Jon Jansen, the starting right tackle for most of his previous 10 seasons, saw some time at center in relief of best pal Casey Rabach this morning.

Jansen struggled during a stint at guard in practice after being benched for Stephon Heyer last September. But at 33 and understanding that he might be a backup this season, Jansen is being more accomodating to this move.

"I'm a man of many talents," Jansen said with a grin. "We just want to take a look at it and see if I can play more than one position. I think it went real well. I had a bit of an introduction to it this time last year and a little bit more this time."

Last year's backup center, Justin Geisinger, signed with Carolina and veteran guard Pete Kendall, who had started at center earlier in his career, is unsigned and unlikely to return. Young lineman Wil Montgomery is trying his hand at snapping, too, but if Jansen can master the skill, his chances of sticking around and being active for each game will greatly increase.

"We're just trying to make sure that we can cover all of our bases," coach Jim Zorn said. "Jon's a very versatile lineman. Some of the younger guys can't function with some of the [line] calls that we have to make against our defensive team. Jon can do that so he's in there. "Jon has done a great job of saying, 'I want to start, but [beyond that] I want to be a part of this team.' He's played all three positions already out there. "

-- David Elfin

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