Should the Giants Start Spencer Pulley at Center Week 1 vs. Steelers?
As recently as a week and a half ago, Giants head coach Joe Judge, when asked about the center competition between Nick Gates and Spencer Pulley, described it as being"scratch even."
Was that a matter of Judge not looking to tip his hand, or was he legitimately unsure who his starting center would be?
Well, as is now known, the unofficial depth chart is out (emphasis on unofficial), and it lists third-year man Nick Gates as the starter ahead of veteran Spencer Pulley.
But when asked again about the center position Monday, Judge said, "We’re still going to work on deciding that. We’re going to let another day go through right here. There are some things we’re going to work on (Monday)."
Is that the coach merely being coy to throw the Steelers off the track, or is something else brewing?
The answer could be the latter.
According to Pro Football Reference, the Steelers in 2019 had the seventh-highest blitz percentage in the NFL (36.9%). Their defensive unit, which primarily remains intact from last year, by the way, also ranked seventh in quarterback hurries (11.8%), first in sacks (54) and pressures (30.5%), and second in quarterback knockdowns (10.9%).
Unlike some defenses, the Steelers run many exotic pressure packages that are so cleverly disguised and can catch an offensive line flatfooted.
So what does this all have to do with the center position, you ask?
Gates, as I noted later in training camp from my observations, looked extremely comfortable running the show against his own defense in a controlled environment.
The coaches' approach was to create as many different looks to challenge Gates and the offensive line.
The Steelers defense is on another level given the various tricks and tactics defensive coordinator Keith Butler and head coach Mike Tomlin like to run, such as stunts/twists and delays.
These are well-disguised plays that, when combined with the defensive secondary's ability to disrupt routes down the field, leave a quarterback with very few places to go.
But all is not necessarily lost for the Giants offense. One potential solution could be to start Pulley at center ahead of Gates for this game.
By not having OTAs and then later, not having preseason, those two factors don't' exactly favor rookies, undrafted free agents, or players who are gearing up to play a new position live for the first time in their careers, as is the case with Gates.
Throw in the fact that in Daniel Jones, the Giants have a second-year quarterback who is coming off a season in which at times he held the ball far too long (something he showed in the summer, albeit not as much) and who mostly threw to his first read. It might not be a bad idea for the Giants to put Pulley at center given his experience in identifying blitzes and making the proper calls.
I do believe that Gates is going to be the starting center this year. But a concern I expressed earlier in the off-season and one that I think is on the minds of the coaches is Gates' lack of experience in making the lien calls, particularly against complex defenses such as what the Steelers run.
"We’re still going to work on deciding that," Judge told reporters Monday. "We’re going to let another day go through right here. There are some things we’re going to work on today."
No doubt, the Steelers' defense and figuring out how to get it blocked up so that Jones and the offense aren't rendered as non-factors will be high amount the coaches' "to-do" list.
