed for Jacksonville during Free Agency. Johnson had a promising start to his 2016 season, before a foot injury in October shut him down for the remainder of the season.
But, when healthy, Johnson was putting up huge numbers. In the last game before his injury in 2016, he had 10 tackles against the Indianapolis Colts, while holding the speedy wide receiver, Phillip Dorsett, in check.
With this spot being decided between the two during camp, and preseason, it’ll be interesting to see how Johnson does with the spotlight on him.
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