Seahawks Damien Lewis needs to be great starting week one of 2020

The Seahawks could be very good in 2020. But that might come down to how good rookies like offensive guard Damien Lewis are.

While the Seahawks make move like trading for safety Jamal Adams, the 2020 season could come down to how productive rookies and lesser-known veterans are. Seattle chose guard Damien Lewis in the 2020 NFL Draft and Lewis is a likely week one starter. How good he is could go a long way towards saying how good Seattle will be this season.

Seattle learned on Monday that Chance Warmack, who might have been battling Lewis to start in week one, has opted out of playing this year. Players have the right to do that for this coming season due to concerns over COVID-19.

Warmack’s departure, coupled with the fact that Seattle already had high hopes for Lewis means that right guard is Lewis’s job to lose. Seattle let go of last year’s starter, D.J. Fluker, after Lewis was drafted.

Seahawks general manager John Schneider has called Lewis a “full grown” man. Head coach Pete Carroll said Lewis “takes a backseat to no one.” Lewis was known at LSU to be nasty in the offensive line, never giving up on blocks, who was strong and loved to run block.

What the Seahawks need

This is exactly what the Seahawks need in an offensive guard. Sure, Lewis is also going to have to be able to keep Russell Wilson clean, but Seahawks backs Chris Carson and Carlos Hyde love to run between the numbers. Lewis needs to be able to open holes for them.

And there is no reason he shouldn’t meet expectations. He played college in the SEC, a conference that churns out star defensive lineman after Pro Bowl defensive lineman. Lewis should be as ready for the NFL as any college guard could be.

The expectation should be that Lewis starts in week one and holds down that spot in Seattle, barring injury, for the next 8 seasons. He has the ability and the mentality to do that. Now Seattle just needs to build the rest of the pieces around him for the same amount of time.