Seahawks move to get Gabe Jackson should make Russ happy
By Lee Vowell
The Seahawks traded for guard Gabe Jackson on Wednesday in a move that should make quarterback Russell Wilson very happy. Wilson has complained about getting hit too much this offseason and wants Seattle to improve the group in front of him. On Wednesday, the Seahawks took a step forward in doing that.
Jackson will be 30 years old when the 2021 season begins and is capable of playing either guard spot. This should mean that Seattle has him at left guard while Damien Lewis, who was very good in his rookie year of 2020, plays right guard. The only true hole on the Seahawks offensive line heading into 2021 is now at center.
Jackson stays mostly healthy and productive. Since 2015, he has missed 9 games out of a possible 96 games. Cohesion is a must along the offensive front and knowing which players are going to do what and each player knowing their role and executing those roles is what makes an offensive line really good. So a group that stays mostly healthy should be a productive one.
Seahawks add guard Gabe Jackson in a great move
One worry about the 6’3″ and 340 pound Jackson is that arguably his worst two seasons have been in the last two years. According to Pro Football Focus, Jackson graded out as the 40th-best guard in 2020 and 43rd-best in 2019. However, before these seasons Jackson ranged anywhere from 11th to 32nd. He is a good player and better than Seattle has had at left guard.
Seattle traded a 2021 fifht round choice to get Jackson. This means currently that Seattle has only three picks in the 2021 NFL draft. This will likely somehow go up, of course, through other trades but trading a fifth round pick for Gabe Jackson was a good transaction. Jackson will be much better, most likely, than any player Seattle could have traded in the fifth round, for instance.
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Perhaps the biggest drawback to adding Jackson is he is getting paid $9.35 million in 2021 and $9.347 million in 2022. That is a lot of money and the Seahawks don’t have a lot of money in open cap space currently. But getting Jackson makes Seattle a better football team and should make Russell Wilson a happier quarterback.