Arizona Cardinals pass rusher Chandler Jones racked up 19 sacks last season and has been putting up consistently impressive numbers his entire career. On September 13, it will be up to San Francisco 49ers offensive tackles Trent Williams and Mike McGlinchey to keep the three-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro away from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
"Obviously, Chandler is one of the top-tier guys in the league in terms of being able to rush the passer and set the edge," McGlinchey told reporters on Thursday. "Extremely talented, really hard-working and hard-playing guy. And his reputation [precedes] him, obviously, for all the things he's done on the field.
"I definitely feel a lot more prepared (to face him) this time around. The Cardinals game last year was kind of a turning point in my season. I started playing some really good football and took a lot of good things away from that game. Hopefully, we'll be able to build on what I did all last year at that time.
"I feel really good out of the training camp that I had. I feel really prepared, feel in the best shape that I've been in, as confident as I've ever been, and excited to get it going. Obviously, you don't want to do it any other way than getting the best in Week 1."
Meanwhile, the veteran anchor on the opposite side of the offensive line is eager to get onto the football field and face whatever Chandler and the Cardinals have to throw at him.
"I turned the film (of Jones) on back in [May] when I looked at the schedule and seen that Arizona was our opener," Williams said on Wednesday. "Me and him had some epic battles, and we've went back and forth a few times. But there's a lot of tape for me to study on me and him, and our matchups. I didn't waste any time. I just started to go over and look at it again.
"It's frustrating because he's a rusher with it all, so no matter how much you study him, there's still that X-factor that he can get you with. That's what makes him so good."
Williams is confident in McGlinchey's ability to hold his own, though. Despite this being his first season playing with McGlinchey, Williams knows there's been a lot of growth out of the third-year offensive lineman.
"When you talk to the coaches, I think they would say that Mike has probably been one of the most improved players on this team," Williams said. "Just for me, watching him last year, I thought that he had made a ton of strides.
"One of our first conversations when I got here, after actually seeing him move on the field and seeing him up close, I told him that there's nothing stopping him from being the best right tackle in the league. I think that's what he's really chasing. He's chasing greatness. He never settles. He's never satisfied.
"And he's one of those guys in the room that we can all look towards, and to see that he's playing like his hair is on fire. It's paying off. You turn on the film now -- I'm not going to say he's a totally different player, but he's a much more improved player, and he's been improving every year. And I think this year, he's took another leap and bound towards greatness.
"I'm just happy for him, happy to see what this year holds for him, and if he's anything close to what he's been showing us in practice, then I think he will establish himself as an elite right tackle."
