The Chicago Bears made a calculated decision at the start of 2019. They chose to switch former 2nd round pick James Daniels from his left guard spot where he plays as a rookie to center. This was a move the team had considered in 2018 but chose to wait until he had more experience. It was clear though that their plan from the moment they drafted him out of Iowa was to place him in the middle. It was his natural position as offensive line coach Harry Hiestand and others made clear.
However, no transition goes off without a hitch in the NFL. The first few games to start the year were rough ones for Daniels. Not only was he missing assignments and losing blocks on a number of occasions, he also suffered a string of penalties that made life even harder for the offense. Some began to wonder if the Bears had made a mistake. Maybe it would be best to put him back at guard and Cody Whitehair to center.
The Bears did not choose this course of action. They felt the best thing to do was let Daniels figure things out with more time. Thankfully this was the right decision. The past couple of weeks have begun to show the 22-year old not only being more efficient as a blocker but also asserting himself in a physical sense.
James Daniels is steadily becoming what the team envisioned
Daniels and Whitehair have really worked well in tandem the past couple of weeks. No opposing defensive tackle has registered a sack on the quarterback in the previous two games. Not only that, but the running game also got off the ground in a big way with Chicago racking up 162 yards against the Chargers. Daniels was a key to that thanks to his sudden rediscovery of his power and nastiness. The timing of this couldn’t be better too.
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The Bears are in clear desperation mode and they’re about to enter a stretch where they’ll be facing some really tough defensive fronts. Ones that include All-Pros like Fletcher Cox and Aaron Donald. If they want to have any prayer of winning some games during that stretch, they’ll need good protection on the interior. Daniel’s improvement isn’t going to win the games by itself but it could end up being a huge step in the right direction.
