The offensive line will be under scrutiny well into this season but for now one of the question marks is providing a very strong answer for himself.
Right tackle Gabe Carimi, coming off a season-ending knee injury six quarters into his rookie season, has been generally dominant in both run and pass blocking. In one three-snap stretch he stood up Israel Idonije and Corey Wootton successfully, although Idonije had one of the days best rush efforts in a two-man stunt with tackle Henry Melton against Carimi and right guard Lance Louis.
The play of Carimi is nothing sort of pivotal for the entire offense. His ability to handle the right side effectively allows flexibility to give help at left tackle if the winner between JMarcus Webb and Chris Williams struggles.
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And the key to Carimi is his knee, which has responded well to two days in pads, the day off and Tuesdays third full-pad session.
It feels better once its warmed up, Carimi said. Its a constant research and I have a constant conversation with the coaches and trainers and its feeling really good.
I dont think about it at all when were playing. Sometimes when were doing walk-throughs after practice and we have to go slow, Im thinking, ugh, I dont want to be down here. But once were in game mode, its been excellent.