ESPN’s Miller names potential draft targets at guard for Seahawks

Jan 8, 2025, 11:27 AM

Oregon left tackle Josh Conerly in action during a 2024 game. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

(Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Seattle Sports

Heading into the offseason, the biggest and most obvious positions the Seattle Seahawks need to improve are the guard spots along the offensive line.

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Veteran left guard Laken Tomlinson, who started all 17 games for the Seahawks this season, ranked 46th out of 77 guards in Pro Football Focus grading. Second-year right guard Anthony Bradford, who started the first 11 games before landing on injured reserve, ranked 73rd. And rookie right guard Sataoa Laumea, who started the final six games, ranked last at 77th.

The interior O-line struggles played a major role in Seattle’s inconsistent offense, leaving little room for the rushing attack to get untracked and resulting in quarterback Geno Smith facing one of the highest pressure rates in the league.

Could the Seahawks fortify their guard spots in this year’s NFL Draft? On Tuesday, ESPN NFL Draft analyst Matt Miller discussed that topic during an appearance on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy. Below are the two things that stood out from their conversation.

First-round options

According to Miller, the top guard prospects in this year’s draft class might actually be a pair of linemen who played tackle in college: LSU left tackle Will Campbell and Oregon left tackle Josh Conerly Jr., the latter of whom is a Rainier Beach High School alum.

In his latest mock draft, ESPN NFL Draft analyst Jordan Reid projected Campbell to go No. 10 overall to the Chicago Bears and Conerly to go No. 18 overall to Seattle.

“I think we’ll see a lot of guys who are playing tackle in college that are gonna get talked about as moving to guard at the next level,” Miller said. “Will Campbell from LSU is a great example of that. … He might be kicked into guard. Josh Conerly at Oregon, there’s some talk because he’s 6-foot-4, he might get kicked inside the guard as well.

“So I think that’s gonna be the bigger conversation: How many of these tackles in college do we see get moved inside to guard?”

Day 2 options

While there may not be a college guard to draft in the first round, Miller said the second and third rounds could be ripe for selecting a guard. He named Alabama guard Tyler Booker and Georgia guards Tate Ratledge guard Dylan Fairchild as top potential targets. Booker is projected to go No. 30 overall in Reid’s mock draft, but Miller thinks he could slip into the second round.

“It is a really strong guard class when you look at round 2,” Miller said. “… All three of those guys could be round 2 to round 3 type picks. So in round 1, guard to guard, probably not, unless someone slips that could be a tackle that moves inside. But I think that’s where in rounds 2, 3, even round 4, that’s where you’re gonna find your really good value this year.”

Listen to the full conversation with ESPN’s Matt Miller on Brock and Salk at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.