The Seattle Seahawks have a long and well-documented history of offensive line struggles, but there are several changes this year that could lead to improvement.
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There’s the addition of first-round draft pick Grey Zabel, who is expected to be Seattle’s starting left guard. There’s new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, whose Shanahan-style system is thought to be a more O-line-friendly scheme. And there’s new offensive line coach John Benton, who brings more than two decades of NFL O-line coaching experience to the Pacific Northwest.
With fully padded practices now underway at training camp, former NFL offensive lineman Ray Roberts got a chance to see some of those changes in action. Here are two things that stood out to him, as he explained Tuesday on Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob.
Better shape
Roberts said the first thing he noticed was that several young offensive linemen appeared to be in better shape. That’s particularly notable given that Kubiak’s offense features a heavy dose of wide-zone blocking, which requires linemen to be quicker and more agile.
“The body composition just looked different,” Roberts said. “Some of the young guys last year still kind of had like the college body. … And like even Bradford, his body has changed a little bit. He looks a little tighter and firmer more muscular.
“They just look more athletic,” he added. “They’re not big, huge bruising dudes, but for this offense, that’s not exactly (what you need). And so they have guys that are mobile that can move and play with power and strength.”
The coaching
Roberts also highlighted the coaching aspect, pointing to how the O-line was working the various techniques required for different pass-blocking sets.
“One was just their regular pass sets where they’re dropping at like a 45-degree angle, save for the tackles,” Roberts said. “And then there’s another one called a short set, where you’re almost going at the defender as if it’s a run, but your pads are up a little bit higher so you can be under control. And there’s also one that’s called a jump set, where you take two steps at (a 45-degree angle) and then you attack the defender.”
As Roberts explained, mixing up pass-protection sets can help keep pass rushers off-balanced.
“Those are tools in your belt to use in different plays and different matchups where you know that you can do those different things,” Roberts said. “That allows you to disrupt the timing of the pass rush. Last year, it seemed like everybody was setting to the same spot every time. And as a defender, it’s easy to game plan for that. You know like on my third step or my second inside step, I’m gonna swim to the inside. On my third outside step, I’m gonna bull rush. So you can time all that stuff up.
“But when you can disrupt their timing, then it puts the offense in an aggressive spot in pass protection. … Now they have to react to what you’re doing. Now they have to think a little bit. They can’t just play on instinct, and maybe they’re just a hair bit slower coming off the ball. That’s gonna equate to that much more time to get the ball off.”
Listen to the full conversation with Ray Roberts at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Wyman and Bob weekdays from 2 to 7 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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