There is a common thought that the Seattle Seahawks have a terrible offensive line. That is both true and false. Seattle has an awful right side of the O-line but decent pieces at other spots (Charles Cross has been quite good this season, for instance). The frustration is that Seattle sees fit to keep running right guard Anthony Bradford onto the field even though he led all NFL guards in both penalties and sacks allowed heading into Week 10.
The issue is that Seattle has little depth at guard. Rookie Christian Haynes has not gotten a real chance to prove himself because the team seemingly has no current faith in him to risk him getting many snaps. After Haynes, there is really no one else who could replace Bradford. Such is the state of the right side of the offensive line that the Seahawks have put themselves in.
One can easily blame general manager John Schneider, who has full control over all roster moves. He said this offseason that he thinks guards are overdrafted and overpaid. That remark has come back to haunt him this season, his first season having full roster control.
Seattle Seahawks take offensive linemen in first two rounds of the 2025 draft, according to one new mock draft
Maybe Schneider will change his approach to drafting guards in the 2025 NFL draft. FanSided's NFL Spin Zone believes so. In their recent two-round mock draft, they have Seattle getting two players who should immediately improve the offensive line. In the first round, Seattle would choose right tackle Will Campbell, Jr. out of LSU. In the second round, Seattle would take interior offensive lineman Tate Ratledge from Georgia.
The idea is that Campbell, who plays left tackle in college, would move to the right side to replace oft-injured Abraham Lucas and any other tackle who is forced to play in his place while he misses games with a knee issue. Lucas flashed great potential in his rookie season of 2022, but he has rarely played since. Lucas has missed all of 2024 so far.
Some pundits think that Campbell might move to guard in the NFL, but he has the size to play tackle. He is 6'6" and 325 pounds. He also possesses good athleticism and is polished enough to play very early in his professional career.
Ratledge injured his ankle in 2024 but has plenty of starting experience in college. He needs to gain a bit more mass, but he is 6'6" and 310 pounds, so he should be able to gain 20 more pounds of muscle and be fine. He has only played right guard at Georgia, and this might keep some teams from drafting him, but Seattle needs a right guard, so Ratledge would be a great fit.
He has NFL-level strength and has been extremely efficient both in run blocking and pass protection. He could be a Week 1 starter for the Seahawks in 2025.
Again, the question is if John Schneider sees any guard's value and chooses an interior lineman as high as the second round. He needs to, otherwise the O-line is going to be the team's weakness for the foreseeable future and keep the Seahawks from reaching any potential the team might have. That might eventually cost Schneider his job.