3 missed opportunities for the Seahawks this offseason
By Geoff Shull
Seahawks missed opportunity number one: Not signing Jack Conklin to be the right tackle
The Seahawks have had one of the worst offensive lines according to nearly any metric over the last few seasons. The team in tow chose to blow up the unit and start over. This was definitely the right call. Outside of Duane Brown, there wasn’t another player I felt overly confident in from last year.
However, where they failed. They chose to sign an army of low to mid-grade players instead of signing legit starters to protect Russell Wilson. The most worrisome part of it, they appeared to have overpaid for a handful of them.
Brandon Shell appears to be a slightly older Germain Ifedi. Ifedi is a slightly better run blocker, where Shell is a slightly better pass blocker. Shell was benched by the Jets last season for poor play. Yet, the Seahawks gave him a 2-year, $9 million contract. Cedric Ogbuehi was playing on a league-minimum last year and rarely saw the field. Yet, the team gave him a $2.3 million contract to be the new George Fant.
Mike Iupati was a decent player for Seattle last year. He remained mostly healthy and was solid as a run defender. However, he was still on the market after a month of free agency, the team could of likely had him or someone near his talent for under the $2.5 million they gave Iupati.
Outside of these signings, the Seahawks signed enough offensive line players to fill up almost 25% of the total roster. It’s truly an army of low key lineman battling for the job.
The only signing that I felt confident in was B.J. Finney. I wholeheartedly believe he will be an absolute stud for Seattle as their new center. When he filled in for Pro-Bowl center Maurkice Pouncey in Pittsburgh last year, it was almost seamless. He appears to be a very solid signing.
That being said, the Seahawks should have made a splash signing to ensure Russell Wilson has protection instead of signing an army of reclamation projects. Jack Conklin signed a 3 year, $42 million contract with the Browns. Seattle could have easily afforded to give him a 3-year, $45 million deal and locked him in long term. This would have ensured the edges were secured between him and Brown.
From there, the team could have still signed BJ Finney and a smaller army of low key players along with draft picks to fight for the guard spots. I would be feeling a lot more confident about the offensive line with this move than I do right now.
Conklin is just 25 years old and has an elite ceiling. Offensive linemen often times take years to get up to their potential. It is a slow transition from college to the pros. His rookie season he averaged one sack/penalty per 260 offensive snaps. That would have ranked first on the Seahawks last year. Last season, Conklin ranked as a top 10 tackle and the 22nd best free agent available, per PFF.
Jack Conklin accepted a contract for 3 years, $42 million with the Browns. The Seahawks should have offered a 3-year, $45 million deal to give Russell Wilson a legit shot at being protected.