Chicago Bears: Should Cody Whitehair stay at center?
Amongst a variety of changes on Sunday, the Chicago Bears moved Cody Whitehair back to center. Should that stay moving forward?
The Chicago Bears found themselves a win. It was not the most impressive, as it came against a Jeff Driskel led team. On top of that, the Bears trailed for most of the first half, and only won in the final seconds after slowing down a Driskel charge.
Still, the Bears won and for one week, things are okay in Chicago. One of the bigger changes that were noted in the Bears stopping their four-game win streak was the move of Cody Whitehair from guard to center, and James Daniels back to guard.
They played at those spots last season, but Daniels was always projected to move to center. In year two, the Bears thought he was ready for that leap. Apparently, after eight games, they now feel as though things might be better if they went back to the ways of old.
Nagy said it was less about Daniels, and more abou Whitehair. Nagy noted communication as the key aspect, whether it be calling out blitzes, and setting the offensive line up.
Mitch Trubisky noted that the communication not only had him feeling more comfortable pre-snap, it had the entire line playing a more cohesive style of football.
How did Cody Whitehair and James Daniels react to their position swap? What did it mean for Mitch Trubisky to have Whitehair back at center? That and more from the Bears locker room https://t.co/Yfhg47txWQ pic.twitter.com/xbJr5UKMje
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) November 11, 2019
Offensive line coach Harry Hiestand added that the change was a huge impact for Rashaad Coward. Remember, Coward was a UDFA as a defensive tackle who has only played right tackle in preseason snaps.
Guard is entirely new to him. Having a veteran like Whitehair is more underrated than it can be stated.
Bears offensive line coach Harry Hiestand emphasized the importance of having Cody Whitehair next to Rashaad Coward when asked about the center-guard switch.
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) November 11, 2019
Still, the fact of the matter is that the Bears scored 20 points on a bad defense. Mitch Trubisky was sacked four times, and Whitehair had issues with snaps. That is what made the change happen in the first place.
Whitehair to center may not be a long term fix, and certainly does not answer all of the questions. However, with Daniels still young and figuring out all of the calls of the offense, Trubisky still having his issues, and Coward being brand new to football, this specific moment calls for more Whitehair at center. Nagy hinted at that as well in his press conference.
Bears coach Matt Nagy says the switch of Cody Whitehair back to C and James Daniels back to LG made a big difference. They like having a solid, savvy veteran in the middle of their line.
— Jason Lieser (@JasonLieser) November 11, 2019
Look for Whitehair to start again on Sunday at center, with Daniels at left guard. If the Bears get torched by Aaron Donald, lose and everything goes haywire, do they go back to Daniels at center? Time will tell as this appears to be a week at a time situation.