Where Daniels Lines Up Is Secondary Right Now...............
May 15, 2018 5:02:28 GMT -6
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Post by Deleted on May 15, 2018 5:02:28 GMT -6
Column: Future looks bright for Bears rookie James Daniels, and where he lines up isn't a big issue for now
James Daniels got the bulk of work during rookie minicamp at left guard, but there’s no telling where the career of the Bears’ second-round pick is headed.
He could stick at left guard for a long time. He could play left guard and transition to center, the position at which he started the last two seasons at Iowa. Maybe the Bears decide at some point during the preseason that he’s ready to be the center and make a move.
Those who know Daniels well aren’t overly concerned about what position he’s playing now and seem pretty certain big things are ahead for him after three seasons for the Hawkeyes, a program that consistently produces professional linemen.
Kirk Ferentz has been the Hawkeyes head coach since 1999, but before that he was a respected offensive line coach in the NFL, surely one of the reasons Iowa does well in the trenches. Not many remember that Jonathan Ogden, one of the best left tackles to ever play, was a left guard as a rookie for the Ravens in 1996. Ferentz was the team’s offensive line coach at the time, and there was a solid left tackle in place in Tony Jones. The Ravens weren’t going to let Ogden slide past them with the fourth pick in the draft even if left tackle was set at the time.
“Good players can play anywhere usually, so I think James will do a great job at left guard and that will give him a chance to really kind of get used to the speed, the technique, all the things,” Ferentz said. “It’s always a big step going (from) college to the pros and there is going to be a lot of adjusting he is going to have to make, learning all the things the Bears want him to do. As a former line coach, I can tell you it’s always good to have players that have position versatility, and he certainly has that.”
No one is saying Daniels’ career trajectory is going to follow Ogden’s. But good players can learn new positions and the Bears will play their five best linemen come September.
Daniels played guard as a freshman at Iowa, something Ferentz mentioned to NFL folks in the pre-draft process, including Bears offensive line coach Harry Hiestand.
The Bears are using Cody Whitehair at center now, and that makes sense because he’s a veteran who has experience working with quarterback Mitch Trubisky. They can continue to develop their rapport, which is only a good thing. If one day Daniels is a better option at center and Whitehair is a better choice at guard, that’s an easy switcho make down the road.
“(Guard) is hard, but you don’t have to make the calls and you don’t have to snap, which are two things centers do that people don’t realize how hard it is,” Daniels said. “So I’m not saying (guard) is easier, but it’s just different from playing center."
“(Friday), I barely knew the calls myself, so I could find the Mike (linebacker), but that’s about it. I couldn’t make any of the blocking combos or anything like that.”
Wherever Daniels plays, he has great size for an interior lineman at 6-foot-3, 310 pounds with 33¾-inch arms. He’s extremely athletic, too, and that is one of the attractions to potentially seeing him play center at some point. Daniels was so athletic that Ferentz explained he actually had to coach him backward at times.
“I’ve never had to really coach a guy down that way,” Ferentz said. “Usually it’s, ‘Go quicker or go faster,’ but he’s got a rare ability to get a jump on guys. He’s quick off the ball and quick to a block, and that’s something we all emphasize but some guys do it better than others. It’s almost a fault with James right now and sometimes he overshoots his aiming points because of his quickness and you almost have to coach him backward, if you will, which is really unusual."
“So it’s just a different challenge of coaching him at times because he’s got a skill set that is a little bit unusual. I’m not saying this now because he got drafted, but it’s on record, I said this months ago, he’s probably the most gifted center I have ever been around as far as the tools to be a center, and that is including my six years in the NFL. And we had some good centers when I was in Baltimore and Cleveland. He’s probably the guy (closest to) Wally Williams. ... James is taller than Wally and with just extreme quickness and ability to get leverage, that type of thing. There are certain things you don’t teach, and he’s got a good head start that way.”
Hawkeyes line coach Tim Polasek said Daniels, who doesn’t turn 21 until the week after the season opener in Green Bay, was mature in his preparation with the kind of study habits that will make for a successful transition.
“It was the Ohio State week and he made a comment that myself and the assistant O-line coach here we kind of thought the backup guy might be little better than the guy they were playing a bunch,” Polasek said. “James said, ‘Hey, Coach, this is the guy that we’ve got to be worried about. He’s going to play against us a lot. He plays against running teams.’ Just the detail of his scouting reports and some of the thought that went into it. It wasn’t just, ‘53 is a bull rusher and 62 is a speed guy.’ He really dove into the reasons why he may see a guy more than another guy. He studied them.”
The Bears want to get Daniels in the weight room, something that is the case with nearly any lineman drafted. There’s a lot of detailed work ahead for Daniels and it’s going to take time, but the Bears believe they have a foundational piece for their line for seasons to come.
“Personally, I am thrilled and not that I had any control over any of this, but the fact that he is with the Bears, I feel great because I think Harry is one of the best line coaches on the earth,” Ferentz said. “He and Dante Scarnecchia. … I think if you look in the NFL with what Dante has done in New England and then certainly the fact that Notre Dame had two guys taken in the first nine picks, … that stuff doesn’t happen by accident. Harry is a tremendous coach."
bmbiggs@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @bradbiggs
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Copyright © 2018, Chicago Tribune
Photos from Bears rookie minicamp at Halas Hall. #68 is Daniels
Brad BiggsBrad BiggsContact ReporterChicago Tribune
James Daniels got the bulk of work during rookie minicamp at left guard, but there’s no telling where the career of the Bears’ second-round pick is headed.
He could stick at left guard for a long time. He could play left guard and transition to center, the position at which he started the last two seasons at Iowa. Maybe the Bears decide at some point during the preseason that he’s ready to be the center and make a move.
Those who know Daniels well aren’t overly concerned about what position he’s playing now and seem pretty certain big things are ahead for him after three seasons for the Hawkeyes, a program that consistently produces professional linemen.
Kirk Ferentz has been the Hawkeyes head coach since 1999, but before that he was a respected offensive line coach in the NFL, surely one of the reasons Iowa does well in the trenches. Not many remember that Jonathan Ogden, one of the best left tackles to ever play, was a left guard as a rookie for the Ravens in 1996. Ferentz was the team’s offensive line coach at the time, and there was a solid left tackle in place in Tony Jones. The Ravens weren’t going to let Ogden slide past them with the fourth pick in the draft even if left tackle was set at the time.
“Good players can play anywhere usually, so I think James will do a great job at left guard and that will give him a chance to really kind of get used to the speed, the technique, all the things,” Ferentz said. “It’s always a big step going (from) college to the pros and there is going to be a lot of adjusting he is going to have to make, learning all the things the Bears want him to do. As a former line coach, I can tell you it’s always good to have players that have position versatility, and he certainly has that.”
No one is saying Daniels’ career trajectory is going to follow Ogden’s. But good players can learn new positions and the Bears will play their five best linemen come September.
Daniels played guard as a freshman at Iowa, something Ferentz mentioned to NFL folks in the pre-draft process, including Bears offensive line coach Harry Hiestand.
The Bears are using Cody Whitehair at center now, and that makes sense because he’s a veteran who has experience working with quarterback Mitch Trubisky. They can continue to develop their rapport, which is only a good thing. If one day Daniels is a better option at center and Whitehair is a better choice at guard, that’s an easy switcho make down the road.
“(Guard) is hard, but you don’t have to make the calls and you don’t have to snap, which are two things centers do that people don’t realize how hard it is,” Daniels said. “So I’m not saying (guard) is easier, but it’s just different from playing center."
“(Friday), I barely knew the calls myself, so I could find the Mike (linebacker), but that’s about it. I couldn’t make any of the blocking combos or anything like that.”
Wherever Daniels plays, he has great size for an interior lineman at 6-foot-3, 310 pounds with 33¾-inch arms. He’s extremely athletic, too, and that is one of the attractions to potentially seeing him play center at some point. Daniels was so athletic that Ferentz explained he actually had to coach him backward at times.
“I’ve never had to really coach a guy down that way,” Ferentz said. “Usually it’s, ‘Go quicker or go faster,’ but he’s got a rare ability to get a jump on guys. He’s quick off the ball and quick to a block, and that’s something we all emphasize but some guys do it better than others. It’s almost a fault with James right now and sometimes he overshoots his aiming points because of his quickness and you almost have to coach him backward, if you will, which is really unusual."
“So it’s just a different challenge of coaching him at times because he’s got a skill set that is a little bit unusual. I’m not saying this now because he got drafted, but it’s on record, I said this months ago, he’s probably the most gifted center I have ever been around as far as the tools to be a center, and that is including my six years in the NFL. And we had some good centers when I was in Baltimore and Cleveland. He’s probably the guy (closest to) Wally Williams. ... James is taller than Wally and with just extreme quickness and ability to get leverage, that type of thing. There are certain things you don’t teach, and he’s got a good head start that way.”
Hawkeyes line coach Tim Polasek said Daniels, who doesn’t turn 21 until the week after the season opener in Green Bay, was mature in his preparation with the kind of study habits that will make for a successful transition.
“It was the Ohio State week and he made a comment that myself and the assistant O-line coach here we kind of thought the backup guy might be little better than the guy they were playing a bunch,” Polasek said. “James said, ‘Hey, Coach, this is the guy that we’ve got to be worried about. He’s going to play against us a lot. He plays against running teams.’ Just the detail of his scouting reports and some of the thought that went into it. It wasn’t just, ‘53 is a bull rusher and 62 is a speed guy.’ He really dove into the reasons why he may see a guy more than another guy. He studied them.”
The Bears want to get Daniels in the weight room, something that is the case with nearly any lineman drafted. There’s a lot of detailed work ahead for Daniels and it’s going to take time, but the Bears believe they have a foundational piece for their line for seasons to come.
“Personally, I am thrilled and not that I had any control over any of this, but the fact that he is with the Bears, I feel great because I think Harry is one of the best line coaches on the earth,” Ferentz said. “He and Dante Scarnecchia. … I think if you look in the NFL with what Dante has done in New England and then certainly the fact that Notre Dame had two guys taken in the first nine picks, … that stuff doesn’t happen by accident. Harry is a tremendous coach."
“When James is 24, who knows how this guy can be. It’s pretty neat. I think he has tremendous upside.”
bmbiggs@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @bradbiggs
Privacy Policy
Copyright © 2018, Chicago Tribune
