7 key depth chart battles to pay attention to during Buffalo Bills minicamp

Daequan Hardy vs. Khalil Shakir

One position that really is unclear at this point is punt returner as the team has Khalil Shakir, who has returned punts in the past, and probably would be the favorite. However, Shakir is expected to have a bigger role as a receiver in this offense and the coaching staff may want to limit the workload on special teams knowing how important he will be to Josh Allen and the offense.

If that is the case, then rookie Daequan Hardy would probably be the next logical option to step into that role. The sixth-round pick out of Penn State was excellent at returning punts last season and returned two of his 17 punt returns for touchdowns.

In an ideal world, Hardy can gain the confidence of the coaching staff to be able to return punts and win the job early. This would free up Shakir to focus exclusively on being a wide receiver but if Hardy struggles, particularly with ball security, the team might not have much of a choice.