Seahawks OTA Takeaways: Abraham Lucas Settling Into Run-Centric Offense, D’Anthony Bell Shines

RENTON, Wash. - Back on the practice field after having Tuesday off, the Seattle Seahawks conducted their second open OTA session with a bit of mid-practice fireworks courtesy of coach Mike Macdonald.

In the midst of a team 11-on-11 drill, Macdonald grilled his players as well as assistant coaches following a skirmish between a receiver and cornerback on the outside that led to them hitting the ground, demanding accountability from all parties to not invite/initiate contact and stay upright. From that point on, the practice settled into more of a walkthrough pace with extensive time spent on install sessions splitting the offense and defense on separate fields.

Even with that shift towards a more mental approach to help cooler heads prevail in a non-padded practice, there were still plenty of highlights on Wednesday. Here are five takeaways from the latest OTA session at the VMAC:

Big names return to the field after missing Monday’s session

Much like Monday, the Seahawks had the vast majority of their 90-man roster on the field, including welcoming back linebacker Ernest Jones IV and defensive end Demarcus Lawrence after the two players were out for the first open practice. Jones appeared to be limited to individual drills after only running in pre-practice on Monday, but it was a positive step after undergoing a minor knee cleanup procedure earlier in the offseason. As for Lawrence, he participated in team sessions as well as individual drills, looking spry coming off a Lisfranc fracture that cost him a good chunk of the 2024 season.With those two players back in action, the only notable Seattle defender who didn’t suit up again was defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins, who according to defensive coordinator Aden Durde had not been practicing in the previous two weeks. Receiver Dareke Young got shook up trying to make a diving catch, but appeared to be okay after briefly chatting with trainers.

Another day, another free agent signing impresses in Seattle’s secondary

On Monday, veteran cornerback Shemar Jean-Charles stood out as one of the top performers for the Seahawks, hauling in a debated interception that was ruled incomplete but appeared to be caught with both feet inbounds as well as a pass breakup. For a second straight day, a depth free agent signing shined in the defensive backfield, this time in the form of fourth-year safety D’Anthony Bell.Moments after Macdonald ripped into the team for too much contact during an OTA practice and urged players to keep upright, Bell benefited from Valdes-Scantling appearing to not fully attack the football on a deep ball from Darnold down the hash. Without the receiver contesting, the safety reeled in an impressive Willie Mays-like basket interception, quickly pivoting and returning the pick 30 yards before the whistle was blown dead.Later in the session, Bell got his hands on the football again in a 7-on-7 segment, this time reaching in front of a receiver over the middle of the field to deflect a Darnold pass into the air that wound up in the hands of fellow safety Ty Okada for an interception.Following the selection of Nick Emmanwori in the second round of April’s draft, one would think Bell may have a difficult time establishing much of a role in Seattle’s defense. But after flashing in limited opportunities with Cleveland over the past couple of years, offering the size to play in the box and enough ball skills to play as a deep safety, it might be too early to rule out the possibility that Macdonald will find a way to utilize him if he continues to make impact plays on the practice field.

Jared Ivey stands out early amongst undrafted rookies as a pass swatting machine

Without pads on, it’s very difficult to evaluate linemen on either side of the ball, as non-contact practices put major restrictions on players on either side of the ball, including all but eliminating the pass rush aspect hunting down quarterbacks. Still, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t opportunities for defensive linemen to still make a few splash plays, and Ivey did just that on Wednesday.Sporting his No. 51 jersey, Ivey, a former All-SEC performer at Ole Miss, first made his presence felt when he got his long arms extended after shooting out of his stance from 5-tech alignment and swatted down a quick pass from Drew Lock on a bubble screen for an incompletion. He later would get his big paws into the passing lane again to tip a throw from fellow rookie Jalen Milroe and also had a solid pass rush that he had to stall before getting to Darnold, drawing praise from multiple coaches on the sideline for his effort.Time will tell where Ivey potentially fits into the Seahawks plans along the defensive line, but at 6-6, 274 pounds, he has the length and size to play multiple positions in coach Mike Macdonald’s defense and he was incredibly productive in Oxford as a three-down defender. Given the relative lack of depth at defensive tackle and defensive end, he could very well put himself into position to compete for a roster spot before training camp even starts and solidify his standing once the pads come on in August.

Sam Darnold building rapport with receivers, centers in “familiar” scheme

Though Darnold did throw the only two interceptions on the afternoon, he enjoyed a far better set of 7-on-7 skelly sessions compared to Monday. During those drills, he threw a pair of touchdowns, connecting with Jake Bobo in the middle of the end zone on a slant and feathering a lofted throw to Cooper Kupp on a fade route from the slot for six points on back-to-back throws. He later added a touchdown to Marquez Valdes-Scantling on a bullet in the red zone to beat cornerback Riq Woolen on an out route.If there’s been a prevailing theme so far in OTAs, Darnold already seems to have a strong connection developing in particular with the savvy route running Kupp, who has caught four touchdowns from Seattle’s new starting quarterback in the first two open practices. As the veteran signal caller acknowledged, as he has tried to do with all of his new wideouts, the two have been consistently communicating with one another to learn tendencies and have a better idea of what the other player will do against certain coverages in certain situations.“It’s getting to know the body language, how they’re running routes, and being able to talk to them on and off the field,” Darnold explained. “Be able to know what he’s thinking in a route or against certain coverage, trying to get behind the linebacker or maybe he’s going to throttle it down. Just little details like that, it’s been great not only to talk to Cooper about that stuff, but all the guys.”Aside from learning what makes each of his receivers tick, Darnold also finds himself in the early stages of developing chemistry with a new center group, as he took snaps from both returning starter Olu Oluwatimi and second-year pivot man Jalen Sundell on Wednesday. Second-year blocker Christian Haynes also rotated inside to snap on a few plays and may be an unexpected addition to that competition.So far, Seattle hasn’t had any issues with snaps being low or errant to Darnold or any of the other quarterbacks, for that matter, and the process of acclimating to a new group of centers seems to be as on schedule as the team could have hoped for at this stage.

Back healthy, Abe Lucas meshing with new offense centered around run game

For the past two seasons, Lucas has been dogged by knee issues, including missing the first nine games last season after undergoing offseason surgery to address the issue. In total, the former third-round pick out of Washington State missed 22 games since the start of the 2023 campaign, but this offseason has been a far different one with him fully recovered and able to spend the past several months lifting and training rather than rehabbing, coming to OTAs at a lean 325 pounds.Though Lucas acknowledged that it was tough at times mentally dealing with all of the setbacks over the past few years, he downplayed the significance of being able to enjoy a more normal offseason routine, joking that his leg wasn’t amputated and expressing relief that he’s been able to do more on the field this spring after being unable to do anything this time last year.“It’s night and day,” Lucas said following practice. “It helps when you’re not in a brace and actually walk without crutches. I post on social media me lifting and stuff and it sends everyone into a frenzy, which I think is kind of funny. I’m doing good work, so I’m excited about it.”Actively involved with individual and team drills without any hitches, Lucas has been diving head first into a brand new offense learning under experienced line coach John Benton. Coming off his litany of injuries, his athleticism will be tested with a major emphasis on wide zone concepts, but so far, he has been moving well on the field and looks more than ready to handle those duties flying out of his stance as a move blocker.As far as the biggest differences compared to schemes he previously has played in, Lucas pointed to the usage of a fullback in coordinator Klint Kubiak’s scheme. Unlike past seasons where the run game was viewed more as optional rather than a staple, it will be a “cornerstone” for what the Seahawks intend to do identity-wise, though results won’t be seen until the pads come on in training camp."We're going to be elite in the run game, that's the philosophy... It's a non-negotiable."