With a nudge from the LA Times, here are the eight best training camp QB battles. Our early decision in italics.

New York Jets: Kellen Clemens vs. Mark Sanchez.
Bizarre situation in which two players with the same agent are vying for the top job. For a variety of reasons – new face of the franchise, jersey sales, financial investment, etc – Sanchez has the advantage. Actual play on the field? Clemens might make more sense, seeing as how he’s been with the team three years. The guess here is that short of injury, Sanchez starts on opening day. And when he’s locked in as the starter, CBS can make it official – Nantz and Simms will call the Jets’ first game in Houston. The pick: Sanchez.

San Francisco 49ers: Shaun Hill vs. Alex Smith
Smith was the No. 1 pick in 2005. He’s been dreadful (blame the coaching situation or his small hands if you want). Hill has started 10 games with San Fran, and won seven of them. This one’s a no-brainer. The pick: Hill.

Cleveland Browns: Brady Quinn vs. Derek Anderson
We’re bullish on Quinn. Anderson had one successful year (2007) against a joke of a schedule. The franchise foolishly sunk a lot of money into Anderson, but we’re of the opinion that Quinn does everything better and if they don’t start him, the year will be a disaster. The pick: Quinn.

Detroit Lions: Matthew Stafford vs. Daunte Culpepper
Culpepper’s shed some weight from his bulky frame and presumably still throws a great deep ball. Do you give Stafford half a season before starting him? If you throw the $41 million man into the mix early, can you shatter his confidence? Stafford’s obviously the future, but there are some fierce defensive teams on the schedule early (Minnesota, Chicago, Pittsburgh), so we’d name Culpepper the starter and ease Stafford during the Cleveland, Green Bay, Cincinnati stretch. The pick: Culpepper.

Minnesota Vikings: Sage Rosenfels vs. Tarvaris Jackson
Probably the biggest toss-up. Jackson knows the offense and knows the players. He took the team to the postseason (where he was terrible against Philly). Rosenfels has a better arm. He’s had his moments in Houston (good and bad). What we’d really like to see happen is Minnesota get Mike Vick and throw him into the mix midway through the season when he becomes eligible. Week one? All you want is a QB to manage the game and let AP and the defense do the rest. The pick: Rosenfels.

jeff garcia and wifeyOakland Raiders: Jeff Garcia vs. JaMarcus Russell
Absolutely no debate here. We haven’t heard one compelling argument for Russell (and winning his final two games of 2008 doesn’t count). Garcia’s a proven winner and based on the schedule, he’s got enough moxie to get these guys to 5-2 going into San Diego prior to the bye week. The pick: Garcia.

Denver Broncos: Kyle Orton vs. Chris Simms
Surprised this one’s even listed as a ‘battle.’ Orton had some success in Chicago. Simms was a high school legend in New Jersey, underwhelmed a bit in Texas, and hasn’t done much to impress in the NFL (ouch!). The pick: Orton

Tampa Bay: Byron Leftwich vs. Luke McCown vs. Josh Freeman
Is there a less sexy competition? A portly guy whose best days are behind him; a guy who we also confuse with Josh McCown, and a rookie from Kansas State who the scouts love, but has never impressed us. We’d toss Freeman into the fire and have him become best buds with Kellen Winslow, who should be his top target this season. The pick: Freeman.