INDIANAPOLIS — Known for his preparation, Alabama offensive tackle Jonah Williams was clearly ready for the barrage of questions about his 33 5/8-inch arms at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine on Thursday.”It’s a small portion of what it takes to be a tackle at the next level,” Williams said of arm length. “I think if you look at a lot of the really successful tackles over the past 10 years, from Joe Thomas, Joe Staley, Jake Matthews, Jason Peters, La’el Collins, Riley Reiff, Ryan Ramczyk… Just a couple guys off the top of my head that have shorter arms than me.”I don’t think that that’s necessarily a huge deal. I think I’m proud of the way I play. My approach to the game is what makes me a great player.”Many have argued Williams will have to bump inside to guard or across the formation to right tackle in the NFL, despite starting 29 games on the left side over the last two seasons at Alabama. Most scouts prefer tackles with arms of 34 1/2 inches or longer, but to Williams’ point, plenty of top-level tackles have succeeded despite measuring shy of that mark.A likely first-round pick and possible top-10 selection, he believes his play against the SEC’s top competition speaks for itself. At the same time, he understands he might wind up playing another position, depending on which team drafts him.”If your opinion is that there’s a certain benchmark you have to pass to be a tackle, that’s your opinion,” Williams said. “I’m not going to change that, and my arms aren’t going to grow longer. I think you watch the film, you make your own decisions.”Williams started at right tackle for the Crimson Tide as a true freshman, earning second-team All-SEC honors from The Associated Press. He also played on the left and right sides in high school, where his team flipped its tackles depending on the formation and which hash mark the ball was on.Whatever position, Williams plans to use relentless preparation — and a nasty on-field demeanor — to succeed.”I want to watch more film than everyone on the defense combined,” he said. “I want to know what each player does before they do it. I want to know what their best moves are, what percentage they win on those moves, how I can combat those moves.”…Kind of the double-edged sword of that is I think I can overanalyze things sometimes, kind of overthink things, play a bit hesitantly, so that’s something I’ve really been working on this past season. … Make your reads… and then as soon as the ball is snapped, cut it loose and try to take someone’s head off.”Williams’ teammate, Crimson Tide running back Josh Jacobs, doesn’t have any doubts about Williams’ ability translating to the NFL.”Jonah is special,” Jacobs said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a game where he’s messed up multiple times. He does everything he’s supposed to do and is asked of him. He’s just a solid overall player.”
