The Atlanta Falcons have had Javier Arenas and Josh Wilson battling Robert McClain all preseason for the starting nickel cornerback role.

Is coach Mike Smith prepared to dub the winner prior to their exhibition finale?

“To me, this is the one that’s going to go down through the fourth game,” Smith said. “There is not going to be a declaration that our starting nickel is ‘this guy.’ ”

It's entirely possible that the trio will be rotated through during regular-season games, based on matchups.

"The nickel back will be partly based on who the opposition plays out of the slot," noted D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "Smith has long considered the nickel back a starter, since the Falcons play a nickel defense about 65 percent of the time."

At this time, ESPN Falcons reporter Vaughn McClure thinks McClain is in the lead.

"At nickel, incumbent Robert McClain seems to be in good position ahead of Javier Arenas and Josh Wilson," he wrote.