As the Chicago Bears make their way to Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais, Illinois for their 13th straight training camp, they will have a lot of questions to answer. In order to answer some of those questions, they will have to address some position battles.

There are spots on both sides of the ball that will be decided both in camp and in the upcoming preseason. Barring injuries, the offensive starters are set. It's just some reserve positions that need to settled.

The defense, however, is still uncertain. It may take final cuts to eventually decide who will take part in the rebuilding of this unit. Here are the six position battles to look for this year.

1. Backup Quarterback

There's no more Josh McCown to take the reins should Jay Cutler sustain another injury. So that leaves Jordan Palmer, Jimmy Clausen, and David Fales to vie for the No. 2 spot behind Cutler.

Palmer has only thrown 15 regular season passes since entering the NFL in 2007. Plus, he sustained a shoulder injury during the offseason workout program. Clausen hasn't started a game since 2010, he's also trying to return from major shoulder surgery, and he's only had few practices with the Bears under his belt.

Both of these men have a lot to prove over the next few weeks. As for the rookie Fales, he'll most likely be either the third-string signal caller or he'll be on the practice squad for developmental purposes.

2. The Reserve Running Backs

Matt Forte put up career numbers (1,933 total yards, 12 total touchdowns) in year one of Marc Trestman's offense, but there will come a point where he'll need to take a breather. Michael Bush is gone, so there's now an assembly line of players waiting to prove themselves.

Second-year man Michael Ford will probably get the first crack at backing up Forte. Even though he was mostly a special teams player last year, he knows the offense and his ability to contribute on special teams gives him a leg up on the competition.

Rookie Ka'Deem Carey (fourth round draft pick) will also get a fair share of reps in camp. After rushing for over 4,200 yards and 48 touchdowns at Arizona, the Bears will be anxious to see how he can contribute at the pro level.

The rest of the depth chart leaves much to be desired at the moment. Fourth-year back Shaun Draughn has only rushed the ball 63 times for 235 yards and two touchdowns in his entire career.

He will need to put up consistent numbers and may also need to show some special teams talent if he wants a roster spot in September. Beneath Draughn are two unproven rookies.

Undrafted costless agents Jordan Lynch and Senorise Perry have quite the uphill climb ahead of them. Lynch is a converted quarterback, and a Heisman Trophy finalist, while Perry was signed after getting a tryout at the rookie mini-camp in May.

Lynch will need to work on his pass blocking, but there's a good chance he'll be added to the practice squad. Perry will need to find a way to outshine every other back ahead of him on the depth chart.

3. Number Three Wide Receiver

Earl Bennett is gone so the Bears will need to find a dependable slot receiver. Eric Weems and Marquess Wilson are the front runners to fill Bennett's shoes. Weems has been a special teams mainstay since joining the Bears in 2012. If he wants to keep his job he'll need to contribute more.

Wilson only caught two passes as rookie last season, but the Bears' coaching staff believes he has untapped potential waiting to be unleashed. Then there's costless agent acquisition Josh Morgan.

He was initially expected to push Wilson and Weems for the third spot based on his career numbers alone, 199 receptions, 2,488 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. However, during the offseason Morgan got himself into some legal trouble, so now there is some concern as to whether or not he can stay out of trouble.

From there you have a mixture of well-traveled veterans in Micheal Spurlock, Armanti Edwards. In addition, there are also two young pass catchers in Terrance Tolliver and Chris Williams, who are still trying to navigate their way around the league.

4. Backup Tight End

Martellus Bennett is one of the most athletic and versatile tight ends that the Bears have had in quite sometime. But if he were to get injured there really isn't much depth behind him.

Dante Rosario, who was the primary backup last year, is mostly a special teams contributor. Plus, he was released and re-signed to the roster multiple times and only managed to catch one pass in 2013.

From there you have journeymen in Jeron Mastrud and Matthew Mulligan who are are looking for stability and solid playing time. Then there's Zach Miller who put up consistent numbers (45 catches for 470 yards) during three seasons in Jacksonville.

The only downside to Miller is that he hasn't played a regular season game since 2011. He spent 2012 on the injured reserve list and he was one of the final cuts by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2013.

5. Linebacking Corps

Aside from Lance Briggs, the rest of the starting group has yet to be determined. Veteran D.J. Williams and last year's second round draft pick Jon Bostic are both vying for the middle linebacker spot.

Williams suffered a season-ending pectoral muscle tear midway through last season, while Bostic struggled as a rookie. Williams needs to stay healthy while Bostic needs to show progression and improvement.

On the opposite side of Briggs, there is converted defensive end Shea McClellin and last year's fourth round selection Khaseem Greene fighting for a starting job. McClellin is looking to resurrect his career after two lackluster seasons on the defensive line.

Greene on the other hand also struggled after being thrown into the fire due to the mass amounts of injuries one year ago. This position battle will most likely be decided by the end of the preseason.

Also in the mix are undrafted rookie costless agent Christian Jones, whom the Bears are very high on. Then there's also another unrestricted costless agent in DeDe Lattimore who was signed out of the rookie mini-camp.

These men are followed by Jerry Franklin, Conor O'Neill, and Jordan Senn who will probably have to earn their keep on special teams.

6. Safety

The safety position is probably the one that struggled the most for the Bears last year. Chris Conte's constant mistakes and miscalculations probably cost the Bears a playoff spot. Major Wright didn't fair much better and now he's off the roster.

So during the offseason, general manager Phil Emery decided to overhaul the position. He re-signed veteran Craig Steltz primarily because of his contributions to the special teams unit.

He also added veterans M.D. Jennings and Ryan Mundy, along with former Dallas Cowboy Danny McCray, rookie Brock Vereen (who stood out during the mini-camps and OTAs), and five-time pro bowler Adrian Wilson.

Conte is the odd man out for the time being as he recovers from offseason shoulder surgery. He may not be ready for the start of training camp, and his ability to play in the preseason is already being questioned.

Once he is cleared to play, he will have to earn his starting job back. These next few weeks will be crucial for this team's development.