He also said this after Daniels declared for the draft.
“James is a hell of a developmental prospect, if you will,” Ferentz said. "In my mind he could go and play guard for anybody next year, just about anybody in the league."
“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.”
He also mentioned Hiestand and the NE line coach as the best so why don't we just let our great OL coach figure this out.
He did say Daniels is as about as good a college C as he's seen so he may end up there at the next level but he's young and has a lot of work to do. Let him hit the weights, learn the calls from G and allow Hiestand to work his magic.
LG is actually a great fit for Daniels because of his measurables, smarts and natural pass defense ability though he'll need to not get stood up at this level. Great O lines give each other a good deal of help when they can and Daniels should be an asset to Leno. I think the staff sees his size and mobility a good fit for a G that can pull and lead. Pace has been looking for a combo of size and mobility at this spot for years and finally got it.
I don't care where they end up but I suspect C is Whitehair's this year. Bears are out of rebuilding mode with a more complex O. Let the kid play where he can more easily acclimate and let it work itself out. Even his college coach played him at G his sophomore year for the same reasons.
hmy:
