The Chicago Bears offensive line has been one of the bigger disappointments of 2019. Granted, not the biggest by any stretch. That is reserved for the quarterback. Still, for them to allow more sacks and generate fewer yards on the ground compared to last season is not what the group had in mind. One of the possible reasons why was the curious decision by the coaching staff to switch center Cody Whitehair to left guard and left guard James Daniels to center.
The reasons for this were never really fleshed out. Head coach Matt Nagy believed Daniels was more natural at center. The position he played at Iowa. This despite clear evidence that the young offensive lineman was fitting in just fine at guard. Whitehair meanwhile had gone to the Pro Bowl as a center. So it felt like the Bears were trying to fix something that wasn’t broken by putting an inexperienced kid in the hardest position for an NFL offensive lineman to play.
Results speak for themselves at this point. With the offense ranked 29th in the league and the team 3-5, Nagy appears to have decided a change was needed. Whitehair was spotted in the end zone before the Detroit Lions game practicing shotgun snaps. A notable indication that he has indeed shifted back to center.
Chicago Bears offensive line should get better communication
One of the biggest issues with the offensive line through the first eight games was persistent communication issues. Too often blockers would misread assignments and not adjust their protections properly, leaving Mitch Trubisky exposed in the face of opposing pass rushes. Such a thing can happen when a team plugs in a young kid at center who isn’t quite adept at communicating clearly and identifying where the adjustments are needed.
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Whitehair proved since taking over the position in 2016 that this is something he does well. Getting him back in the middle should ease some of the pressure on Trubisky. That familiarity and comfort level could be a needed boost to the confidence of a struggling, young quarterback. If it ends up working out well, one will have to question why the Bears decided to make the switch in the first place.
