The Seattle Seahawks offensive line, perhaps more than any other position, has been beleaguered by injuries this season.
In fact, only one player, right tackle Germain Ifedi, managed to appear in all 16 regular season games.
Ifedi is by no means an elite, or even above-average right tackle, but coach Pete Carroll saw improvement and consistency from his performance during the 2019 season.
“I think he’s been solid throughout the year,” Carroll said on Friday. “He has been very consistent. He’s been a solid performer. He’s been one of the real anchors. He’s been able to stay out there the whole time which has been good. He continues to grow as a pro and he’s doing a nice job.”
Ifedi finished the regular season with a 56.2 grade from Pro Football Focus, which falls under the ‘replaceable’ category, but he did make improvements in his pass protection, a big area of growth for the fourth year pro.
Additionally, while his 13 penalties were fifth in the NFL, it was also an improvement for Ifedi – and not too bad considering he played the second most snaps among NFL offensive linemen this season.
Seattle declined Ifedi’s fifth-year option this offseason, meaning he will hit the open market in March. Carroll has previously expressed interest in bringing him back, and his performance this year likely didn’t do anything to dissuade him.
The Seahawks appear to be transitioning Jamarco Jones to guard, likely replacing Mike Iupati next year, and they love keeping George Fant in that extra lineman role, so they have very little depth at tackle – making a reunion with Ifedi all the more plausible.
For now, he’ll have his hands full with a vaunted Green Bay pass rush on Sunday when the Seahawks look to win their ninth road game of the season against the Packers.
Kickoff is at 3:40 p.m. PT.
[lawrence-related id=54668]