It’s Time to Say It: Seahawks’ O-Line is Best Franchise Has Had in Years
For years, and for fans, it seems like centuries, the Seattle Seahawks offensive line has been the main focus of ire. They have played musical chairs at center. They tried several times to get the left tackle spot right. The interior line has been a mess for nearly the entire time since the post-Legion of Boom era. Whenever you read offensive line rankings around various sites, you could usually find Seattle’s group near, or squarely at the bottom.
Of course, it’s not all the players’ fault. The Seahawks also played musical chairs at offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. Seattle has had three different offensive coordinators and three different offensive line coaches since 2023. For a unit where continuity is key like the offensive line, that isn’t very consistent.
Seattle has ranked better than 20th just once in sacks allowed since they won the Super Bowl in 2013. They ranked 30th last season.
This year through eight games? They are tied for first. As in, tied for the least amount of sacks allowed in the NFL.
While sacks allowed are not the end-all, be-all for gauging how good an offensive line is, it points to marked improvement by the big guys up front in Seattle.
It’s time to acknowledge that this offensive line is different. Are they one of the best offensive lines in the NFL? Probably not. But with how this team is constructed, this line doesn’t need to be elite. It just needs to be competent.
It appears they are at least that.
While the entire unit may not be elite, the two tackles have an argument to be among the best left and right tackle combinations on one team in the entire NFL.
When looking at Pro Football Focus grades, only the Eagles and 49ers tackle duos have both starting tackles inside the top 20 of all tackles in the NFL along with Seattle's combination of Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas. Those two combined have allowed just 27 pressures and three sacks this season. For context, Trent Williams, San Francisco’s highly regarded left tackle, has three sacks allowed and 24 pressures allowed all by himself.
In the run game, Lucas ranks 12th among all tackles, regardless of left or right, in run blocking grade. Cross checks in respectably at 33rd (among 68 qualified tackles).
Along the interior, left guard Grey Zabel was selected in the first round, intended to instantly boost the guard spots. Per ESPN, he currently is the top interior offensive lineman, regardless of experience or side of the line, in run block win rate. He is number one.
Center Jalen Sundell ranks 22nd out of 33 possible centers in overall PFF grade. However, he is one of just 13 centers who is yet to be charged with a sack so far this season. His athleticism pays off in reaching key blocks in the middle of the defense.
While the interior line is the weakest part of the line, there frankly is only one that stands out as a glaring weakness- right guard Anthony Bradford. He ranks 93rd out of 99 guards in Pro Football Focus grade. His is 98th out of 99 in pass protection via PFF.
The offensive line is far from perfect. But it’s way better than it has been recently.
The run game still has work to do, as Seattle ranks 22nd in rushing yards per game. However, they are one of just five teams that are inside the top 10 in both pass block win rate and run block win rate, per ESPN.
Charles Cross is off to the best start of his career at left tackle. Abraham Lucas is finally healthy and looking like his rookie self on the right side. Zabel is looking like a valid first round pick at left guard. Sundell has only been a starting center for a handful of games, still getting his sea legs.
This offensive line is a breath of fresh air when compared to past editions, even if they still have their flaws. Now it feels like this team will not be held back by the line, which could mean a return to the playoffs and doing damage in January.
