25 most intriguing Seahawks: No. 23, T/TE George Fant
Jun 20, 2019, 10:06 AM
(AP)
The Seahawks kick off training camp on July 25, and until then, Brock Huard and Mike Salk will count down the top 25 most intriguing Seahawks every weekday at 8:30 a.m. Their list continues with No. 23: Tackle/tight end George Fant.
Quick look
• Entering his fourth season with the Seahawks after signing with the team as a UDFA in 2016.
• Switched to dual tight end/tackle roles in 2018.
• Had one catch – his first career reception – for nine yards last year for Seattle.
With more George Fant at TE, Seahawks may cut a surprising name
What Brock Huard says…
“How exactly do you want to define George Fant? What is his role going to be in 2019? I think it’s going to continue to grow, just as his frame and his presence have here in Seattle.
“When he was an undrafted rookie power forward who played some snaps at tight end for Western Kentucky, he came here to rookie minicamp and was like what room do I even walk into? Am I an offensive lineman, am I a tight end? What do they want me to be? And man has he ever grown in every single way. Last year he played 250 or so snaps at tight end and we watched that role grow, but you look at him now out on that field and he is so comfortable.
“I think we all want, as sports fans, our team to be innovators. We want our team to be ahead. We want Phil Jackson to run the triangle, we want the Legion of Boom and big corners, we want the ’46 defense. We want something to grab onto with our teams. It’s not just for them to be good, but we want them to be innovative. And the New England Patriots, in their 10 Super Bowls and the six that they’ve won, they’ve always been one step ahead. So what are the Seahawks going to do next? Can you even innovate into today’s NFL? Well, what if it is a 315-pound tight end? Seriously. What if 240 snaps last year turns into 400 snaps this year, and it’s, ‘Alright you finesse league, you nickel league, how do you like me now? ‘ and what if George Fant is right in the middle of it because of his versatility?”
Why is Fant on this list? And what does his importance to this team mean for the rest of the Seahawks’ tight ends? Brock Huard and Mike Salk explain below.
What this team says…
“Last year at this time George wasn’t doing anything on the edge,” Head coach Pete Carroll said of Fant this offseason. “He was playing all tackle. Now we come back with a real clear idea of what he can do and how we can utilize him, and so we’re just so much farther ahead in that regard and taking advantage of the mismatch that he creates. There’s not many 329-pound tight ends in the NFL, and so it’s fun to be huge.”
Brock and Salk’s 25 most intriguing Seahawks: