Good o-line article

[bradjock]

From the Sun Times Neil Hayes: http://www.suntimes.com/sports/football/be...nsive-line.html

 

It answers most of the o-line questions I've wondered about, such as:

 

Question #1. Martz likes finesse guys who can block and Tice likes beef. Who wins? This quote sounds like Tice does,

 

‘"We’ve kind of shifted in that we want bigger people,’’ Angelo said. ‘‘So we’re looking for tackles who can play guard rather than guards who can play center. So there’s a little bit of a shift in our thinking that way philosophically. I know coach Tice wants bigger people. Staffs we’ve had before, they weren’t as committed to that thinking. But there’s a little bit more of a shift. So when we look at offensive linemen, we’d like to think that the tackles and guards can be interchangeable.’’'

 

Question #2. We liked Chris Williams at LT and moved him because our guards were depleted. Why are we focused on the tackle position? Apparently Williams sucks,

 

"There even have been discussions about moving Chris Williams to center, which would be a stunning admission for a team that drafted Williams 14th overall in 2008 to be the left tackle of the future . . . It wouldn’t be an ideal situation — not by a long shot. But after playing Williams at right tackle, left tackle and left guard with disappointing results, it might be the Bears’ last chance to find him a long-term position where he can be effective. It also would give Angelo a chance to focus on other positions in the draft."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[defiantgiant]

Question #2. We liked Chris Williams at LT and moved him because our guards were depleted. Why are we focused on the tackle position? Apparently Williams sucks,

 

"There even have been discussions about moving Chris Williams to center, which would be a stunning admission for a team that drafted Williams 14th overall in 2008 to be the left tackle of the future . . . It wouldn’t be an ideal situation — not by a long shot. But after playing Williams at right tackle, left tackle and left guard with disappointing results, it might be the Bears’ last chance to find him a long-term position where he can be effective. It also would give Angelo a chance to focus on other positions in the draft."

 

Just to clarify, there aren't any quotes from Angelo about Williams moving to center, or even the dreaded "unnamed source", it's just Neil Hayes saying "there have been discussions" about it. I'd bet a lot of money that this is misinformation and Williams never plays a snap at center. For one thing, he doesn't have the anchor - put him against a nose tackle every down, and he'd make our interior line collapse even more than it already does. For another, it's all well and good to have guards the size of tackles, but there's a reason centers are the shortest guys on the line. Jay Cutler's only 6'3"...how's he going to see the field when the guy standing in front of him is 6'6" and change? I can't think of any team in the league that has a center taller than 6'4", and most of them are like 6'2".

 

If they're ready to move on from Kreutz and want to shift somebody to center, I'd go with Garza. He's actually got experience at the position, plus he's bigger and stronger than Kreutz. He could bridge the gap for a year while Tice works with Edwin Williams or a rookie.