The offensive line
Posted: Tue May 15, 2007 3:02 pm
Word out of minicamp is that Ray Willis was impressive -- enough so that Holmgren even indicated the starting job at RT might be up for grabs. He might have been just saying that to light a fire under Sean Locklear's ass; I don't think Locklear, the team's second-best lineman, is likely to be benched under any circumstances.
Still, it's good news about Willis. When they drafted him two years ago, it was supposed to be a huge steal (he had been compared favorably to his college teammate, Alex Barron, who was a first-round pick). If he's finally good enough to become a starting right tackle, it would seem to have far-reaching implications for the line. Locklear could move to LG, forming a dominant left side of the line like they used to have. That makes Sims the RG and keeps the team from having to rely on Womack, Ashworth, Wrotto or (gasp) Chris Gray for anything more than depth.
I think that has the makings of a pretty good line, from left to right: Jones, Locklear, Spencer, Sims, Willis. Plus they have the aforementioned four reserves providing excellent depth. Especially if Gray can be a serviceable backup center for a few downs when needed, it looks to me like the failure to draft a lineman on the first day might not be so bad after all.
And, I'm sorry, I can't help noticing something else: we could be looking at an all-black starting offensive line. Has that ever happened before, on any NFL team, ever? I wonder if that will get any publicity. It's probably not quite as groundbreaking as Doug Williams in the Super Bowl or the Tony Dungy-Lovie Smith matchup of last season, but I still think it would be interesting.
Still, it's good news about Willis. When they drafted him two years ago, it was supposed to be a huge steal (he had been compared favorably to his college teammate, Alex Barron, who was a first-round pick). If he's finally good enough to become a starting right tackle, it would seem to have far-reaching implications for the line. Locklear could move to LG, forming a dominant left side of the line like they used to have. That makes Sims the RG and keeps the team from having to rely on Womack, Ashworth, Wrotto or (gasp) Chris Gray for anything more than depth.
I think that has the makings of a pretty good line, from left to right: Jones, Locklear, Spencer, Sims, Willis. Plus they have the aforementioned four reserves providing excellent depth. Especially if Gray can be a serviceable backup center for a few downs when needed, it looks to me like the failure to draft a lineman on the first day might not be so bad after all.
And, I'm sorry, I can't help noticing something else: we could be looking at an all-black starting offensive line. Has that ever happened before, on any NFL team, ever? I wonder if that will get any publicity. It's probably not quite as groundbreaking as Doug Williams in the Super Bowl or the Tony Dungy-Lovie Smith matchup of last season, but I still think it would be interesting.