Seahawks sticking with same offensive line — at least for now

RENTON – The Seahawks aren’t making any changes along an offensive line that unquestionably remains the team’s biggest weakness – at least not yet.

Coach Pete Carroll left the impression Wednesday that there’s a limit to how long Seattle can wait for that group to improve, such as when he was asked whether the same five starters will remain in place after a mostly disastrous performance Monday night.

“Right now, yes,” Carroll said.

Seattle’s offensive line is coming off what may have been its worst performance of the season in the team’s 13-10 win over Detroit. The issues were across the board. Shaky pass protection contributed to six sacks, a total that could have been higher given how quarterback Russell Wilson was under constant duress. The run-blocking wasn’t much better as Seattle’s running backs averaged fewer than 3.5 yards on 20 carries. Even the shotgun snaps from center Drew Nowak were a problem, one of them so off line that Wilson had to fall on and thereby take a sack.

None of those issues were new, of course, but they were as pronounced as they have been through four games as Seattle has dealt with the expected growing pains along an offensive line with some inexperienced pieces. Center Drew Nowak and right tackle Garry Gilliam are both first-year starters playing new positions. Left guard Justin Britt is also in a new spot, having started at right tackle as a rookie last season.

Seattle has in-house options with some starting experience in center Patrick Lewis and Alvin Bailey, who has played both guard and tackle. For now, though, the Seahawks are balancing the desire for the starting group to develop with the need for immediate improvement.

“Because of the competitive way we look at it, the changes are always imminent, they’re always there,” Carroll said. “It could happen, and that hasn’t been any different in any position for our football team. Some guys after a while they obviously establish a grace period, but the young guys that are coming up, they’ve got a competitive aspect right there hanging with them. These guys up front are in that situation.”

Pass protection is the most obvious among Seattle’s offensive-line issues. The Seahawks have allowed 18 sacks, one fewer than Kansas City’s league-high 19. Offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell called that an “alarming rate” and said all the hits that Wilson has taken is concerning, though he noted that the offensive line isn’t the only culpable party.

“It’s really in a lot of areas. You can’t really pin it on one group, one person,” Bevell said. “I know there’s a lot of concern with the offensive line, a lot of talk about that, but we can all do better – the quarterbacks in terms of getting the ball out on time, receivers shaking open on time, offensive line protecting them, myself in any way that I can to give us better chances to do all three of those things. We’ll just continue to work at it.”

And the Seahawks will continue to try to make it work with their current configuration of offensive linemen, at least for now.

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