New Seahawks offensive linemen picking up system quickly

Seattle's rookie offensive linemen are catching on quickly. Then again, they don't have much choice. At least not with Tom Cable running drills.

BY DANNY O\'NEIL

May 10, 2015, 1:42 PM Updated: 1:50 pm

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Rookie Seahawks lineman Mark Glowinski tried out both right guard and offensive tackle at minicamp. (AP)

(AP)

RENTON – Seattle’s rookie offensive linemen are catching on quickly.

Then again, they don’t have much choice. At least not with Tom Cable running drills.

The Seahawks offensive line coach doesn’t set a pace so much as he demands it, and right from the start of this weekend’s three-day rookie minicamp, he let those linemen know they would be working at the tempo he desired: fast.

“It was a little hard on them,” Cable said Sunday after the minicamp concluded. “And then they got going. By today, it showed they accepted it.”

Welcome to Seattle Mark Glowinski, Terry Poole and Kristjan Sokoli. Those were the three offensive linemen Seattle drafted last Saturday, composing more than one-third of the draft class and the spot that coach Pete Carroll kept coming back to as the minicamp concluded on Sunday.

“I probably can’t stop focusing on the O-line because of the three guys we hit there,” Carroll said.

Throw in tackle Jesse Davis, an undrafted rookie out of Idaho, and guard Kona Schwenke, a converted defensive lineman from Notre Dame in his second NFL season, and the Seahawks had what Carroll considered a promising crop of newcomers during the three-day minicamp that concluded Sunday.

“They all move really well,” Carroll said. “They come out of their stance, and they can move and they can move well enough to be in the zone scheme and that’s a big criteria, you know. They pick things up.”

They need to because while no one can be penciled into the starting lineup the way Justin Britt was at right tackle last season, the Seahawks’ need up front is obvious when you consider the team lost two starters up front with guard James Carpenter signing with the Jets and center Max Unger traded to the New Orleans Saints. Factor in the free-agent departures of Breno Giacomini and Paul McQuistan last year and attrition of Michael Bowie and Mike Person and Seattle has lost six of the 10 offensive lineman from the opening-day roster of the Super Bowl-winning team two seasons ago.

The right side of the line appears set with guard J.R. Sweezy and tackle Justin Britt while Russell Okung returns at left tackle. The rest of the starting lineup, not to mention the regular roster positions, are up for grabs.

“I think it will be the most competitive camp for the offensive line from here out,” Cable said, “Moving forward through training camp, that’s good. We’ll get the best out of some people. That will be really cool.”

Here’s a quick look at how the rookie linemen looked:

Terry Poole, No. 69, 6 feet 5, 323 pounds

A tackle at San Diego State, Poole is expected to play guard primarily to begin with, though Cable also mentioned center. He worked at left guard, the spot previously occupied by Carpenter. Presumably, Poole will compete with Alvin Bailey, who started five regular-season games and one playoff game last season and lost 30 pounds this offseason after playing at 350 last year.

“When he left in February the mission was for him to come back at the 320 mark, an area where he can be at his best,” Cable said of Bailey. “Because he got too big.”

Mark Glowinski, No. 63, 6-4, 310

The Seahawks generally teach their rookies two positions along the line. Glowinski played right guard to start the minicamp, but he also could see time outside at offensive tackle.

“Really solid, tough, physical football player that has fit in perfectly for our deal,” Cable said.

Kristjan Sokoli, No. 67, 6-5, 302

He’s characterized as the J.R. Sweezy-clone, a defensive lineman in college drafted with the intention of converting him to the offensive line. Just don’t expect Sokoli to start the season-opener as a rookie like Sweezy did in 2012. Sokoli is playing center exclusively, which Cable said has a unique learning curve among all offensive line positions.

“Just getting used to multi-tasking,” Cable said. “Snapping, stepping, talking. Talking, snapping, stepping. That all has to come bam, bam, bam. Bam, bam, bam for him every play whereas the other positions you don’t have to do that.”

There’s a lot of potential for Sokoli, though.

“Sweezy will take offense to this, but he’s our fastest lineman,” Carroll said of Sokoli. “We thought if it’s going to be a big transition, let’s go for it all, and just stick him right there and see if he can pick up on it. It’s going to take him a while.”

The other two linemen that should be mentioned from the weekend are Schwenke and Davis, a rookie Cable said the team was happy to sign as an undrafted free agent. He could play both tackle spots. Schwenke came out of Notre Dame as a defensive lineman and played for three different teams last season. Most recently with the Oakland Raiders, he tried out with Seattle over the weekend and was singled out by Cable after Sunday’s practice.

“He picked it up pretty quick,” Cable said of Schwenke. “And he was able to kind of change his whole mindset.”