At 6-feet-5, moving from tackle to center was already a tall order for Graham Barton. The Bucs’ first-round pick last season had to learn to adapt to playing against stout, strong, compact defensive tackles built lower to the ground who used their leverage against him.
At 6-feet-5, moving from tackle to center was already a tall order for Graham Barton.
The Bucs’ first-round pick last season had to learn to adapt to playing against stout, strong, compact defensive tackles built lower to the ground who used their leverage against him.
“It’s the way I’m built,” Barton said. “I’m a tall, lengthy guy. Playing in the interior, I’m a 6-foot-5 guy against the short, stout nose tackles. I’ve got a lot of body to protect. Some of the technique things have been harder for me to develop, too. But I’ve made a lot of progress, honestly — technically and fundamentally — just from last year until this year."
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Barton’s real value this season has been his versatility as much as his ability.
When All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs missed the first three games while recovering from knee surgery, Barton moved back to the position he played his final three seasons at Duke, and the Bucs offense wasn’t any worse for it.
Guard Ben Bredeson slid over from left guard to center, a position he had played some with the Giants.
The Bucs won all three games, averaging 24 points in the process.
But Bredeson was in and out of the lineup before finally being placed on injured reserve on Dec. 9 after suffering a knee injury in a loss to the Saints.
With right guard Cody Mauch out for the season following a Week 2 knee injury in a win at Houston, Dan Feeney and Mike Jordan have stepped in at the guard spots, giving Barton new players to communicate with.
“It’s just different,” Barton said. “Dan and Mike have stepped up in a big way for this team. We picked up Dan in Week 3, and we picked up Mike just before training camp. You know, obviously, last year, just having the continuity we had and stuff, I think what we saw as the season rolled on, we just got better and better and better.
“With all the injuries this year, I just don’t think we’ve been able to catch that rhythm.”
Depending on the analytics you subscribe to, Barton has had a difficult sophomore season in the NFL. Pro Football Focus says he has allowed five sacks and eight penalties, ranking him 38 among 40 qualifying centers in that category.
But for Barton, bouncing between roles is forging a more complete lineman and one better equipped for what comes next.
“Obviously, there’s been some tougher games in there,” he said. “But personally, I think I’ve learned a lot this year and improved on a lot with my technique. When you really break it down, I go look at things that I’m doing this year, there’s some clips on there throughout every game where I’m like, ‘A year ago, I couldn’t have done that. A year ago, I couldn’t have snapped or thrown my hands like that. A year ago, I couldn’t get attached on this double team.’ There are certain technical things that in the transition were really hard for me to acclimate to.”
In last Sunday’s 23-20 loss to the Panthers, the Bucs ran the football with impunity. They entered the game with a stated goal of 30 rushing attempts and accumulated 169 yards on 33 carries, a 5.1-yard average.
Unfortunately, while the run-first approach enabled the Bucs to have a nine-minute advantage in time of possession, it didn’t translate into points.
“I thought we ran the ball well,” Barton said. “There were a lot of plays as far as the blocking scheme, and it was, ‘This is what we want it to look like.’ And again, there are some where you don’t want it to look like. But that’s in every game.
“So, I think this O-line has gotten better. But when you have guys out, with all the different rotations and guys in and out of the lineup, it’s always a tough thing.”
Category: General Sports
