Jonah Williams receiving rave reviews for seamless transition from left to right tackle
This offseason, Cincinnati Bengals offensive lineman Jonah Williams has made the switch from left tackle to right tackle. It’s not an easy move to make, but according to offensive coordinator Brian Callahan, it’s a move he’s made fairly seamlessly.
Jonah Williams needed to make the move this offseason, despite playing his entire career at left tackle, because Cincinnati signed Orlando Brown. So, to make room for him, Williams moved to the right side.
“He’s made a pretty seamless transition,” Callahan said. “Probably better than a lot of guys might have. And to his credit, I think he deserves a lot of credit for that, for his approach, for how well he’s played at training camp and in the preseason games. Very excited about where he’s at and very appreciative of how he’s handled that transition.”
Transitioning from one tackle to another isn’t as easy as it may seem. A player needs to learn how to do everything in reverse, which is difficult, especially when many players practice so much that they learn a side of the ball by muscle memory.
Jonah Williams suffered a knee injury in the playoffs last season. The plan was to let him rest but he wanted to get work in the preseason to make sure that he was comfortable with his new side of the ball.
“Coming off an injury and playing on a new side, I think he wanted to get some live action. I think we were on the same page,” Callahan said. “Had we not said anything to him, he probably would have come and asked us to play, I would think. Just to get your feet underneath you in a stadium-game environment I think means something. But he looked very good doing it and he got his reps under his belt and feels good about it.”
The Bengals are going to rely on their tackles this season to protect star quarterback Joe Burrow. After suffering a calf injury in training camp, the need to protect him in the pocket is greater than ever.
Cris Collinsworth predicts the Bengals will win Super Bowl
There are a lot of people excited to watch the Bengals this season. One of them is Cris Collinsworth, who expects Cincinnati to win the Super Bowl this season.
“I’m picking the Cincinnati Bengals for the first time in my entire life. I think that Joe Burrow is too good to, at this point, not have a ring on his finger. You know, let’s put a ring on it. Let’s go. He’s been too good. Look at the skill positions they’ve got around this guy. I mean Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Tyler Boyd, Joe Mixon. Which team skill position players would you rather have? Joe Burrow has been right there, give and take, you know with Patrick Mahomes, and they split the games that they’ve been in,” Collinsworth said.
“They go to Buffalo in the snow and make some brilliant plays there. Trey Hendrickson, Sam Hubbard on the edge some great, young speed in the secondary. This is the year. And one of the reasons that I like them so much is that they play in the AFC North. I mean this is in my opinion, (it’s) the toughest division in all of football. So while they may not even win the North, the Bengals may not. But by the time you slugged your way through that division, you’re battle-tested, you’re ready.”