tshanno Posted April 27, 2011 Report Share Posted April 27, 2011 http://bearingthenews.com/?p=1427 Moving Williams to Center a Risky Business Neil Hayes at the Chicago Sun-Times says that there have been discussions at Halas Hall about moving offensive tackle/guard Chris Williams to center (http://www.suntimes.com/sports/football/bears/5040308-417/bigger-is-better-as-bears-look-to-add-to-offensive-line.html). Its an interesting idea but I really question whether it will work. As we consider this possibility, its worth noting the comments that Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano made about moving guards to the center position last month (http://blogs.sun-sentinel.com/sports_football_dolphins/2011/03/upgrading-center-spot-is-a-dolphins-priority.html): “It legitimately is the hardest position up front to play. People are going to tell you left tackle because of who they are going against, but if you draft the right left tackle, which we’ve been fortunate to do, that really isn’t the case. If you’re trying to put a squad peg into a round hole then that makes left tackle a hard position. Not many of us try to do that. “With center, everyone has this guard and can make him a center, or you can take this undersized (guy) and make him a center. That really isn’t the case. It doesn’t work in a lot of situations. “You have to have some kind of center background in their history, in their past, for that to work well.” “From a mental standpoint it’s challenging. Practice is one thing. In the game it’s a completely different, much like the quarterback. When it starts to hit the fan out there at that position things speed up and you need it to slow down.” I’m not saying that the Bears shouldn’t try Williams at center. But I’m very wary of the idea. Williams didn’t make the transition to guard very well and the move to center would be tougher. He really needs to be settled into a position and allowed to develop. This kind of change would set his timetable back even further. Williams may never reach his potential as the Bears shuffle him from position to position. Its a big risk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason Posted April 27, 2011 Report Share Posted April 27, 2011 Not only is it a risky proposition because of the potential for Williams' failure, but the added risk with the rest of the OL is important to highlight. Williams may be the best OT AND OG on the team, and they want to move HIM to Center!!! If this is honestly a strategy the Bears plan on using, then there needs to be even more focus on the OL in the draft and during post-CBA agreement. Otherwise, there is the potential - and I can't believe I'm saying this - for the OL to get worse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TerraTor Posted April 27, 2011 Report Share Posted April 27, 2011 my god Williams is the best Ot or Og on the team???? Thats scary. Anyway...... He cant do worse there then at any other spot. What an awful draft pick. Another Jerry's Kid Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dawhizz Posted April 27, 2011 Report Share Posted April 27, 2011 Can someone tell me the last time a position change worked for the Bears? They moved Hester to CB, only to move him back to WR. They moved Idonije to DT, only to find him later have success after moving back to DE. Hell, they drafted Dustin Lyman to be a TE and that flopped. Jerry Azumah's about the only success story I can think of. Can we stop with the position changes please? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
defiantgiant Posted April 27, 2011 Report Share Posted April 27, 2011 Can someone tell me the last time a position change worked for the Bears? They moved Hester to CB, only to move him back to WR. They moved Idonije to DT, only to find him later have success after moving back to DE. Hell, they drafted Dustin Lyman to be a TE and that flopped. Jerry Azumah's about the only success story I can think of. Can we stop with the position changes please? There's this college free safety named Brian Ur-something that I keep hearing about... EDIT: Also, I can't imagine a worse position for Williams than center. The guy's problem (to my highly untrained eye) is that he doesn't have much sand in his pants. It wasn't that glaring a problem at tackle, but he gets absolutely pushed around at guard. If they're actually thinking seriously about moving him to center (which I really doubt) he's going to get ragdolled six games a year by Raji, Williams and Suh. I think the best thing to do with him is just accept that his lack of power means he's a left tackle only, put him there, and leave him there. Is he going to be an elite LT? I doubt it very much. But in the limited action he's had there, he's been adequate, with flashes of being very good. Everybody seems to have forgotten that this guy held his own against Jared Allen, in a game where he had a LOT of one-on-ones. For that whole stretch between Pace's benching last year and Williams' injury early this year, he played pretty well. Nothing stellar, but good enough to win with. They need to concentrate on acquiring guys to man the interior line, and let Williams do what they drafted him to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madlithuanian Posted April 27, 2011 Report Share Posted April 27, 2011 Wow... Are they that depserate to try to prove they didn't botch the Williams pick? http://bearingthenews.com/?p=1427 Moving Williams to Center a Risky Business Neil Hayes at the Chicago Sun-Times says that there have been discussions at Halas Hall about moving offensive tackle/guard Chris Williams to center (http://www.suntimes.com/sports/football/bears/5040308-417/bigger-is-better-as-bears-look-to-add-to-offensive-line.html). Its an interesting idea but I really question whether it will work. As we consider this possibility, its worth noting the comments that Dolphins head coach Tony Sparano made about moving guards to the center position last month (http://blogs.sun-sentinel.com/sports_football_dolphins/2011/03/upgrading-center-spot-is-a-dolphins-priority.html): “It legitimately is the hardest position up front to play. People are going to tell you left tackle because of who they are going against, but if you draft the right left tackle, which we’ve been fortunate to do, that really isn’t the case. If you’re trying to put a squad peg into a round hole then that makes left tackle a hard position. Not many of us try to do that. “With center, everyone has this guard and can make him a center, or you can take this undersized (guy) and make him a center. That really isn’t the case. It doesn’t work in a lot of situations. “You have to have some kind of center background in their history, in their past, for that to work well.” “From a mental standpoint it’s challenging. Practice is one thing. In the game it’s a completely different, much like the quarterback. When it starts to hit the fan out there at that position things speed up and you need it to slow down.” I’m not saying that the Bears shouldn’t try Williams at center. But I’m very wary of the idea. Williams didn’t make the transition to guard very well and the move to center would be tougher. He really needs to be settled into a position and allowed to develop. This kind of change would set his timetable back even further. Williams may never reach his potential as the Bears shuffle him from position to position. Its a big risk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madlithuanian Posted April 27, 2011 Report Share Posted April 27, 2011 Different... He can on board as a linebacker. I don't recall any intention of him playing safety in the pros. ...and it was also under the Jauron/Hatley regime I think. I think the arguement is more flip flopping while in the NFL...not having a natural college position and then changing it upon entrace to the NFL. I do tend to agree with you on Williams. He needs to stay at T. If he can't handle it, he needs to be bounced. There's this college free safety named Brian Ur-something that I keep hearing about... EDIT: Also, I can't imagine a worse position for Williams than center. The guy's problem (to my highly untrained eye) is that he doesn't have much sand in his pants. It wasn't that glaring a problem at tackle, but he gets absolutely pushed around at guard. If they're actually thinking seriously about moving him to center (which I really doubt) he's going to get ragdolled six games a year by Raji, Williams and Suh. I think the best thing to do with him is just accept that his lack of power means he's a left tackle only, put him there, and leave him there. Is he going to be an elite LT? I doubt it very much. But in the limited action he's had there, he's been adequate, with flashes of being very good. Everybody seems to have forgotten that this guy held his own against Jared Allen, in a game where he had a LOT of one-on-ones. For that whole stretch between Pace's benching last year and Williams' injury early this year, he played pretty well. Nothing stellar, but good enough to win with. They need to concentrate on acquiring guys to man the interior line, and let Williams do what they drafted him to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockren Posted April 28, 2011 Report Share Posted April 28, 2011 Wow... Are they that depserate to try to prove they didn't botch the Williams pick? Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockren Posted April 28, 2011 Report Share Posted April 28, 2011 my god Williams is the best Ot or Og on the team???? Thats scary. Anyway...... He cant do worse there then at any other spot. What an awful draft pick. Another Jerry's Kid I agree...it's a good thing he isn't our best anything. I would cut the cord on Chris Williams as he hasn't excelled anywhere upfront as he is far too soft. I'm hoping everything works out for the Bears and they can grab a LT to groom while Frank Omiyale holds down LT for the very short term. I'm rooting for Edwin Williams and Lance Louis to pull down one of the G spots while the Bears bring in a G via FA....whenever (if) that starts. I feel good about Webb on the right side and Olin returning for his 500th season at Center. The Bears need a lot of work up front, but they're kidding themselves if they feel Chris Williams will be a part of that solution moving forward. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
defiantgiant Posted April 28, 2011 Report Share Posted April 28, 2011 Different... He can on board as a linebacker. I don't recall any intention of him playing safety in the pros. ...and it was also under the Jauron/Hatley regime I think. Oh yeah, I know. I just threw it out there because he played free safety/rover in college and when he declared for the draft, apparently at least 10 teams thought he could play free safety in the NFL. I think the arguement is more flip flopping while in the NFL...not having a natural college position and then changing it upon entrace to the NFL. I do tend to agree with you on Williams. He needs to stay at T. If he can't handle it, he needs to be bounced. Yeah, that doesn't seem to help anybody. How much better would Danieal Manning be if they'd just stuck him at SS from day one? With Williams, I don't think it's quite as bad: every team shuffles linemen from time to time, usually when somebody gets hurt. I'm not worried that spending a season at guard could hurt Williams' career, they just need to figure out his best position going forward and then stick him there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madlithuanian Posted April 28, 2011 Report Share Posted April 28, 2011 Heck, I'm sure he could have played free safety! The man is a beast! But...I get your point. Yeah...the musical positions thing doesn't appear to work from the small test. Few have pulled it off with great success. It's almost like a player is doomed, right or wrong, to the first position coaches put him in. All or nothing... For every Ronnie Lott that went CB to S...there are far many more than were abject failures. Heck, I even wonder of Hester could have been an amazing corner... He seems to run on instinct. I remember in his first year, he was onD on Madden...and a year into my franchise and the guy was all-pro! If only... Oh yeah, I know. I just threw it out there because he played free safety/rover in college and when he declared for the draft, apparently at least 10 teams thought he could play free safety in the NFL. Yeah, that doesn't seem to help anybody. How much better would Danieal Manning be if they'd just stuck him at SS from day one? With Williams, I don't think it's quite as bad: every team shuffles linemen from time to time, usually when somebody gets hurt. I'm not worried that spending a season at guard could hurt Williams' career, they just need to figure out his best position going forward and then stick him there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
selection7 Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 Some counterpoints... How many center's have the kind of power to take on a Raji? How much does Olin have? Yeah, Williams might get pushed around but alot of centers' smaller size keeps them from being bullish run blockers...and Chris isn't even small. The great thing about center is that with good footwork preventing whiffs, you can let the guards drive open holes while you worry about captaining the offensive line (after all, you are the guy who snaps the ball, makes the line calls, and is the centerpiece about which the two sides of the line must work together). Significantly, the year he was drafted he had the highest wonderlic score (32) of any of the top linemen prospects. Admittedly, if you're getting pushed into the backfield on run plays then it doesn't matter how well you "run" the OL, you're a liability. But to go along with that potential for weakness, we might should also grant it's reasonable (with his skillset and in-game experience against the best pass rushers while he was an LT) that he could be a great pass blocker for a center. Still young too. I guess some of this talk will be moot in the unlikely event we draft a prototypical center high. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaskan Grizzly Posted April 29, 2011 Report Share Posted April 29, 2011 For what its worth, I think what Tice did having Williams play Guard last year is to help him work on getting his footwork better (see faster). Something you need especially as an NFL caliber LT (for a Right handed QB). I see him moving back to LT at the start of the year, or at least competing for it. And now with the addition of Carmini, I'm thinking that their thought is to do the same with him (maybe work interior for a while) and at the same time see how Webb works out. I won't be the least bit surprised if the Bears draft another "interior type" lineman in the early rounds unless there is a WR that is too hard to pass up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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