The Seattle Seahawks suffered a litany of injuries to their offensive line in 2019, often resulting in players being forced to play out of position and contributing to Russell Wilson’s league-leading 48 sacks.
Perhaps the biggest loss was starting center Justin Britt, who suffered a torn ACL in Week 8 against Atlanta, costing him the rest of the season.
Britt was replaced by backup Joey Hunt, and while Hunt drew praise from coach Pete Carroll for his high football IQ, he was often overmatched in pass protection, which often resulted in the pocket evaporating for Wilson almost immediately.
Carroll provided a little update on Britt’s status at his post-season press conference on Monday afternoon.
“I saw him the other day, he said he is making really good progress,” Carroll said. “He’s been around a lot. He’s very active in here, so we know that he’s working hard at it. He should be able to get back on normal schedule. After you get about five or six months into it, you have to kind of figure out what’s going on. So, I don’t know how that’s going to turn for him.”
ACL surgery typically comes with an 8-12 month recovery period, so Britt’s availability for the start of the 2020 season remains unclear.
What also remains unclear is his status on the team, as Seattle could opt to release Britt before the final year of his contract is up, saving $11.4 million against the cap – money they could use to bring back Jadeveon Clowney or pursue other free agents.
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