Tag: seahawks offensive line

Seahawks totally reset their offensive line in this 2024 NFL mock draft

We can’t mock draft Pete Carroll to be more aggressive on fourth down or stop wasting timeouts, but we can mock a whole new offensive line.

One recurring theme this season when the Seattle Seahawks lose is that they have been dominated at the line of scrimmage. The last three starts for Geno Smith underscores that lesson as much as anything. While Smith has done an exceptional job of avoiding pressure and extending plays there’s only so much any quarterback can do when his pass protection collapses in less than a second. All this pressure has kept a low lid on what should be a top-five scoring offense given all the talent they have at the skill positions.

We can’t mock draft Pete Carroll to be more aggressive on fourth down or stop wasting timeouts, but we can mock a whole new offensive line. That’s the strategy we went in with for our latest seven-round 2024 mock draft. Here’s how it played out.

Geno Smith credits offensive line, playcalling after Seahawks win

Success in the NFL depends on many moving parts working in harmony.

Success in the NFL depends on many moving parts working in harmony. Even the most gifted quarterbacks can be stunted by unimaginative playcalling or poor pass protection. The last few weeks those have both been an issue for Geno Smith and the Seahawks, who continue to struggle on third down more than they should given the level of talent they have.

However, when crunchtime came around on Sunday they got it together. Seattle’s offensive line put in their best performance in weeks, Shane Waldron finally managed to get some yards after catch and Geno Smith answered the call by putting together two flawless drives in the fourth quarter to win the game.

After it was over, Smith naturally deferred to his supporting cast, crediting the offensive line as well as Waldron for their work. Watch.

Smith also deserves a lot of the credit, especially since he managed to avoid committing a turnover for the first time in five games. Through nine games, he’s at 2,171 passing yards, 11 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 54.2 QBR that ranks right in the middle (No. 17) of the league.

All things considered – especially the size of his contract and the overall offensive drop-off this year around the NFL – this is some solid production from No. 7.

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Pro Football Focus gives Seahawks offensive line their annual brutal ranking

This year is no different.

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Some things are inevitable. The list includes death, taxes, Thanos and Pro Football Focus hating the Seahawks offensive line. To be fair, Seattle’s front five has never been a strength for this team during the Pete Carroll era, even when it was the most-expensive unit in the league. No matter the personnel involved, over the years, PFF has consistently ranked the Seahawks offensive line as one of the NFL’s worst. This year is no different.

Their newest offensive line rankings have dropped. As expected, the Eagles continue to dominate the competition, remaining at the No. 1 spot. Down at the bottom of the list you’ll find the Cardinals (31) and the Titans (32) – the only two teams ranked lower than these Seahawks (30).

At least they admitted that if both Abe Lucas and Charles Cross take a step forward then their ranking will be too low:

“Seattle’s line largely rests on the development of its young tackles, Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas. While both played well early, each fell off substantially as their rookie seasons wore on… If those tackles play well, this ranking is too low. But if they don’t improve, this is a group that could struggle badly given its interior personnel.”

It’s not a great interior, but by their own grades left guard Damien Lewis had a very respectable 2022 season, posting a perfectly-decent 66.7 run blocking grade and a solid 72.6 pass blocking grade (71.8 overall).

Seattle got rid of the weakest link – which was right guard Gabe Jackson. He’s been replaced by Phil Haynes, who played about half the snaps at that spot last season. He had below-average grades (57.1 overall) but not terrrible.

Much will hinge on the center spot – where we are expecting rookie Olu Oluwatimi to take over as the starter at some point this year, even if it’s not Week 1. For now Evan Brown remains PFF’s projected starter and they must not think very highly of his game. He posted a strong run blocking grade last year (69.5) but was poor in pass protection (45.5).

As for Lucas and Cross, they may have fallen off some in the second half of the season but that’s to be expected of most rookies playing challenging positions for the first time at this level. We saw enough to be convinced of their potential and fully expect them to develop into quality starters. If Oluwatimi can do the same then this ranking may seem absurd by mid-season.

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Seahawks offensive line finishes 2022 season ranked near the bottom by PFF

They still have a lot of work to do before they’re ready to take on the true contenders around the NFL – especially in the trenches.

The Seattle Seahawks have made it to the playoffs largely thanks to the improvement of Geno Smith and the efforts of a magnificent 2022 rookie class. That said, they still have a lot of work to do before they’re ready to take on the true contenders around the NFL – especially in the trenches. While tackles Charles Cross and Abe Lucas had strong rookie seasons, the rest of Seattle’s offensive line leaves a bit to be desired.

Here’s how their rotation of offensive linemen graded out for the year:

LT Charles Cross: 63.7 overall
LG Damien Lewis: 71.8 overall
C Austin Blythe: 51.2 overall
RG Gabe Jackson: 55.0 overall
RT Abe Lucas: 68.5 overall
G Phil Haynes: 57.1 overall
OL Kyle Fuller: 55.6 overall
OL Jake Curhan: 31.2 overall
OT Stone Forsythe: 37.0 overall

Overall, their offensive line finished the season on the lower end of PFF’s rankings. Here is where all 32 teams stand going into the playoffs.

1. Philadelphia Eagles
2. Baltimore Ravens
3. Green Bay Packers
4. Kansas City Chiefs
5. Atlanta Falcons
6. Cleveland Browns
7. San Francisco 49ers
8. Detroit Lions
9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
10. Las Vegas Raiders
11. New England Patriots
12. Dallas Cowboys
13. Minnesota Vikings
14. Chicago Bears
15. Carolina Panthers
16. Pittsburgh Steelers
17. Los Angeles Chargers
18. Indianapolis Colts
19. Jacksonville Jaguars
20. Washington Commanders
21. Denver Broncos
22. Miami Dolphins
23. Buffalo Bills
24. Arizona Cardinals
25. Los Angeles Rams
26. Houston Texans
27. Seattle Seahawks
28. Cincinnati Bengals
29. New Orleans Saints
30. New York Giants
31. New York Jets
32. Tennessee Titans

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Seahawks rookie Ken Walker explains his second half breakout in Kansas City

Walker ended the day with 107 yards on 26 carries.

Geno Smith says the Seahawks running more up-tempo was the reason why their offense improved in the second half of yesterday’s loss to the Chiefs.

Rookie running back Ken Walker was another reason. After getting limited to just 16 yards on nine carries in the first half, Walker exploded in the second – helping spark a potential comeback that never really came together as the passing game couldn’t get off the ground. Seattle’s offensive line deserves some of the credit for coming out of the break with some far better run blocking. However, after the game Walker said his being more decisive was the key.

Walker ended the day with 107 yards on 26 carries.

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Seahawks offensive line ranked No. 13 by PFF going into Week 13

Here’s how PFF ranks all 32 teams’ offensive lines right now.

The Seahawks offensive line was supposed to be one of the worst in the NFL this year. In fact, at one point during the offseason Pro Football Focus had them ranked last in the league. However, thanks mostly to the surprise success of their starting rookie tackles, Seattle has fielded their best OL in a long time. As it happens, this week’s opponents (the Rams) are now ranked last in the league.

Heading into Week 13, PFF now ranks the Seahawks offensive line No. 13, down two spots from the week before. We can probably credit rookie right tackle Abe Lucas’ issues with Maxx Crosby for the drop, but to be fair Crosby does the same to just about everybody he faces.

For the year, Lucas still has solid PFF grades: 67.3 overall, 69.4 pass blocking and 65.3 run blocking. Meanwhile, fellow rookie left tackle Charles Cross has similar grades: 65.3 overall, 69.4 pass blocking and 60.3 run blocking. Left guard Damien Lewis has also had a strong season, grading out at 70.8 overall, which is 13.7 points higher than last season. The weak link in the chain is still center Austin Blythe – who is currently at 54.9 overall. Right guard Gabe Jackson (57.7 overall) has also shown signs of decline, while backup swing-guard Phil Haynes is at a respectable 63.4 overall grade.

Here’s how PFF ranks all 32 teams‘ offensive lines right now.

Geno Smith praises Seahawks’ offensive line with Marshawn Lynch quote

One unit that also deserves commendation is Seattle’s offensive line.

The Seahawks have won four games in a row. While their defensive turnaround is rightfully getting a lot of the credit, it’s important to remember this has been a complete team effort. One unit that also deserves commendation is Seattle’s offensive line, which has done a good job all year of keeping Geno Smith relatively clean.

Following Sunday’s 31-21 win over the Cardinals, Smith shared a tweet that made an interesting comparison. After praising the defense, Smith said he feels like Marshawn Lynch behind this offensive line, using Beast Mode’s famous “we going to Sizzler” line from his Oakland Tech days.

The team’s traditional sack and QB hit numbers aren’t great, but there are better ways to measure pass protection these days.

According to Pro Football Focus, Seattle has a 65.7 pass blocking grade for the season (not counting yesterday’s game), which ranks No. 13 in the league. ESPN’s pass block win rate metric has them at No. 5 at 65%.

Those are good but not great numbers, but compared to the Russell Wilson era it’s absolute gold. It’s a little bit hysterical that they finally got a quality pass blocking line as soon as he left.

The lion’s share of the credit must go to rookie tackles Abe Lucas and Charles Cross, who could be bookending this line for the next decade.

Update:

Marshawn Lynch approves.

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Seahawks offensive line ranked outside top 25 by PFF going into Week 4

Here’s how all 32 teams stack up going into October.

The Seattle Seahawks have two exciting young offensive tackles starting for them in Charles Cross and Abe Lucas. While their early work hasn’t been perfect, both have shown tremendous promise through three games.

Sadly, Seattle’s interior linemen haven’t performed as well. Damien Lewis has been unreliable at best, Gabe Jackson may be slowing down with age and Austin Blythe probably shouldn’t be considered a real starting center in any case. Together they’ve dragged down the unit’s ceiling. Heading into Week 4, Pro Football Focus has this group ranked No. 26 in the league. Here’s how all 32 teams stack up going into October.

Seahawks: 4 takeaways from a sloppy preseason loss to the Bears

Here are four takeaways from a sloppy preseason loss to Chicago.

The Seattle Seahawks laid a big, ugly egg in their first home game of the 2022 campaign. Fortunately it was only an exhibition game. Seattle played host to the Chicago Bears tonight and wound up losing by a score of 27-11.

Here are four takeaways from a sloppy preseason loss to Chicago.

Seahawks Highlights: Geno Smith throws a rainbow ball to Penny Hart for 41 yards

Watch Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith throw a pretty rainbow ball to wide receiver Penny Hart, resulting in a 41-yard gain.

Watch Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith throw a pretty rainbow ball to wide receiver Penny Hart, resulting in a 41-yard gain.

More absolutely gorgeous pass protection, here. We simply didn’t see this level of pass blocking consistently at any point in the Russell Wilson era.

That pass set Seattle up in field goal range but kicker Jason Myers missed from 47 yards. Chicago still leads 10-0.

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