Three Seahawks that must be beasts against 49ers week 17
By Lee Vowell
George Fant
George Fant might be the future starting left tackle in Seattle. But there is a big drop off between current starter Duane Brown and Fant. That isn’t to say Fant is bad because he isn’t. He actually has a better grade, according to Pro Football Focus, than does right tackle Germain Ifedi, albeit in a lot fewer snaps. But Brown won’t play due to injury.
Fant is the 65th highest graded tackle. Ifedi is number 69. The problem is that Brown is the 22nd. So while Fant is possibly better than Ifedi, he isn’t close to Brown. Against the 49ers and their crazy good pass rush, Fant needs to be Brown-like. Otherwise, Wilson is going to be under duress the whole game, meaning that if Seattle is forced to pass to try to catch up Wilson is going to get hit. A lot.
Fant does have experience at left tackle, though, and has played there quite a bit. He is a good athlete and has good strength. There isn’t any reason he can’t be successful at keeping Nick Bosa and company off of Wilson.
If you believe Pro Football Focus, Fant is a better run blocker than pass protector. The Seahawks might choose to run the ball quite a bit, even if they do not have Carson. If Fant can open holes for Lynch and others, Seattle can eat clock, shorten the game and put themselves in a position to win a close game.