Chargers: The two important position battles of the preseason finale

1. The battle at running back:

Last season, rookie running back Austin Ekeler has a promising preseason that concluded with a great, 100+ yard performance that gave him the backup running job to Melvin Gordon. This was great for the Los Angeles Chargers, who needed running back depth behind Gordon and found someone that found a good amount of playing time last season.

This year, the Chargers entered the offseason with virtually nothing to show behind Gordon and Ekeler. Although the two backs will see the bulk of the snaps, the Chargers still needed to find a viable third and maybe even fourth option at running back.

Now, heading into the final game of the preseason, the Chargers have two potential candidates for that third-string role. One is Detrez Newsome, who is having a promising, busy, preseason and is getting comparisons to Ekeler last season.

The other is Justin Jackson, a running back with promise selected in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft that is making his preseason debut on Friday.

On paper, this is not an extremely enticing battle as Newsome has become far and away the favorite with his preseason workload and the lack thereof for Jackson.

However, the team seemed to be high on Jackson entering training camp and a great performance could easily shift the tide and make the decision that much harder. Either way, it will be fun to watch.