ESPN NFL expert loves DK Metcalf but absolutely hates one position for the Seahawks

ESPN's Mike Clay knows a few things about the NFL. He is also a good writer, though his first ranking of how good 2024 NFL teams might be a bit off. Even his recent tweet about this implies he could be doubtful as far as where position groups rank among NFL teams. He also appears to rank the Seattle Seahawks better overall defensively than offensively.

Clay put together a ranking from 0.1 to 4 for each position group for every team. All we really care about here is what Clay might think about the Seahawks, though, of course. This is where things get a little complicated.

According to Clay's ranking, Seattle is really good at receiver with players such as DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. In fact, Clay's grading has Seattle with the best receiver group in the NF with a perfect 4.0. The Miami Dolphins are number two at 3.9. The next highest ranked group for Seattle is at running back which is a 3.6.

ESPN's Mike Clay hates the Seattle Seahawks' offensive line

Defensively, Seattle gets a really high mark for its defensive line, interestingly enough. Based on the 3.5 grade, Seattle's defensive line is the fifth-best in the league. That certainly does not seem correct, though Leonard Williams is pretty good. Clay's ranking must incorporate edge rushers such as Uchenna Nwosu and Boye Mafe as well because otherwise, a 3.5 seems mostly illogical.

While Seattle overall is ranked 15th in the league, its defense is graded higher at number 13 among all groups and the offense is 18. This is because Mike Clay seems to absolutely hate the Seahawks' offensive line. To be fair, he is probably correct.

Seattle is truly set at only one spot: Left tackle Charles Cross. Right tackle should be Abe Lucas but Lucas has a knee issue that could linger for years which means recently signed backup George Fant could get more starts. From left guard to right guard, the team could be starting a bunch of unknowns and unprovens. If Seattle goes into the season with its current offensive line, Geno Smith might fear for his health.

That would be a shame as well. First-year head coach Mike Macdonald is likely good enough to get maximum production out of his entire team, but if the offensive line is as bad as it seems currently, the entire team could suffer and an otherwise talented Seattle team could miss the playoffs and finish with a losing record. If that happens, the blame should not go on Macdonald but on the offensive line general manager John Schneider put together.

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