The Seattle Seahawks’ offense is under new leadership once again.
Jeremiah: How Seattle Seahawks could stack talent at a particular spot
The Seahawks hired Klint Kubiak to be their play-caller in late January, which marks the second straight offseason the franchise has undergone change at offensive coordinator.
One of the major tasks for Kubiak – and a number of new offensive assistants – will be assimilating with the roster with detailed evaluations of each position. One of the most important positions to assess for Kubiak’s wide-zone scheme is center, according to former NFL quarterback Brock Huard. Huard shared his thoughts about Seattle’s situation at center during his Blue 88 segment Wednesday on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk.
Huard has questions as to whether or not Olu Oluwatimi, who’s heading into his third pro season, will be the right fit. The 2023 fifth-round pick started the final eight games last season after Connor Williams’ abrupt retirement following the team’s bye week. Oluwatimi, who won the Outland and Rimington trophies in his final college season at Michigan, ranked 19th out of 40 centers in Pro Football Focus grading.
“Athletically, this system is going to be a little bit of a challenge for him because he doesn’t move and run really, really well,” Huard said, “and that is a part that you need … of a center that can get to that second level (of the defense).”
Where is help?
If Oluwatimi is deemed not to be the right fit, the Seahawks also have undrafted 2024 rookie Jalen Sundell as an in-house option.
Another path would be to seek out a starting center in free agency. But as Huard pointed out, the market for centers is going to be very thin. PFF has just three centers in its top-100 free agents: Atlanta’s Drew Dalman (No. 22), Indianapolis’ Ryan Kelly (81) and Chicago’s Coleman Shelton (No. 100).
Dalman is viewed as the clear-cut top option and was the fourth-ranked player at his position last season. He’s also the youngest of the trio and turns 27 years old next season. Kelly is heading into his age-32 season and has missed 10 games over the past two seasons, including seven last year. Shelton, a former UW Huskies standout who turns 30 this year, is coming off perhaps the best season of his career as the anchor of an otherwise poor offensive line in Chicago.
“There’s not a lot of guys at that position available,” Huard said.
