Good question, and something to think about, but here’s what we’ve seen so far in terms of positions.
Arrington: has started outside and inside, inside the better fit.
Dennard: has only played outside. Stocky, perhaps not short-area quick enough to play inside?
Dowling: best fit is outside, though played a bit of fill-in at Money, aka Dime Linebacker.
So when you piece those three together, neither Dennard or Ras-I are really ideal in the slot. At least they haven’t tried Dennard there, he might be okay.
Hard to say how it will all play out, but Arrington will be a big piece, whether he’s only playing slot, or playing outside in base, then shifting inside in the sub. But for Dowling or Dennard to put Arrington to slot-only they’d really have to look outstanding.
So yeah, Dowling vs. Dennard is a tight competition, and really anything is possible. I think Logan Ryan will play into it as well, though he could really be the second-best slot guy on the whole team.
Overall, it’s a good group with their strength being outside, so it worries me a bit, especially if Arrington gets dinged. They’ve gotten murdered in the middle of the field the last couple years (see Cole on Bolden in the AFCCG), and I hope they can make strides in that area this year.
