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Wednesday before the Hall of Fame game

Well, here we are. A game is about to be played and we just got to August, and there is still about a month's worth of training camp to go. Still, once the games arrive, things get into more of a rhythm, work for a week and then a game, and so on. The players like it when we get to that point (and so do writers.) This game is a little different, of course. There is only so much you will get out of your main guys in any preseason game and of course, in this one, Bruce Arians already said there will be no starters. All about the young guys. Makes sense. The starters barely play in the first preseason game normally -- and that game is still more than a week away.

This is about the young guys, as Arians said. Seeing what happens when the lights go on. Even last weekend, at the Red-White practice, which was still just a practice but had 25,000 in the stands, one particular rookie struggled with things he hadn't previously struggled with. That's the power of "under the lights" that coaches always talk about. There have been plenty of players who have looked good in the offseason and in camp and then looked different in preseason games. That won't get you on a roster.

-- It's early but we're already talking about injuries. Cornerback less so, especially with the signing of Tramon Williams and the return of Justin Bethel to practice. But inside linebacker will be interesting. Karlos Dansby was never going to play, but he's nursing a sore knee. Gabe Martin is out for a while with an Achilles problem. Newly-signed Philip Wheeler is sidelined with some sort of leg issue, which shouldn't be long, Arians said, but it will almost certainly keep him out Thursday. Of course, Deone Bucannon is still on PUP.

Rookie Haason Reddick will play (one starter who will be out there; I'm guessing there might be a couple of others), but Arians doesn't want it to be long. One guy to watch is Scooby Wright. Wright has had a solid offseason of work. He's good on special teams. If he can make a push in these preseason games, he's got a good chance to make the roster.

-- There's a lot of talk about Blaine Gabbert and his start Thursday, but there will also be a half of play for undrafted rookie QB Trevor Knight. Knight is a major longshot, but he'll have a couple opportunities. Thus far, Knight in camp has been the Knight people know from college -- good athlete, can run, inconsistent with accuracy.

-- This will become a growing storyline as we go, but while the starting offensive line is all but set, those backup spots on the 53-man roster are not. There are a lot of guys who are fighting for a place. I want to see Cole Toner, who is basically the backup center, in a game situation. Rookie guard Dorian Johnson, and rookie tackle Will Holden are third string trying to move up the depth chart. Unknowns like tackle Givens Price and guard Kaleb Johnson, both current second-stringers, who want to provide the upset by sticking around.

-- Of course, all the draft class tends to get your attention. I do like what I have seen from safety Budda Baker. It's tough, because of his stature, you're always going to compare him to Tyrann Mathieu and Mathieu is having a great camp as we go. But you can see why the front office was so enamored by Baker.

-- Don't know how much Robert Nkemdiche we will see, but I am anxious to watch him against another team. He's looked very good thus far.

-- I will be staying in Canton for the Kurt Warner Hall of Fame induction. I have a big Warner story posting Friday morning which I think you'll enjoy, and all our Warner coverage -- including a series of videos from our sit-down interview -- can be found by clicking here on our Warner Hall of Fame page.

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