Monsters In The Middle
By BoogaP
Arguably the most important position in a 3-4 defense is that of the Nose Tackle. Quite frankly, there is little argument to be had, in my opinion; it is the most important position.
In the past, we were all spoiled by the play of Jamal Williams. The guy was an absolute beast. Constantly devouring blockers which, in turn, forced opposing defenses to send two, sometimes even three, blockers at J Will.
All that being said, the Chargers have Antonio Garay and Cam Thomas playing NT in the middle of the Bolts defense.
Talk about wearing out the opposing team’s center. Garay and Thomas are listed at 6’4″ 320 and 6’4″ 335, respectively, on Chargers.com. Far be it from me to question either listing.
After being re-signed to a two year contract this offseason, Garay will now be playing in his fourth season as a Charger after being picked up in 2009.
He was a great find by A.J. Smith. His contributions to the team both in the stat column and in the locker room will only continue to grow. I expect #71 to have a great year and I feel confident saying that he believes so as well.
My favorite play of Garay’s is shared by millions. That play is when he sacked Peyton Manning by “Hulking” Jeff Linkenbach into WoManning knocking him ferociously to the ground. I am not concerned that he received no credit in the stat line for that sack. We all saw what happened.
Due to the fact that I my follow him on Twitter, I would like to add that I feel comfortable stating that Antonio Garay is one of the funniest people alive. #JustSayin
And then there is Baby Zilla. Short for Baby Godzilla. Calm down people of Tokyo; he’s a football player. But, don’t make him angry. You wouldn’t like him when he’s angry.
I’m talking about Camaron Thomas. Cam for short. Talk about a beast! The guy uses Godzilla AND The Incredible Hulk while combining both with his Twitter screen name and Twitter background.
I think that this season will prove that all opposing quarterbacks will indeed come to view him that way as well.
Thomas had 4 sacks last year while only starting two games.
Speaking of Jamal Williams, that sack total ties Jamal’s career high. I know that I have stated that in the past. Just a simple reminder.
There were two players that I wanted in the 2010 NFL draft. They were Ryan Mathews and Cam Thomas.
I’m not going to get into how the heck Thomas fell into the fifth round. In a limited role he has proven that he is not only capable of playing at the NFL level he can, indeed, dominate in the league.
On another Twitter note, this time speaking of Thomas, I had a Chargers Fan that follows me send me a direct message to me and ask that I send out a tweet to ask for prayers and positive thoughts for him and his family.
So, of course, I followed through requesting both prayers and positive thoughts for him and his family.
Although I had many, many #BoltFam members send positive thoughts and prayers via tweets, one direct message stood out to me.
It was from Cam Thomas. He was sincerely concerned and found a way to contact the #BoltFam member.
I was only told one detail about the conversation that they had. It was about real life. Not football.
The individual having the tough time had said during the direct mesage request for positive thoughts and prayers, and I quote, ” it’s nice to have one of your heroes care.” He had said so prior to having heard from Thomas.
I did not relay that information to Cam until after I had heard that he had conversed with said #BoltFam member. He didn’t do it because he thought he was a hero. He did it because he was genuinely concerned.
An NFL player that truly cares about the Fans? Although I believe that is the case more often than not, I know this to be a fact as far as Cam Thomas is concerned.
Michael Gehlken, of the San Diego Union Tribune, has projected that Garay will most likely be the starter at NT when questioned in the UT mailbag.
My belief is that Thomas will definitely see significant snaps.
The only question at NT is how long it will take Cam to see the majority of the first team snaps.
Realistically, it could be something to watch in the 2013 season. I am not proclaiming that 2012 will be the year that Thomas takes over the starting duties.
Both have proven that they are more than capable of manning the center of our 3-4 defense.
Did someone say Manning? Twice a year now Peyton. You chose the AFC West as the easiest place to obtain your second Superbowl ring.
I have a feeling that both Thomas and Garay will take that very personally.
Although I completely disagree with the commenter that said it does not matter who starts on the d-line, due to our rotation; our depth will prove to be extremely beneficial to the entire front seven.
Ask the starters and the backups if it has a bearing on that contract money. Again, #JustSayin.
I would encourage all of the readers/commenters to get on Twitter and follow both Antonio and Cam at @antoniogaray71 and @Baby_Zilla76 respectively.
These two behemoths in the middle only add to the dozens of reasons that this will be a special year.
If you don’t believe me….. Just ask me.
Thanks a lot for reading.
BoltUp!!!
BoogaP