Seahawks acquire OL Matt Tobin in trade with Eagles

RENTON – The Seahawks acquired offensive lineman Matt Tobin in a trade with the Eagles on Monday, making another move to shore up their offensive line after losing left tackle George Fant for the season.

The Seahawks sent Philadelphia their 2018 fifth-round pick and received the Eagles’ seventh-round pick along with Tobin.

The Seahawks’ press release refers to the 27-year-old Tobin as a tackle, though most of his starting experience has been at guard since he entered the the league as an undrafted free agent out of Iowa in 2013. Of his 21 career starts, 15 were at right guard and five were at left guard. Tobin (6-6, 290) was listed as having started at right tackle in the Eagles’ most recent preseason game.

The Seahawks on Monday also signed left tackle Tyrus Thompson, who has yet to appear in a regular-season NFL game in his two seasons. To make room on their 90-man roster for Tobin and Thompson, the Seahawks waived as injured tight end Marcus Lucas and rookie tackle Justin Senior.

Fant suffered a season-ending knee injury in the second quarter of Seattle’s preseason game Friday night. Coach Pete Carroll said Monday that Fant will have surgery in the next week or so to repair damage to his ACL and MCL and that he’s expected to be back for next season.

Carroll was noncommittal about the team’s plan at left tackle Friday night and again on Monday, when he spoke with reporters shortly before the trade was announced and hinted that an acquisition could be in the offing.

Carroll said Seattle would continue to give Rees Odhiambo an opportunity at left tackle and that while the team prefers to keep Luke Joeckel at left guard, moving him outside remains an option. Rookie Ethan Pocic is another option, but Carroll noted that most of his experience has been at center and on the right side of the line.

Pete Carroll was still noncommittal about the plan @ LT. Sounds like Rees Odhiambo for now, but PC again mentioned Luke Joeckel as an option pic.twitter.com/OPRhnPykb6

— Brady Henderson (@BradyHenderson) August 21, 2017

“Luke has been a starting left tackle in the NFL,” Carroll said. “He was drafted as that, and if that’s what winds up happening, that winds up happening.”

Odhiambo, a 2016 third-round pick who played sparingly as a rookie, replaced Fant once he went down Friday night. Carroll expressed more confidence in Odhiambo on Monday than he did after the game.

“I think he’s going to have a chance to be really good,” Carroll said. “We drafted him to be a starting player and we drafted him with the thought he could be a left tackle. So here we go. We’ll see what happens.”