Thread: Wright: "Webb is the most physically gifted lineman on Chicago's roster"

I like the optimism on this messageboard about late round picks & UFA's being "studs in the making"...guys like Brown.

But there is usually a reason WHY these guys (like Webb) are not claimed earlier in the draft.

Usually (not always, but usually) there is SOMETHING wrong with them. If they have lots of raw talent (like Webb) then there is something REALLY wrong with them. Bigtime wrong.

That's time we COULD have spent developing a guy drafted in the 1st or 2nd round who had the experience (at a high powered college football program) & maturity, to go along with his physical talent. I'm not talking about a top-10 pick of the draft. But at least a high 2nd rounder who had something to "develop" - so than after 3 years (what we've invested in Webb) he COULD have a shot at being a decent starting LT.

I still say his best development would have been to stay at RT and let the LT that was drafted in the FIRST round do his thing. Even as just a backup RT taking a step back (being benched) would be a step forward for Webb to work on his technique and his preparation.

I just found this article on Webb. It helps me understand his immaturity a bit better. If he is worth developing and truly is a "work in progress" like this article states, I could see that IF they didn't push him prematurely into a starting role.

We've invested a few years into this guy. Maybe a 1 year as a backup would be good for him. I don't know.

LINK to the article

Webb appears to be a gentle giant whose troubled childhood might open up a window of understanding. He has been thrust into a high-profile role while searching for proper coping skills.

Kendall and Walter Cooper, who live in Texas, befriended Webb after the 6-foot-8, 335-pounder left the University of Texas amid school violations. Webb then attended Navarro (Texas) Junior College before enrolling at Division II West Texas A&M.

The Coopers became Webb's advisers and confidantes regarding all of life's lessons. They eventually became his agents through the "Word Iz Bond Agency" during the summer of 2009. Webb signed with Walter Cooper late that December, after he became eligible.

Few believed Webb would wind up as the Bears' starting right tackle in 2010. He was switched to the more critical left side in 2011 and is battling Chris Williams to retain his job this year as the Bears host the Redskins Saturday night.

Webb remains a work-in-progress and is gaining an appreciation for how far he already has come.

"Overcoming obstacles is not easy," Webb told me. "You have to find it within yourself to overcome."

Kendall Cooper said Webb fled from the bad influences around his mother's neighborhood to get his personal life together.

"She wanted him to have a clean and clear shot at success," Cooper said. "He couldn't have anymore of his 'good friends' in his life to entice him with unhealthy living. He didn't want it, nor did his mother, and this is why he lived with us during training."

Walt Cooper believes self-discipline is the key to Webb reaching his potential.

"Although J'Marcus graduated as the top recruit in high school, and was the prized recruit of the University of Texas, his off-field transgressions interrupted his entire playing career and limited his development as a football player," he said. "Those transgressions led to him being dismissed from UT and thus began a long odyssey …without much off-field guidance or development.

"He made an impulsive decision to attend a Division II school. … When J'Marcus met us, his learning had to be condensed to prepare him for one shot at the NFL over nine months. In the NFL today, one of the drivers is character. This is what drove us into action."

Bears fans and coaches are eager to see what drives Webb into action on the playing field.

Welcome to the LIGHT, JABF99. lol. I just wish SOMEONE would take the spot and run with it ( and not into the ground).

Tonight, when I roll all of this around in my head, I wonder that IF we would give up on Webb (let him go), then he could be a valuable pickup for another club. Because he does have a load of raw physical talent, and we have invested 3 years into maturing him under a solid oline coach (Tice). That is one heck of a large investment!

Another team could simply pump one last year into him, and end up with something solid. A starting LT who could benefit them for many years to come. The Bears pour in all of the blood, sweat & tears, so to speak. And another club reaps the bennies.

After reading all of the background on Webb, it looks like we took Webb at a point where he was the maturity equivalent of a high school boy. Not a young man who had graduated from a high-powered football program. A man with the maturity and football skills to transition into an NFL tackle, in the traditional manner.

That is precisely WHY we were able to get a guy with his raw talent - in the 7th round.

They say it takes 3 years for a typical offensive lineman out of college to hit his stride as an NFL olineman. But Webb isn't your typical man coming out of college. So, in a sense, it is like the Bears had to give him these 3 years as the equivalent of a man coming out of a bigtime oline school like Iowa or Wisconsin or USC.

You get the drift.

Do we hang on to him for another year, even if he can't cut it THIS year as a starter? Or let him walk, so another team can invest what it takes to finish his development?

And why oh why did we EVERY let ourselves get to the point where we HAD to start a young project kid like Webb to begin with? He should have been buried on the depth chart learning his trade. Not pressed into a starting role where he clearly is overwhelmed.

Stupid is as stupid does. J'Marcus plays stupid, therefore, he must be a stupid football player. I'd love for him to succeed and push Chris back to LG (this is my best case scenario), but his head has yet to catch up with the rest of his body out there and until it does, we will keep waiting.

Baseball analogy : Used primarily when it comes to infielders who have a particularly tricky grounder hit at them ( which they muff ) we often hear the commentator say " he let the ball play HIM ". This isn't hard to visualize if u know baseball, we've all seen it.

Well , when it comes to pass blocking we see it all the time with Webb - shuffling his feet a little too fast , doesn't 'anchor' that well , gets off balance and he lets the defender ( the ball ) 'play' him , then WOOSH the guy is around him and it's another "lookout !" block. He's gotta learn to attack the defender without lunging , use his size to his advantage, knock HIM off balance, and DICTATE how the one-on-one battle is gonna go. In short - be more aggressive (w/o losing his balance) make the defender try to counter his moves ... cuz right now it's the other way around too often. I also disagree that his athleticism is as good as they say ( cuz I just don't see it ). So his only ace-in-the-hole is his size and he better start using it.

Sure am rooting for him.

Originally Posted by Riczaj01

Marshal Faulk said that the Colts releasing him was the best thing that could have happened to his career; you saw it w/Benson also, you saw the talent, but it hadn't clicked for them until being cut. Then again you can see that sometimes gifted or not, it never clicks, see grossman/orton. Before you laugh, Tiller(purdues hc for brees/orton) said orton had the tools to have the better nfl career. Brees just worked on it more, wanted it more, and made more of his chances. rex was far more gifted and never put any real effort and you see the results.

I said in another thread, and I'll repeat it here, Webb has all the physical tools, which is why he's been given the shot he has, but if he doesn't have the ability to be mean, if he doesn't have the want to perfect his craft he's never going to be a LT in this league. The said part is Williams is doing nothing to force the issue.

All good points Ric. Excellent points. But here's my rant:

Those are excellent players to bring up here - Marshall Faulk & Cedric Benson. The Colts let Faulk go, and he becomes a Hall of Fame running back, and voted one of the Top-100 players of all time. Benson, is a guy we let go for no compensation (not a penny), and he's rushed for over 4,000 yards in 4 years since we cut him.

And now he's with the Packers to be used as a weapon against us (as if the Packers needed any more weapons than they already have). If we end up with an Urlacher-less defense I could see ol' CB ripping us a new butt hole this year.

I'm not saying Webb will be similar (he may be what he is....a 7th rounder long shot like Brown is an UFA long shot now), but my point is he's one of two things:

1. A player who is not going to get better no matter how much in invested in maturing him.

2. A player who came out of a division-II college with the maturity of a high school kid, but with the raw talent to be a solid NFL player, if a team was willing to put more time into development than the usual 3 years needed for typical offensive linemen to hit their stride.

If it is #2, then it may be a case of the Bears (Jerry Angelo) should have never drafted him with the intention of making him a starter right out of the chute like we did. It would be the equivalent of the Bears starting a kid out of high school. Chances are that player would look totally over-his-head. A dummy.

The Bears did start the guy anyway. He looked really rough. Dumb. But due to his raw physical talent, we pour 3 years into his development. Here's the deal. Physical talent is something you have or you don't have. It's not going to get any better. But technique, maturity, experience etc -- that CAN improve.

I can see this one coming. Webb is allowed to leave after this season. A team picks him up for a song & a dance. And ends up a year later with one of the better LT's in the NFL (thanks to the Bears giving him 3 years of development under one of the best oline coaches in the NFL). And Webb ends up as a guy who stays around the league as a starter for many years. And I can hear the Bears fans now. Screaming bloody murder about how stupid the Bears were for letting the guy go (like Benson) for nothing.

I wish the Bears (if they HAD to draft him) would have buried the guy on the depth chart (even the PS) and let him quietly learn his craft and mature & develop. THEN and only then, think about letting him fight for a starting role. But they just "crowned" him and put him where he had to fail.

If you think Webb is stupid, what does that say about the Bears? No matter if Webb is #1 example above OR #2 example, it just shows even greater stupidity on the Bears part. It makes no sense to me anyway.

We would have been smarter to have simply invested a 1st round pick in a ready-to-roll NFL tackle. Or, paid the big bucks to attract an expensive FA. Even if Webb does pan out, and we do keep him. And heck, he could be that #1 example above and simply be a bust forever, who bled us dry.