So word out of bengalville is andre smith is slated to be starting at right tackle this year....how do you guys feel about this? now i dont hate andre smith as alot of people that say hes gonna be a bust but i dont think he is what you look for in a right tackle. he was drafted 9th overall and while he very well may be better suited for guard that left tackle, i think hes better suited for LT than RT. Its just my opinion but the skill sets required are completely different, you want your LT to have the lateral footwork more so than the upper body strength, and smith has the footwork, but immense lower body strength like a guard. i dont get why you would want him at RT? imo RTs are the guys with the poor lateral movement but the tremendous upper body strength....why guys like starks, cherilus, loadholt, otah, levi brown are drafted as right tackles...all could easily play guard but none would be great LT (starks is not anything close to a great LT). Smith came in shorter, chubbier, and alot weaker than alot expected....to me LTs need to be the finesse players and RTs need to be power as the LTs deal with speed and the RTs deal more with bull rushes. You dont take a guy that high to play RT, he would be a probowl guard and if one day he moved to that position he could be great, but to me if you start him at RT from the #9 spot thats a bad decision.... whitworth at LT is ok i guess since he was drafted in the second round as a tackle and if he cant play tackle that would lable him as a bust but levings at LG is awful....this line is a cluster heck when you mix everyone up by starting the LT you drafted at RT because hes just not a good fit there imo, the LT position gets overrated to me, while most of the time if you cant cut it at LT you can at RT its usually for different reasons than smith who if he cant cut it at LT he should just move inside. Im curious to know what you guys think of this situation....good idea to start him at RT for now and bring him along slowly or not? ive heard comparisons to nate newton, branden albert, larry allen, shawn andrews...hes in good company as far as guard go but as a tackle to me hes either a left or he just slides inside
dont the Bengals have Anthony Collins at one T spot? he was great at the end of last year so he may be starting at LT
The Bengals lost both of their RT's this offseason. Anderson and Andrews are both gone. I think Whitworth was the one who filled in at LT when an injury occurred but he's been playing guard. I think he's slated as the LT and that could just be b/c he played it a little at the NFL, played it at LSU and is a little more game ready than Smith. I am one that thinks Smith has a better chance of being a "bust." Not because he lacks talent, but I feel like he is hecked up in the head and doesn't have it mentally. He's just too immature for my liking. I could be wrong and I'll admit it if I am. I have a feeling that the Bengals drafted Smith with the intention to start him at RT from the get go and to keep him there permanently. Did they draft a RT too early? Yeah...but they also drafted Willie Anderson too early and he turned out to be pretty good for them on the right. Anderson was selected 10th overall? I really think the Bengals are doing everything they possibly can to mold this team into the 2005 Bengals. If Smith comes to play, he'll give them a nice blocker to the power side of the ball. He'll also be nice protection for Palmer's blind side...the transition for Smith to RT would probably be easier than putting Whitworth over there. My feeling is that Smith either busts or he sticks at RT for the duration. I don't think the Bengals are looking to groom him at RT and then move him around. They want him to be Willie Anderson, Jr. Time will ultimately tell.
I think Andre is perfect for the RT spot (Willie Anderson ring a bell?). Andrew Whitworth is going to start at RT with Kyle Cook at center, Nate Livings at RG, and Bobbie Williams at LG.
