Bump: A Seahawks position battle that deserves more attention

Aug 1, 2024, 2:43 PM | Updated: Aug 2, 2024, 10:42 am

Seattle Seahawks center Olu Oluwatimi works out during an OTA practice on June 3. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

(Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Seattle Sports

There will be plenty to keep an eye on when the Seattle Seahawks open the Mike Macdonald era with their first preseason game Aug. 10 against the Los Angeles Chargers.

What Seattle Seahawks players are saying about Macdonald’s defense

How Macdonald’s defense looks and what new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb has implemented on the other side of the ball are right at the top of the list. Also of interest will be the battles for open positions.

There’s a handful Seahawks competing for starting spots or prominent supporting roles in training camp, but there’s one position battle former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus thinks isn’t being talked about enough. He explained what position that is during Four Down Territory on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy.

“I don’t think we’re talking about the center battle enough,” Bumpus said. “… The offensive line, we talked about the line, but not specifically the center position. I don’t think they’re decided on who’s going to be that guy. That could be a good thing or a bad thing. I’m going to lean towards it’s a good thing.”

The candidates

The battle for the center position appears to be a two-horse race between second-year pro Olu Oluwatimi and offseason signing Nick Harris.

Oluwatimi, a 2023 fifth-round pick out of Michigan, appeared to be the favorite coming into camp. He appeared in 16 games as a rookie – mostly on special teams – and made one start. The 24-year-old center was on the field for 13% (126) of the Seahawks’ offensive snaps in 2023.

The 6 foot 3, 307-pounder was was a voted as a second-team All-American by the Associated Press and won the Rimington and Outland trophies during his final college season.

Harris, a former UW Huskies standout and fifth-round draft pick by Cleveland in 2020, is in his fifth NFL season, but also has limited NFL experience. He’s appeared in 40 career games, including four starts, and was on the field for a career-high 311 snaps for the Browns last season. Harris missed all of the 2022 campaign with a knee injury suffered in the preseason.

In his final season at UW, Harris was a first-team All-Pac-12 pick and named a second-team All-American by Sports Illustrated.

Undrafted rookie Michael Novitsky, a second-team All-Big 12 selection at Kansas in 2022, is also in the mix. He spent five years as a college starter between stops at Kansas, Tennessee Tech and Buffalo.

“That relationship between the center, the quarterback and the rest of the guys in the box, it’s so important,” Bumpus said. “The center is the second quarterback out there. The center can make Geno right. He can protect Geno when Geno doesn’t see a blitz coming. So when this preseason starts, take a look at that offensive line and take a look specifically at that center and just see how they’re communicating and how they’re doing, because that’s going to be huge for this offense.”

What about Williams?

Another potential option at center is free agent Connor Williams. The six-year NFL veteran recently made a visit with the Seahawks, and Macdonald indicated all went well when training camp opened last week.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Williams passed a physical and started contract negotiations with the team last week, but the former Miami Dolphins center remains a free agent.

If signed, Williams would become an instant favorite for the starting job at center. He played 57 games, including 51 starts, at left guard during his first four seasons in the league with the Dallas Cowboys. He started all 17 games at center for Miami in 2022 and made nine starts last year before suffering a season-ending ACL tear.

Listen to Four Down Territory with former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.