Very rarely do three-way QB battles work. Receiving one-third of the reps through off-season OTAs (organized team activities) and then during training camp is not the ideal way to prepare two young quarterbacks trying to prove themselves nor a veteran looking to grow for an NFL season. Its also difficult on a locker room who has their own opinions on who should be leading their football team.

The Seattle Seahawks and Miami Dolphins are two teams looking to dispel the three-way QB battle debate as training camp fast approaches.

My co-host Zig Fracassi and I caught up with RBKR specialist Leon Washington of the Seahawks on SiriusXM NFL Radio to get his thoughts of how the battle is unfolding in Seattle.

Ill tell you what now, its a battleIts a battle, Leon said, Tarvaris Jackson, Im telling you what man, Tavaris has turned it onHe has turned it on and has not made this easy.

Jackson is coming off his best NFL season statistically as he heads into his seventh year as a professional. Many considered Jackson a raw prospect when he was drafted 2nd round by the Vikings out of Alabama State in 2006. Playing last year with a torn pectoral muscle Jackson was able to win seven games while completing 60.2 percent of his passes for 3,091 yards with 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Jackson is only 29 years old, has led a team to the playoffs in the past and should be embarking on the prime years of his NFL career.

This offseason, Seattle signed free agent quarterback Matt Flynn of the Packers to a three-year, 26 million deal, 8 million of which is guaranteed Flynn in 2012. Its hard to imagine Flynn holding a clip board for that type of money. The Seahawks also drafted Russell Wilson from Wisconsin in the third round, who head coach Pete Carroll declared, hes in the competition, he showed us enough, after the teams recent rookie mini-camp.

Carroll continues his mantra of promoting competition, but could he be adversely affecting his team early in the 2012 season until a decision is made? The Seattle locker-room is already evaluating the situation as it is unfolding and picking their leader.

Leon Washington assessed the situation further and weighed in on the new additions at quarterback by stating,

On Jackson: To me, right now, Tarvaris looks the best, thats just my opinion right now.

On Flynn: You can tell his swagger. You can tell he came from Green Bay where a great lineage of QBs comes from thatthat philosophy, that system.

On Wilson: Man, wow -- if hes three inches taller, I mean, he possibly could have been the best QB coming out in the draft. That kid has it all. He puts the ball on the money, has swagger in the huddle and commands respect as a rookie.

Leon finished the interview with, I cant speak for coach Carroll, but it is a battle right now. Whoever comes out of this on top, its gonna be right for the team.

Most head coaches like to decide on their starting quarterback by the third preseason game. Miami Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin recently told the Palm Beach Post that's the case because that is when the starting offense plays most of the game.

Conceptually, a three-way quarterback battle may be right due to fairness, but is it properly preparing the team at the most critical position on the field? Lets wait patiently as Seattle and Miami prepare to settle this debate once and for all.

Ask anyone in Chicago who the standout of training camp 2.0 was and you'll hear one name: Kirby Dach.

“He has all the potential in the world,” Patrick Kane said. “He can be a top player in the league.”

“He’s got the potential to be a great player in this league and a great player for the Blackhawks for a long time," echoed Brent Seabrook.

Upon hearing this enormous praise from a pair of three-time Stanley Cup champions and joining the hype train myself, I couldn’t help but think: Are we putting unfair expectations on a kid who’s still only 19?

The answer: Nope. Because he can handle it.

Dach looks like a completely different player after finally having an “offseason” to recharge, both mentally and physically. And it’s showing in the postseason.

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Through three games in the Stanley Cup Qualifiers, Dach has four points — all assists — and a team-best plus-4 rating; in total, he’s been on the ice for eight of the Blackhawks’ 13 goals so far. He became the first Blackhawks rookie to register at least one point in his first three postseason games since Eddie Olczyk in 1985. 

All those numbers are great, but here’s the eye-opener: Dach is averaging 20:21 of ice time in the postseason, which trails only Patrick Kane (22:21) among team forwards. He led all Blackhawks forwards with 23:21 of ice time in Wednesday’s Game 3 comeback win over the Edmonton Oilers, which was, by far, a career high for Dach, who averaged 14:16 of ice time during the regular season.

The Blackhawks are giving him an enormous amount of responsibility, whether it's top-six minutes at even strength, power-play time on the first unit and penalty kill reps. And Dach is handling it about as well as you could ask for.

"He loves responsibility and he thrives on it," head coach Jeremy Colliton said. "We knew, based on how he looked in training camp, that he was ready to take a bigger role here. He's been great. He's been as advertised."

Dach isn't just making an impact on the scoresheet, either. He's doing the little things right, too.

Olli Maatta scored the first goal in Game 3 after his shot from the point got past Oilers goaltender Mikko Koskinen, but that puck doesn't go in without the 6-foot-4, 197-pound Dach wreaking havoc in front of the net. Those plays don't go unnoticed inside the locker room.

"It shows that the coach trusts in your abilities to get a job done," Dach said of the added responsibility. "And as a player, it's a welcoming challenge. You want to be put in those situations and succeed in them."

One of the main reasons why the Blackhawks selected Dach third overall in 2019 was because of the way he elevated his game in the Western Hockey League playoffs. He was the engine for the Saskatoon Blades and the focal point for opponents yet thrived off the attention.

“He does all the things that can wow you, but then he does the other stuff, too," GM Stan Bowman said the day the Blackhawks drafted Dach. "He was great at stripping pucks, he was great at backchecking, he was great at the physical play when the series got pretty intense in the playoffs and it was clear they were targeting him. He not only took it, he gave it back. It was impressive to see him raise his game at a time of year when it matters most, which is playoff hockey.

"You watch the NHL playoffs and you see how intense it can be and then you look at the way he plays, and you can see that that game translates."

It sure does.

Whether he can be a big-time point producer in the NHL remains to be seen, but it's clear Dach is the kind of player whose game is better suited for the playoffs than the regular season. And we're seeing why.

Jonathan Toews was dominant in Game 1's 6-4 win and he was back at it in Game 3. But, with the special teams woes the Oilers have been causing the Hawks in touting a power play that was No. 1 in the NHL at the time of the pause and a penalty kill that was No. 2, not to mention the top two points leaders in the league during the regular season (Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid), Chicago needed some unlikely heroes to emerge in the series.

Enter Blackhawks defensemen Connor Murphy, Olli Maatta and Slater Koekkoek.

A look at the GWG that’ll be credited to Murphy ⬇️ #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/mnqGkpQiid

— Scott King (@ScottKingMedia) August 6, 2020

With Game 3 tied 3-3 and just 1:16 remaining early Thursday morning, Murphy fired a wrist shot to put the Hawks ahead. It even appeared as if he scored the goal himself at first, but Toews was credited with his second goal of the game on the play and Murphy with the primary assist. The D-man finished Game 3 with a +/- rating of +1 in 21:55 of ice time.

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"Just a lucky bounce," a modest Murphy said of his play that helped the Blackhawks take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series, having the Oilers facing elimination in Friday's Game 4. "Didn’t throw (a) hard one at the net. I saw Tazer had good position. He was all alone in front, should be able to get a tip on it. ... Just those last minutes of games, every faceoff’s so huge, obviously that one being a big one to get a shot off."

Koekkoek got the primary assist on Matthew Highmore's first career postseason goal which tied the game 3-3 at 14:13 of the third.

Nice pass to the open area from Kane, good screen by Dach, 2-game goal streak for Määttä. #Blackhawks pic.twitter.com/DFWg8SxSKp

— Scott King (@ScottKingMedia) August 6, 2020

Maatta scored the first goal of the game 9:14 into the opening frame off a pass from Patrick Kane and picked up the secondary assist on Highmore's goal. 

"He's got experience from playing in the playoffs, it's nice to have that, and he's done a great job defensively, killing penalties and he's calm back there," Blackhawks coach Jeremy Colliton said of Maatta, who won two Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins before coming to the Hawks, after the game. "He's been able to chip in offensively, too, that's always a bonus. Our D as a whole are doing a great job of getting pucks through and getting it to the net, and we're going to need to continue to do that."

Related: Blackhawks overcome special teams woes, complete comeback in Game 3

Maatta has a two-game goal streak in the series and he and his D-partner, Koekkoek, were the only blueliners in Game 2's 6-3 loss with a positive +/- rating (+2). Maatta had one goal in Game 2 and Koekkoek a goal and an assist.

"I think we do a great job whenever we get in the zone, our forwards do a great job holding onto the puck. That makes them collapse a little bit. They do a good job of giving us the puck with a little more time. It hasn't been only me and Kooks," Maatta said of the Hawks blueline's contributions to the series. "It's been Haaner (Calvin de Haan) and Murph and Duncs (Duncan Keith) and Boqi (Adam Boqvist). They're getting pucks through and it feels like every time we get it to the net our forwards are in good position, battling for them, getting rebounds, getting tips. It makes it tough for them."

According to Murphy, with the way the Blackhawks' forwards and D have been effectively collaborating in the offensive zone, it's best for Chicago's defensemen to just keep firing pucks on net when they can.

"It’s always part of your game plan," Murphy said. "Especially our forwards draw good attention when they’re entering the zone, knowing that we’ve got a lot of firepower in them, a lot of skill and strength. They do a good job of drawing wingers down to them. It leaves a couple of open shots. Kooks and Olli have been hot lately and have really smart shots they get through, go in. That’s always a good plan."