“A Lot More Thinking”
June 11th, 2016
Ali Marpet Talks To Joe
Ali Marpet, the pride of Division-III Hobart College, has a fancy economics degree and he’s working on a new one — one much more interesting and valuable to Buccaneers fans.
A left tackle in college, Marpet quickly thrived at right guard with the Bucs as a rookie last year. This spring, after taking basic center snaps in practice in 2015, Marpet has been working a much bigger share at the position. Yes, Marpet is a guard. Make no mistake. But the Bucs don’t want another messy virgin center experience, and they believe center could be Marpet’s future.
Joe cornered Marpet this week and asked him what center is like for him.
“A lot more thinking. I think physically it might be slightly easier for me to handle, but mentally it’s a whole other game. It’s fun,” Marpet said. “I’m practicing and studying mostly at guard, but you never know how it goes. I have to be ready to play center any time.”
Working at center during underwear football is “somewhat real,” Marpet said, but he’s eager to get a few snaps in training camp and against angry bodies in training camp or preseason football.
Comfort at guard is why Marpet believes coaches are eager to push him at center.
Joe loves all this cross-training for offensive linemen. It’s a phenomenal way to learn the intricacies of the offense and build familiarity with teammates.
Frankly, Joe would like to see Marpet get time at left guard. J.R. Sweezy is pegged to play there as a replacement for Logan Mankins, but Sweezy was a right guard in Seattle and has missed all of spring ball with the Bucs while injured. Joe is a bit nervous Sweezy might have issues switching sides.
June 11th, 2016 at 9:27 am
I think Ali is going to be an anchor for this team for a long time. He’s going to go down as one of the most valuable picks in Bucs history. I have never been more excited or optimistic for a buccaneers season.
June 11th, 2016 at 9:37 am
It’s his brain capacity and not just his physical skills that make Marpet a great choice at center.
The center is the QB of the OL. QB looks at primarily LB & DB alignment to check to plays, the C looks at DL/LB alignment to make blocking calls. And the QB and C have to be on the same page.
June 11th, 2016 at 9:54 am
Ali Marpet and Kevin Pamphile both are cross-training at center, I hope they continue this during preseason. I want to see how they perform during a real game on the field.
June 11th, 2016 at 10:36 am
Most teams don’t put there most athletic lineman at center. So, why do we really want to move him when he is likely to be a pro bowl guard for years.
June 11th, 2016 at 10:40 am
The Dallas Cowboys, which is considered one of the best OL’s, have Travis Frederick who has a 1.17 rating while Ali has a 9.8 on a 10 scale.
June 11th, 2016 at 11:42 am
Alli is a jew!(no pun intended) no wonder the hebrew hammar is so smart!
June 11th, 2016 at 2:01 pm
Not so long ago posters on this here coner of the web doubt Ali. Of course that was when credit was given to Lovie for the selection.
June 11th, 2016 at 2:52 pm
You know…from the time I said I wanted us to draft Ali Marpet, I said he should play center. No one agreed.
He actually had experience at Center in college too. But people seem to gloss over that.
June 11th, 2016 at 7:32 pm
Moving Ali Marpet to center would be a total waste of his athleticism. Centers are a dime a dozen. Guards and tackles are much harder to come by. But I take comfort in knowing the ONLY one who thinks Marpet will eventually switch to center is Joe. It’s just a precaution
June 11th, 2016 at 8:19 pm
Since Sweezy is best suited for right guard, why not have Marpet and Sweezy switch positions?
Marpet played on the left side at tackle in college.
June 12th, 2016 at 2:01 am
With Sweezy being new at the position of LG, you can bet that Ali as C is just for backup in case Sweezy needs it on that side. He’ll be a G no doubt, thats where the money is, but theres also times he could really help open the middle for key plays when we’re running. Its great he can be such a diverse player if it works. Remember left side is Winston’s blind side….protection is the most important there. I think he’ll eventually be a LG.
June 12th, 2016 at 3:20 am
Marpet also distinguished himself playing Center in the Senior Bowl. I think it is great he is practicing at Center because if Hawley goes down they can slip Marpet there and bring Smith in to play his RG position where Smith subbed for Marpet admirably last year. Sweezy can certainly run block well but his QB had to run for his life often on pass plays last year. But his backup will be our fifth round 2014 Tackle who has proven to be both a good run blocker and an outstanding pass blocker too. He is learning to be a backup center like Marpet this year but he did a great job in 2015 when he subbed for Mankins last year. Unless Sweezy learns pass blocking real quick I would expect his backup to become the starter at LG before the end of the year.