The Seahawks offensive line was not so good in 2016. For Seattle to reach another Super Bowl, the line must get much better. (Duh!)
Three tackles on the Seahawks roster ranked in the bottom ten of the league in 2016, according to Pro Football Focus. Two of those players, Bradley Sowell and Garry Gilliam, are no longer on the team. The third, George Fant, could easily be the starter week one this year. Fant did improve as the season went on, and he has gained 25 pounds since last season. He better be much much at left tackle for the Seahawks to reach their goals.
Seattle did apparently upgrade the line this offseason, though. Not only did Seattle not retain Sowell and Gilliam – addition by subtraction – but they signed Luke Joeckel and Oday Aboushi. Joeckel and Aboushi have been far from great as well, but both have potential. At least more than Sowell or Gilliam.
Here is our guess at who will be a Seahawks offensive lineman in 2017.
Starters
Left Tackle – George Fant
Seattle just seems to want Fant to succeed. If he does make that second year jump to solid pro, then John Scheider and Pete Carroll showed genius in signing him as an undrafted free agent in 2016. Should Fant digress from even his 2016 level, the Seahawks might be sunk. Sure, Seattle will win many games, but they will not win a Super Bowl. Left tackle in the NFL makes that big of difference.
Left Guard – Luke Joeckel
Joeckel was originally drafted to be a ten-year starter at left tackle by the Jacksonville Jaguars. That, um…did not work out as planned. Instead, Joeckel was, in turn, ineffective or injured. Sometimes both. Joeckel played left guard fairly well early in 2016, but was then injured again. Seattle needs Joeckel to be healthy and productive. If he and Fant can form a good left side, Seattle’s offense will return to the efficiency of a 2013 level.
Center – Justin Britt
Britt is the one player who is a lock to start week one at his position along the line. He was Pro Bowl-quality in his first season at center. There is no reason to think he will not be even better in 2017 and beyond. The Seahawks should take this opportunity to sign Britt to a long-term extension. His presence at center will solidify the line for several seasons.
Right Guard – Mark Glowinski
Glowinski will be at a new professional position this year. He mostly played left guard previously. Pro Football Focus ranked Glowinski in the bottom quarter of the league at guard. 12s can only hope his move to the opposite side makes him suddenly a better player.
Right Tackle – Germain Ifedi
Ifedi returns to the position he played in college. The Seahawks gave him a year to get acclimated to the NFL, but now the boy must become a warrior. Seattle drafted Ifedi with the idea of him playing right tackle for years. If he is successful, this will be his first year of many at the position in Seattle.
The Next Men Up
Ethan Pocic
Pocic is the second round draft pick from LSU. He can play mutliple positions and can run-block well. Like Ifedi, the expectation is that the Seahawks will give Pocic a year to marinate and then become a starter. Likely he takes Joeckel’s or Fant’s position in 2018. Ideally, Seattle would like Pocic to take the position instead of the Seahawks simply giving Pocic a place.
Oday Aboushi
Aboushi is an offseason signee. In 2016, Aboushi was very good in pass-blocking and not good in run-blocking. This is pretty much the opposite of what Seattle wants. If either Joeckel or Glowinski are not productive early in the season, though, Aboushi will go in quickly.
Joey Hunt
Hunt is simply a center. The Seahawks have one in Britt. Seattle likes versatility. All that said, I think Hunt makes the roster because he is potentially a very good center and can immediately fill the role should Britt get injured. Hunt taking the place of Britt means the line would not have to shuffle much. The Seahawks should value stability over versatility with Hunt simply for this reason.
On the Block
Rees Odhiambo
Injured and probably not ready in 2016, Odhiambo might make the team instead of Hunt. He can play guard, and in a pinch, tackle. Seattle thought they had a steal in Odhiambo in last year’s draft, so now the player has to prove it in training camp. If not, he might find a place on the practice squad or on another team. The Seahawks could decide to keep nine linemen this year instead of the eight they had in 2016. If that is the case, Odhiambo will make the active roster.
Jordan Roos
Roos is an undrafted signee out of Purdue. The Seahawks like his durability at guard. He will have a difficult time making the active roster, but could find a place on Seattle’s practice squad. (That said, Roos will probably be a starter in week one because I am an idiot.)
Justin Senior
The sixth-round draft pick struggled at the Senior Bowl and has not created a space for himself in minicamp. Senior has good size, though, but needs to learn to be an NFL player. He needs some seasoning and should not play in his rookie season. The practice squad would be a great place for him to learn a role.