Germain Ifedi Headed Inside to Right Guard for Bears

GM Ryan Pace plans to shuffle former Seattle lineman back to his original position and hope he can raise the level of play at a problem position

The issue of where Germain Ifedi fits offensive line plans for the Bears became more clear Friday when general manager Ryan Pace indicated it would be at guard.

Whether Ifedi can actually pull it off remains the real issue.

"He obviously played both—right tackle, right guard," Pace said during a conference call with Chicago media. "Right now we do envision him kicking inside to guard and no different than at quarterback—adding competition to the right guard competition with Ifedi.

"He's a guy we liked coming out in the draft, we've kept close tabs on."

Ifedi has played more than 1,000 snaps at guard, but 94% came when he was a rookie in 2016. More than three-quarters of his snaps have been at right tackle.

The common denominator is he struggled at both spots. Pro Football Focus tracked him for seven sacks allowed last year and 5.5 on average per season.

His 13 penalties last season tied him for fifth in the NFL.

Ifedi was a favorite target of disenchanted Seattle Seahawks fans throughout his four years, but he also remained a starter throughout that period.

The 31st player chosen in the 2016 draft, the former Texas A&M player may have had the eye of Bears general manager Ryan Pace for a while based largely on on his physical characteristics rather than his play.

Ifedi has a long reach and is 6-foot-5, 325.

"He's a talented player—36-inch arms," Pace said. "Highly intelligent."

The Bears will put him into the offensive line mix with Rashaad Coward and Alex Bars, and any player they might draft, with hope they can find a replacement for Kyle Long. 

They're counting on new offensive line coach Juan Castillo to do something with him.

"I know Juan Castillo is really high on this player, too, and how he feels he can make him better which we’re confident in," Pace said. "So we're excited to get him where we got him, just to really add competition to the offensive line.

"That's important. That depth there is important and we'll let that play out."

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven