Conversation Starters: Comparing Adam Gettis to Brad Badger

I know, I know I'm a fool for not saying Mark Schlereth (hey they were late round picks that both went to schools that started with an 'I'), since they are both undersized guards who fit well in a zone blocking scheme. But I decided that comparing him to a 2-time Pro Bowler and 3-time SB winner might be a little extreme. It would be great if that is what he becomes, but in the meantime a more realistic comparison is former Stanford guard (how he didn't go to Wisconsin I'll never know), Brad Badger.

Badger, like Gettis, was a 5th round pick by the Skins. He was selected in 1997, and ended up playing for 11 seasons in the NFL. He was not a full-time starter for most of his career, but ended up playing in 134 games, and starting 64 of them. He was a bit of a utility player, logging time at LT, RT, LG and RG, but he primarily played at guard. He was never thought of as a great offensive lineman, but he was a nice option to have as a back-up and if he needed to start you could expect solid production. He only lasted with the Redskins for three years, before the Vikings signed him during the 2000 offseason as a restricted free agent, netting the Redskins a 5th round pick (wikipedia says he was a UFA, but the Skins had the Vikings 5th that year, and he hadn't played 4 years to reach UFA, so they appear to be wrong). In that time in DC he made 21 starts, and was a solid contributor. While he wasn't great in Minnesota, he probably should have been re-signed as instead the Redskins went with overpriced veteran players (Dave Szott, Ben Coleman, Keith Sims, and Jay Leeuwenberg) as their guards the next two seasons (ahh the start of the Snyder/Vinny Era).

Now Gettis doesn't have the same build as Badger, but that's okay since they are a part of two different offenses. Gettis is like Badger in the fact that he's a 5th round guy with some solid potential. And like Badger he's coming into a situation where the offensive line has struggled of late, and while there are some high caliber young prospects, nothing is set in stone. He could earn himself a starting job by his 2nd year, and projects to be at least an average player. Like Badger, Gettis also could further his value by being able to help out at multiple positions. Now I don't see him ever as a tackle, but he should be able to back-up both guard spots and looks to be working at center some as well. Hopefully if Gettis starts to have a similar career path to Badger they will retain him, instead of going with veteran players at the end of their careers.

What do you think, could Gettis be a solid guy like Badger?