Tag: seahawks offensive line

Seahawks Highlights: Charles Cross shuts down Robert Quinn on third down

If Seattle’s quarterbacks are going to consistently get pockets like that on third down this offense has a chance to exceed even our wildest expectations.

As we noted last week, this Seattle Seahawks offensive line has rarely made highlight reel-worthy plays for a long time. That may be changing thanks to their promising pair of rookie tackles, though.

Seattle’s first possession of its preseason game against the Chicago Bears ended in a three and out. However, it was a very promising three and out – that is if you’re excited about this team’s sudden, radical improvement in pass protection. Observe left tackle Charles Cross standing up Robert Quinn, one of the league’s top veteran pass rushers.

Geno Smith had more than enough time to work in the pocket and delivered a good ball to Freddie Swain, who dropped it.

That’s really besides the point. If Seattle’s quarterbacks are going to consistently get pockets like that on third down this offense has a chance to exceed even our wildest expectations.

Chicago leads 3-0 late in the first quarter.

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Seahawks offensive line ranked NFL’s worst by Pro Football Focus going into 2022

Stop me if this one sounds familiar.

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Stop me if this one sounds familiar. Pro Football Focus believes that the Seattle Seahawks have the worst offensive line unit in the entire NFL going into the 2022 season.

Here’s what PFF had to say about Seattle’s No. 32 ranking.

“There’s quite obviously a lot of hope for the future with the talent Seattle has brought into the fold, but this has crash-and-burn potential. Starting two rookie offensive tackles — both from Air Raid offenses — is a scary proposition. And considering Gabe Jackson’s decline in recent years, there’s not a single quality starter this unit can rely on.”

Truth hurts but lies will kill you and PFF isn’t wrong about the crash-and-burn potential angle for this group.

If the regular season were to start today the Seahawks’ starting five up front would look like this:

LT: Charles Cross
LG: Damien Lewis
C: Austin Blythe
RG: Gabe Jackson
RT: Abe Lucas

Seattle has at least one quality backup guard in Phil Haynes but everybody else on the bench is as yet an unproven commodity at this level.

We believe Cross and Lucas will both turn out to be quality starters in the long run, but it may take a couple of seasons for them to reach their potential. In the meantime, it’s hard to argue that this won’t be one of the worst offensive lines in the league.

The one thing that would help most is bringing in a proven veteran center to lead the group. J.C. Tretter is the best one available.

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2022 NFL draft: Scouting report for Seahawks OT Abraham Lucas

Here’s a look at a portion of Lucas’ scouting report from Draft Wire’s Natalie Miller.

The Seattle Seahawks selected the perfect complement to new left tackle Charles Cross when they picked right tackle Abraham Lucas out of Washington State at No. 72 overall.

Here’s a look at a portion of Lucas’ scouting report from Draft Wire’s Natalie Miller.

Lucas was a reliable presence for the Cougars, starting 42 games at right tackle. Over the last two years, he allowed just one sack, while also being a prominent piece in Wazzu’s running game, which averaged 122 yards per game.

Possessing great length for the position, Lucas has ideal size and strength to anchor the right side of the line. He’s technically sound in pass blocking, with his hands matching his feet. He rarely lunges into blocks, allowing his length and natural core strength take over rushers, locking them down with great hand usage. Off the snap, his hands pop and land with force into the chest, and sustain while his core strength allows his feet to stick inside.

As a run blocker, Lucas allows his reach to help him lean into blocks and drive back defenders off the line. His strength and length pushes his initial attack forward, and bulls over defenders when they are adjusting or caught off-guard. He clearly has the right mentality in the run game, as he takes on blocks with a meanness, and seeks to finish with authority.

Click here to read the full Lucas scouting report.

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Seahawks tackle top offensive line needs early in the 2022 NFL draft

Seahawks tackle top offensive line needs with first, third-round picks

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The Seahawks appear to be trying to rebuild their offensive line from the outside in. With their first pick of the 2022 NFL draft on Thursday night, Seattle selected Mississippi State’s Charles Cross, who projects to replace Duane Brown as the team’s starter at left tackle.

Moments ago, the Seahawks may have filled their hole at right tackle. Picking at No. 72 overall in the third round of the draft, they chose Washington State’s Abraham Lucas, one of the top right tackle prospects in this class.

Prior to these two getting drafted, Seattle’s projected starters at these two positions had been Stone Forsythe and Jake Curhan, both rookies in 2021. Their No. 1 options last season were Duane Brown and Brandon Shell, who both remain free agents.

It’s never a sure thing which offensive line prospects will work out in the NFL – especially the ones picked by this team – however, the Seahawks are getting the process right at least in this part of the game. With OT now fully-secured on both sides, they can move to address other spots.

By passing once again on Malik Willis and Desmond Ridder (who was drafted moments later by the Falcons) it’s become pretty clear Seattle is not partaking in this class of QBs.

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Seahawks projected to have worst pass protecting OL in the NFL

Heading into 2022 that situation might be worse than ever before.

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Many factors contributed to the divorce between Russell Wilson and the Seahawks. Near the top of the list was the team’s inability to keep him clean in the pocket over the years. While Wilson’s style of play certainly contributed to his high sack rate, Seattle has consistently had one of the worst pass protecting offensive lines in the NFL over the last 10 years.

Heading into 2022 that situation might be worse than ever before. At the moment, Seattle has no proven starters on the roster at right tackle or left tackle and their center situation is thin at best. According to an analysis by Ben Baldwin, the Seahawks are currently projected to have the worst pass protecting offensive line in the NFL this year.

Bringing back left tackle Duane Brown and right tackle Brandon Shell would help – and Pete Carroll says both are still in play for the Seahawks to re-sign.

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NFL Free Agency: Seahawks losing OL Jamarco Jones to Titans

Jones has played 36 games for Seattle over the last three seasons at a variety of different positions up front.

The Seattle Seahawks are losing their versatile backup offensive lineman Jamarco Jones, according to a report by Adam Schefter at ESPN. He intends to sign a two-year deal with the Tennessee Titans worth $5.75 million.

Jones has played 36 games for Seattle over the last three seasons at a variety of different positions up front. He’s capable of playing every spot but center.

The Seahawks are also choosing not to tender offensive lineman and restricted free agent Kyle Fuller, who started several games at center and then left guard late in the season. He will become an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday.

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Russell Wilson credits Seahawks offensive line for ‘dominating’ in Houston

When it was over, Russell Wilson went out of his way to commend the unit for dominating the line of scrimmage.

The Texans rolled over the Seahawks on their first drive of the game Sunday, scoring easily in just under four minutes of clock time. From that point on, the contest was pretty much all Seattle. The game ended in a comfortable 20-point win for the visitors, who shut out their opponents after halftime for the second straight week.

One of the reasons they finally broke through with their first truly-convincing victory since Halloween was a rare standout performance from their offensive line. When it was over, starting quarterback Russell Wilson went out of his way to commend the unit for dominating the line of scrimmage. The highlight of the outing was Wilson going unsacked for the first time since Week 15 of 2020.

Not everyone was a fan of Wilson’s pass protection, though. For what it’s worth, the highest graded pass-blocker for the Seahawks this week from Pro Football Focus was left guard Damien Lewis (86.5). The rest of the OL actually got poor marks in this regard – right tackle Jake Curhan was the next-highest at 47.2, while Gabe Jackson (36.6) and Ethan Pocic (28.7) had absolutely brutal scores.

We can debate PFF’s grades endlessly but one element of the game that was overwhelmingly obvious was the success of Seattle’s rush attack. As a team, the Seahawks averaged 6.7 yards per carry, including a superb 8.6 from Rashaad Penny – who put in by far the most-productive effort of his career. It’s no accident that it came along with the best team-wide run-blocking we’ve seen in a long time.

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Seahawks offensive line ranked No. 19 by PFF after Week 1

The offensive line has room to grow, though.

The Seahawks dominated the Colts on Sunday to earn their first win of the 2021 NFL season. Seattle’s offense has been dominating the headlines ever since, thanks to an exceptional debut from Shane Waldron and a superb effort from Russell Wilson and his skill players.

The offensive line has room to grow, though. Heading into Week 2, Pro Football Focus has ranked Seattle’s front five No. 19 in the league.

“Despite all of the Seahawks’ additions to the offensive line in recent years, it remains one rock in Duane Brown at left tackle and then various shades of concern in the other four spots. New acquisition Gabe Jackson surrendered a pair of pressures on 29 pass-blocking snaps and ended his Seattle debut with a 62.8 overall PFF grade. Kyle Fuller at center and Damien Lewis at left guard each earned sub-40.0 PFF pass-blocking grades.”

This is hardly breaking news, though. Wilson has rarely had an above-average offensive line in his career and he’s generally made it work so far. What’s more interesting is their competition was ranked so much higher.

Indianapolis’ offensive line came in at No. 2 on PFFs list behind the Browns. Obviously, missing starting left tackle Eric Fisher was a blow and the Seahawks took advantage of backup Julie’n Davenport.

However, it wasn’t just one spot where Seattle kept winning. Darrell Taylor, Alton Robinson, Bryan Mone, Carlos Dunlap and Rasheem Green all shined at one point or another. It’s only one game, but this performance from the Seahawks defensive line against quality competition is a very good sign.

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Seahawks guards have a bet on who gets the most knockdowns

The loser buys the entire offensive line dinner.

The Seattle Seahawks’ track record with drafting offensive linemen is… pretty horrible to put it as kindly as possible. For the most part, the only good OL that have come through Seattle during the Pete Carroll era have been acquired via trade or free agency.

Last year, the front office finally hit on one when they picked LSU’s Damien Lewis in the third round. After a strong rookie year at right guard, Lewis is sliding over to left guard in 2021 to make room for the veteran Gabe Jackson. Apparently, the two of them have a bet on who will get the most knockdowns this season. The loser buys the entire offensive line dinner.

Center Kyle Fuller is considered a fair and neutral third party, so he will keep count during the season.

These guys can afford it, but that dinner will no doubt come with a hefty price-tag. As promising as Lewis looks, it’s hard to bet against Jackson.

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