With more strong preseason showings, rookie James Daniels could force his way into the starting lineup for the Chicago Bears.
Flying under the radar in the Chicago Bears preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals was the strong showing from rookie offensive lineman James Daniels. Having missed the Hall of Fame game due to injury, Daniels made his NFL debut playing center. He played with the second-team offense and played very well. He was solid in both pass protection and run blocking, and didn’t seem overwhelmed.
It was only one game and he didn’t face elite competition, but Daniels’ strong performance should turn some heads. The Bears didn’t invest a second-round pick on Daniels for him to sit on the sidelines. Eric Kush has been running with the starters as the left guard, but he’s probably best suited as a reserve.
The Bears best offensive line might be Charles Leno and Bobby Massie at tackle, Kyle Long and Cody Whitehair at guard, and Daniels at center. Daniels was a decorated collegiate starter at center, so why move him to guard? Cody Whitehair has been a very good center but he’s struggles at times with snaps. In fact, Whitehair had a high shotgun snap against the Bengals which ruined the timing of the whole play.
Shifting Whitehair to guard (the position he was drafted to play) might make him an even better player. Daniels has a ton of experience at center and would benefit from having Whitehair and Long next to him. Playing Whitehair at center and Daniels at guard would result in both actually playing out of position.
Daniels is a natural guard and Whitehair has already shown he can be an excellent guard in the NFL (he played both left and right guard periodically last season due to Kyle Long and Josh Sitton being injured).
It’s inevitable that Daniels sees the field sooner rather than later. If he’s one of the Bears five best offensive lineman, then it’s clear—he should start. With more preseason games on tap, Daniels has a chance to put more quality tape out there and potentially force the Bears into starting him.