What to know about Seahawks OL position battle

Anthony Bradford.

The Seahawks are seeing a bit of change on the interior of their offensive line this offseason. Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas return at tackle and Anthony Bradford returns after starting 10 games in 2023, but the departures of Evan Brown and Damien Lewis required updates to the depth chart. Throw in the fact that Seattle drafted UConn guard Christian Haynes in the third round of this year’s draft and not even Bradford is a sure thing to return to a starting role this year.

We talked about this a bit in a recent breakdown of the team’s offensive line, but a more recent update from the end of minicamp may inform things a bit differently.

As a fourth-round rookie out of LSU last year, Bradford was one of the larger linemen in last year’s rookie class, weighing in at 332 pounds. His strength and size were worth the investment, but a lack of natural athleticism and quickness were thought to limit Bradford to a developmental role to start his career.

Multiple injuries to players like Phil Haynes, Lucas, and others forced Bradford into a starting role much earlier than expected. Bradford performed respectably as a starter but certainly left loads of room for improvement. As expected, the area he was predicted to need developing in, pass protection, was a huge handicap to the offensive line. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) graded his pass blocking as the 70th-best in the league out of 77 graded guards.

In our breakdown we entertained the possibility of Haynes beating out Bradford for the starting job as a rookie. All 49 of Haynes’ starts for the Huskies came at right guard, so it’s a position with which he’s very familiar. A second-team All-American in 2022, Haynes excels in the areas Bradford struggles in. During his college career, Haynes was noted for his plus athleticism and great short-area quickness. With scouts noting his strength, football IQ, and finishing mentality, as well, a lot of signs seem to be pointing to Haynes being the favorite to take over the job in 2024.

ESPN’s Brady Henderson set the record straight earlier this month after interviewing new head coach Mike Macdonald following the final day of minicamp. Per Henderson, Macdonald claimed that Bradford is “right in the mix” to start. Bradford hadn’t been participating in the offseason program as he worked his way back from an ankle injury but was finally working with the team in the final days of camp. With the starting experience, it sounds like he’ll continue to be given every opportunity to retain his starting job.

One player to keep an eye on was also mentioned in our previous breakdown. McClendon Curtis, an undrafted rookie last year, has been an under-the-radar option for Seattle. As Bradford missed time in recovery, it was Curtis taking the majority of first-team snaps on the offensive line, while Haynes spent most of his time on the second-team unit. McClendon isn’t boasting a ton of experience, only playing four special teams snaps in his rookie year, but coaches seem to appreciate what he’s done so far in the offseason.

This is a battle that’s sure to rage into training camp. Haynes will continue learning and growing in the new system, attempting to usurp his predecessor; Bradford will continue working his way back from injury, attempting to show his development from a rocky rookie season; and Curtis will hang around as an unlikely but potential option to take the job.

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