The Seattle Seahawks enter the offseason with a glaring need to improve their offensive line.
And of all their issues up front, it’s their two guard spots that are clearly the most pressing.
Veteran Laken Tomlinson, who is set to become a free agent, had a rough season as Seattle’s left guard. And at right guard, second-year Anthony Bradford and rookie Sataoa Laumea finished with two of the five worst Pro Football Focus grades of any guard in the league.
So if the Seahawks look to address their O-line in the early rounds of April’s NFL Draft, it would stand to reason they’d be eyeing a guard.
But during an appearance on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy last week, ESPN NFL insider Field Yates said the Seahawks should be open to taking the best offensive lineman available with their No. 18 overall pick, regardless of position.
As Yates explained, Seattle is set at left tackle with former No. 9 overall pick Charles Cross, who has had a strong first three seasons in the NFL. But there are still uncertainties at right tackle due to Abraham Lucas’ knee issues, which limited him to just 13 games over the past two seasons.
“I certainly would feel very strongly about getting an offensive lineman at No. 18 if the board aligns,” Yates said. “But I’m also open to being a bit more dynamic with my line combinations going forward. … With Abe Lucas’ health, with his inconsistency in terms of being available, that’s a position that I think you feel good about when he’s healthy. But over the past two years, he’s played 13 games.
“So if there’s a great tackle available there that you think could become a six or seven-year solid starter – whether it’s exploring (moving) Abe Lucas to guard, whether it’s moving somebody to guard that you drafted as a tackle – I think you just have to be open-minded to getting your best five on the field.”
Yates isn’t the first analyst to float the idea of moving Lucas to guard. ESPN NFL Draft analyst Jordan Reid also suggested the idea during an appearance last month on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy. Reid believes moving Lucas to guard could help him stay healthy, and that his physicality would be a good fit for the position.
Philadelphia Eagles right guard Mekhi Becton, who started the Super Bowl on Sunday, notably had success this season in moving from tackle to guard. After changing positions, Becton ranked 18th among all guards in PFF grading this season and played a key role in the Eagles’ dominant rushing attack.
“I think of Mekhi Becton and the success story of taking that mammoth, gigantic human being (who has) everything you want in a prototypical tackle and sliding him into guard – and oh my gosh, all those wonderful traits (still) play,” former NFL quarterback Brock Huard said last week during a Blue 88 segment on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk. “They play at guard like they play at tackle.”
The other relevant factor at play is the unique amount of positional versatility among this year’s O-line draft class.
In his latest mock draft, ESPN NFL Draft analyst Matt Miller lists four of his seven projected first-round offensive linemen as prospects who could play either tackle or guard in the NFL: LSU’s Will Campbell at No. 7, Texas’ Kelvin Banks Jr. at No. 10, Missouri’s Armand Membou at No. 13 and Arizona’s Jonah Savaiinaea at No. 27.
Miller also has two second-round offensive linemen with experience playing multiple O-line positions. Ohio State’s Donovan Jackson, projected as a guard, slid outside to tackle for the Buckeyes’ national title run due to injuries. And though North Dakota State’s Grey Zabel is projected as a center, he also played guard and tackle for the Bison.
“Just take the best lineman,” Huard said. “I don’t just want a guard. I want the best lineman available there at 18. And if you’ve gotta move pieces around up front between your guards and tackles because they’re all well suited for it, well, that’s a blessing.”
However, Seahawks Radio Network analyst and former NFL offensive lineman Ray Roberts explained that mixing and matching along the O-line isn’t as simple as it seems.
“The skill set is different,” Roberts said last month during an appearance on Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob. “The body types are different. Your power angles are different.
“So if you’re Abe (Lucas) and you’re so used to your inside hand being your power hand, and you don’t have to play with as much power as your right hand and your shoulders are a little bit turned to the sideline, it’s hard to then change up to your feet being pretty parallel, (where) you have to be evenly powered with both hands. Your power angles can change in an instant, because a dude is right there on you. They can go right, left or run you right over.
“It sounds simple, but it’s just hard to do.”
