RENTON, Wash. - After platooning Anthony Bradford and Christian Haynes in Monday night's 42-29 loss to the Detroit Lions, the Seattle Seahawks look poised to continue employing that strategy at right guard for the foreseeable future.
Fielding questions from reporters prior to Wednesday's walkthrough, coming out of Monday's defeat, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald indicated the coaching staff still hasn't seen Bradford or Haynes separate themselves in a competition that has been ongoing since the start of OTAs back in May. Or at least there hasn't been enough separation from either player to warrant giving him all of the snaps to this point as the evaluation process continues.
"I don't think there's any conclusion with it right now," Macdonald said of the right guard rotation. "I think both guys played a good game [in Detroit]. The offensive line probably played their best game of the season so far. So, we haven't talked about specific snap counts this week, but I'd anticipate something similar moving forward in the near future."
Seattle has understandably opted for patience with the two young guards being provided opportunities to develop and in the grand scheme of things, that decision could pay dividends as the organization waits to see who will ultimately seize the starting job. For now, that appears to be the course of action the franchise will stick with in the short term.
But based on statistics, and now most importantly enough film to have a decent sample size for assessment, a strong argument can be made that the answer to that question already lies in front of Macdonald, line coach Scott Huff, and the rest of the Seahawks staff.
Going into Monday's pivotal prime time clash in the Motor City, Haynes had only played 16 offensive snaps in Seattle's first three games with Bradford starting and seeing the majority of the playing time. In his second season out of LSU, the former fourth round pick has flashed at times, particularly in the run blocking department where he helped Ken Walker III and Zach Charbonnet each eclipse 90 rushing yards in Week 1 and Week 3.
Per Pro Football Focus, Bradford also only allowed two pressures in the first two games, suggesting he had taken a significant step forward protecting Geno Smith after struggling mightily in this department as a rookie.
However, clearly not satisfied with Bradford's play in a 24-3 win over Miami where he committed two penalties and allowed two sacks, Macdonald made it clear that Seattle needed to provide more opportunities for Haynes, who didn't platoon into the lineup at all in that contest. Sure enough, that's exactly what happened on Monday night, as the team rotated him in for five offensive series and a career-high 36 snaps.
Comparing their respective performances, Bradford and Haynes both held up well in pass protection, with each allowing one pressure on Geno Smith and no sacks. But looking closely at All-22 film from Monday's loss, it was the rookie who made the biggest statement, regularly picking up stunts and blitzes without a hitch. Surprisingly, he also outplayed his counterpart in the run blocking department, as Bradford often found himself lunging at defenders and unable to square up on blocks, winding up on his knees at the end of several plays.
