Bretsky
08-23-2006, 07:29 AM
A work in progress
Colledge struggles with transition to guard
By TOM SILVERSTEIN
tsilverstein@journalsentinel.com
Green Bay - The Green Bay Packers drafted guard Daryn Colledge in the second round with the thought he would be ready right away for the National Football League.
Offensive linemen Daryn Colledge played tackle in college and has struggled as a guard.
They still think he'll be the real deal someday, but what they underestimated was how a lack of upper body strength and a new position would impact him.
Members of the organization say the 6-foot-4, 299-pound Colledge, who at the scouting combine in March ran the third-fastest 40-yard dash (5.05 seconds) and posted the second-highest vertical leap (32½ inches), is even more athletic than former Packer Mike Wahle when he came out of Navy in 1998 (Wahle ran a 5.2-second 40-yard dash).
As the sixth offensive lineman selected in the draft, Colledge, a left tackle at Boise State, was expected to be an instant starter. But after holding the left guard position from the day he was drafted until his first NFL exhibition game against San Diego, he was demoted in favor of another rookie, fifth-round draft choice Tony Moll.
"I think he's smart and wants to be a player," general manager Ted Thompson said. "But you never know. Going from tackle to guard, sometimes it's easy for guys and sometimes it's not. I would still expect him to be a good player for us."
On Wednesday night in the team's only practice, Colledge worked for the first time as a Packer at left tackle. After the workout, coach Mike McCarthy said Colledge would work at both left guard and tackle in hopes of being able to back up both positions.
Colledge's route is not dissimilar to that of Wahle, who played in only one game his rookie year and didn't become a fixture in the starting lineup until his fourth season. Wahle, a tackle in college, started out as a guard, was moved to tackle, was benched for poor play and then re-emerged as the team's left guard, where he started 64 straight games until leaving in free agency for Carolina after the 2004 season.
Like Wahle, Colledge hasn't made the transition well to guard. In the San Diego game, he was knocked around like a bowling pin and seemed to be a step slow on everything he did.
The most noticeable thing was that he was overpowered too many times. Some scouts think his lack of upper body strength was an issue and pointed to the fact that at the combine he bench-pressed 225 pounds a total of 21 times, which ranked tied for 29th among the 43 linemen who performed the test.
"I don't know if it's weight room strength necessarily," offensive line coach Joe Philbin said. "It's functional playing (strength). Some of it is related to his technique that will help him play stronger. Some of it may be straight-out strength issues."
By comparison, Moll, also a college tackle, scored just an 18 on the bench press test at his workout. But Moll is more of a mauler and plays with the aggression of a former tight end who used to have to block bigger and stronger linemen during his first three years at Nevada.
Colledge admits that his overall strength might be holding him back, although he didn't discount the shift to a new position and his inability to master proper technique as reasons. One scout said the type of weight training used at Boise State emphasizes movement and agility more than raw strength, and Colledge doesn't dispute that.
"I knew upper body-wise I had some work to do," Colledge said. "At Boise State University we weren't huge upper-body lifters, we were more Olympic body lifters, legs, hips and things like that. That was one of the places I wanted to get better.
"I'm extremely excited about this season, but I'm extremely excited about having an off-season with a guy like (strength coach) Rock (Gullickson), a guy who I can spend a lot of time with. I intend on staying here year round."
Despite his shortcomings with upper-body strength, the Packers think he can function well enough this year if he would clean up his technique. Perhaps because he is playing a new position or perhaps because he thought he had the left guard position locked up, Colledge did not make the strides he needed to in the technique department.
Labeled cocky by some scouts, Colledge was forced to eat a big slice of humble pie when he was sent to the second team.
"It's most disappointing to me because I let it happen," Colledge said.
"I put myself in that position where they could say, ‘Hey, maybe he's not the best guy for the position.' That's my fault. It's my job every day to show them that it was a one-time occurrence, it was a fluke and it won't happen again."
Colledge can and might still be a factor this season and it might be at left tackle. Given the knee problems starter Chad Clifton has experienced during training camp, it's possible he will break down during the season and Colledge will be called upon to fill in.
Strength issues aside, he will have to get the job done.
"I think a lot of it is related to better leverage and playing with a better pad level, using his hands wiser, tighter," Philbin said. "That will allow him to play stronger. Some of it is strength, but I think a lot of it can be corrected with proper technique."
It's possible the Packers' assessment of Colledge as an NFL guard might be wrong and tackle will be his position. Thompson said the Packers don't view Colledge just as a guard, but they put him there because they already had two good tackles.
What they're counting on is that over time, the combination of his athletic ability and improved technique will make him a perennial starter. But they also could be looking at a development period that goes well beyond this year.
"He will be fine," offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski said. "Some guys sometimes take longer than others."
Colledge struggles with transition to guard
By TOM SILVERSTEIN
tsilverstein@journalsentinel.com
Green Bay - The Green Bay Packers drafted guard Daryn Colledge in the second round with the thought he would be ready right away for the National Football League.
Offensive linemen Daryn Colledge played tackle in college and has struggled as a guard.
They still think he'll be the real deal someday, but what they underestimated was how a lack of upper body strength and a new position would impact him.
Members of the organization say the 6-foot-4, 299-pound Colledge, who at the scouting combine in March ran the third-fastest 40-yard dash (5.05 seconds) and posted the second-highest vertical leap (32½ inches), is even more athletic than former Packer Mike Wahle when he came out of Navy in 1998 (Wahle ran a 5.2-second 40-yard dash).
As the sixth offensive lineman selected in the draft, Colledge, a left tackle at Boise State, was expected to be an instant starter. But after holding the left guard position from the day he was drafted until his first NFL exhibition game against San Diego, he was demoted in favor of another rookie, fifth-round draft choice Tony Moll.
"I think he's smart and wants to be a player," general manager Ted Thompson said. "But you never know. Going from tackle to guard, sometimes it's easy for guys and sometimes it's not. I would still expect him to be a good player for us."
On Wednesday night in the team's only practice, Colledge worked for the first time as a Packer at left tackle. After the workout, coach Mike McCarthy said Colledge would work at both left guard and tackle in hopes of being able to back up both positions.
Colledge's route is not dissimilar to that of Wahle, who played in only one game his rookie year and didn't become a fixture in the starting lineup until his fourth season. Wahle, a tackle in college, started out as a guard, was moved to tackle, was benched for poor play and then re-emerged as the team's left guard, where he started 64 straight games until leaving in free agency for Carolina after the 2004 season.
Like Wahle, Colledge hasn't made the transition well to guard. In the San Diego game, he was knocked around like a bowling pin and seemed to be a step slow on everything he did.
The most noticeable thing was that he was overpowered too many times. Some scouts think his lack of upper body strength was an issue and pointed to the fact that at the combine he bench-pressed 225 pounds a total of 21 times, which ranked tied for 29th among the 43 linemen who performed the test.
"I don't know if it's weight room strength necessarily," offensive line coach Joe Philbin said. "It's functional playing (strength). Some of it is related to his technique that will help him play stronger. Some of it may be straight-out strength issues."
By comparison, Moll, also a college tackle, scored just an 18 on the bench press test at his workout. But Moll is more of a mauler and plays with the aggression of a former tight end who used to have to block bigger and stronger linemen during his first three years at Nevada.
Colledge admits that his overall strength might be holding him back, although he didn't discount the shift to a new position and his inability to master proper technique as reasons. One scout said the type of weight training used at Boise State emphasizes movement and agility more than raw strength, and Colledge doesn't dispute that.
"I knew upper body-wise I had some work to do," Colledge said. "At Boise State University we weren't huge upper-body lifters, we were more Olympic body lifters, legs, hips and things like that. That was one of the places I wanted to get better.
"I'm extremely excited about this season, but I'm extremely excited about having an off-season with a guy like (strength coach) Rock (Gullickson), a guy who I can spend a lot of time with. I intend on staying here year round."
Despite his shortcomings with upper-body strength, the Packers think he can function well enough this year if he would clean up his technique. Perhaps because he is playing a new position or perhaps because he thought he had the left guard position locked up, Colledge did not make the strides he needed to in the technique department.
Labeled cocky by some scouts, Colledge was forced to eat a big slice of humble pie when he was sent to the second team.
"It's most disappointing to me because I let it happen," Colledge said.
"I put myself in that position where they could say, ‘Hey, maybe he's not the best guy for the position.' That's my fault. It's my job every day to show them that it was a one-time occurrence, it was a fluke and it won't happen again."
Colledge can and might still be a factor this season and it might be at left tackle. Given the knee problems starter Chad Clifton has experienced during training camp, it's possible he will break down during the season and Colledge will be called upon to fill in.
Strength issues aside, he will have to get the job done.
"I think a lot of it is related to better leverage and playing with a better pad level, using his hands wiser, tighter," Philbin said. "That will allow him to play stronger. Some of it is strength, but I think a lot of it can be corrected with proper technique."
It's possible the Packers' assessment of Colledge as an NFL guard might be wrong and tackle will be his position. Thompson said the Packers don't view Colledge just as a guard, but they put him there because they already had two good tackles.
What they're counting on is that over time, the combination of his athletic ability and improved technique will make him a perennial starter. But they also could be looking at a development period that goes well beyond this year.
"He will be fine," offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski said. "Some guys sometimes take longer than others."