All-Access with Cole Toner — Aug. 8: Positive reviews in Hall of Fame Game
All during training camp, Cardinals offensive lineman Cole Toner will join Doug and Wolf every morning on 98.7 FM, Arizona's Sports Station.
During training camp, Arizona Cardinals offensive lineman Cole Toner will join Doug and Wolf every morning on 98.7 FM, Arizona’s Sports Station, to give an inside look at the daily grind of camp and a personal view of how his 2017 preparation is coming along.
Any time a rookie enters the NFL, his head is spinning.
Transitioning from college football and draft preparation to being on an NFL roster is a whirlwind of an experience.
But in year two, things start to slow down. That’s where Cardinals offensive lineman Cole Toner is in his NFL journey. No longer a rookie, not a vested veteran. Obviously, there is still learning to be done, but things are much more familiar.
That’s part of the reason why Toner graded out pretty well in Arizona’s preseason opener, a 20-18 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio. Toner started at center and played 31 offensive snaps in the game, many coming in the early stages when the Cardinals built a 15-0 first-quarter lead.
“I thought I played pretty well,” Toner said Tuesday morning, pointing out one play that didn’t go so well. “You’re right about that screen pass. I kind of messed up on that because it was a blitz and I kind of freaked out and didn’t know how to approach that.
“There’s about two plays that I would like to get back, but other than that, I thought it was a solid start for me at center. I’m glad to have one under my belt at center because that was my first game there, so I should be more comfortable continuing forward.”
The play in question was a screen pass Blaine Gabbert threw to Andre Ellington on the first play of the second quarter. Toner released defensive lineman Woody Baron a little too early on the play, speeding up the process and putting Gabbert under pressure. However, the pass was complete and gained four yards, so if that’s Toner’s worst play of the game, I’m sure everyone will take it.
One game at center doesn’t make anyone a grizzled veteran, but Toner is a lot more in-tune with what he’s doing this year as opposed to his rookie camp last summer.
“I’m so much more comfortable. Before last year’s first preseason game, we were in the tunnel. It was against Oakland at home, so we’re in the tunnel about to come out and it was ‘oh my God, this is crazy. This is the NFL,'” Toner said. “Even though it was a preseason game, the stadium was still pretty packed and it’s loud.
“Before this one, I was just focused on what my calls are going to be, what looks they were probably going to throw at us. I was calm and ready to go.”
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Comments
1 Comments
I think Toner is going to be a good Center. Last season as a rookie, he ranked as the best OG in the NFL over the pre-season via Pro Football Focus, as a rookie. Toner is a big Center at 6"5/310, but he is has very polished excellent technique and hand placement and has a very high understanding of angles, his ceiling is very high. Toner added muscle over the off-season building up strength, but I'd like to see him spend another year in the weight room & class room before taking over. With another year of development though, I think Cole Toner could be an excellent Center for the Cardinals for years to come.
With the young O-Linemen looking very good the future looks very bright w/ guys such as 6"3/320pd RG Evan Boehm looking excellent at RG w/ sky high potential, 6"5/320pd super athletic LT DJ Humphries vastly improved & looking like the best linemen on the team according to local media thru camp, massive 6"5/320pd (35.5in long-arms) LG Dorian Johnson who was a projected early top of 2nd rd pick as the 2nd best guard in the draft is playing like You’d expect from one of the best OG prospects in the draft, Johnson has sky-high Pro-Bowl caliber ability as a mauler against the run & his athleticism shows in pass-pro with excellent technique & power in his hands. With ability to generate tremendous power though very athletic w/nimble feet, Johnson is a more athletic version of Mike Iupati w/ a far higher ceiling than Iupati in pass-pro. 6”7 LT/RT Will Holden (who had a 3rd round grade) looked excellent as well, showing power & push vs the run & effective as a drive blocker vs the run. In pass pro he is a Technician who plays with good fundamentals & showed that. Holden can be a very good starting RT for ARI in the future.
All of those offensive linemen are 23yrs old or younger, all have the ability to play in the league for the next decade. All of those guys have sky-high potential up front esp guys like DJ Humphries, Evan Boehm and Dorian Johnson who have All-Pro caliber ceilings. I think LT DJ Humphries will make the Pro-Bowl this year at LT. The future of the offensive line looks excellent as ARI has drafted very good.