When the Seattle Seahawks traded with the Indianapolis Colts for guard Quenton Nelson ahead of Week 8, the next question is what would happen to Grey Zabel. He was a first-round choice in 2025 and has been a solid player. The team seemed unlikely to bench him. Ultimately, it was Anthony Bradford who lost his job.
Zabel will switch to the right side as Nelson plays left guard. Seattle could have kept Zabel on the left side, but that would have made the trade somewhat silly. Nelson is probably a future Pro Football Hall of Famer, but he's done all his work at left guard. Now would not be the time to change his position.
Bradford will be benched, likely bringing an end to his importance for the Seahawks. If Zabel gets hurt, Bradford could step in, of course, but the hope is that the offensive line now looks like left tackle Charles Cross, Nelson, center Jalen Sundell, Zabel, and right tackle Abraham Lucas.
Seattle Seahawks trading for Quenton Nelson means Anthony Bradford likely won't be back next year
Not just the rest of this season, but well beyond. Cross is signed through 2030, Lucas is signed through 2028, and Zabel has at least three more years left with Seattle. Since he was a first-round pick, the team holds his fifth-year option, and that season is 2029. Sundell is an exclusive rights free agent in 2027, but Seattle will likely work out a long-term extension with him.
The only question remaining is if and when general manager John Schneider signs Nelson to an extension. The guard is a free agent next offseason, but Schneider has made a habit of trading for players with expiring deals only to extend them soonafter.
That happened with defensive lineman Leonard Williams a few years ago and wide receiver Rashid Shaheed last season. Trading for the 30-year-old Nelson likely wouldn't have been done if Schneider thought the player was only a half-season rental.
The same goes for Zabel flipping to the right side. He is a young player who would be better served by sticking to one spot. With the addition of Nelson, and the presumptive extension that will happen at some point relatively soon, Zabel new long-term spot could be right guard.
For Bradford, he will almost certainly leave in free agency next year, and he should have a decent market. After all, after trading for Nelson, the Seattle Seahawks released guard Christian Haynes, and he had multiple teams hoping to claim him. He eventually became a new member of the Miami Dolphins.
Now, the pressure is on Grey Zabel to prove he can immediately be good at right guard. If he can't be, Quenton Nelson is still going to be terrific on the left side, but the team still has an issue on the other side that needs to be fixed.
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