Bump: A new Seahawks O-line draft target to watch
Michael Bumpus explains why he likes North Dakota State's Grey Zabel, who has emerged in mock drafts as a potential Seattle Seahawks first-round target.
Watch: How to Build An ELITE Team Through the NFL Draft w/Gregg Rosenthal | #SeattleSports | 11 mins
With the Seattle Seahawks in desperate need of offensive line upgrades, it’s no surprise that numerous mock drafts have them addressing the issue with their first-round pick.
Mock Draft Roundup: Who will Seahawks pick at No. 18?
Some common names that keep getting mocked to Seattle are Texas’ Kelvin Banks Jr., Alabama’s Tyler Booker, Missouri’s Armand Membou and Oregon’s Josh Conerly Jr.
Recently, another one has materialized.
In a pair of recent mock drafts, NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah and The 33rd Team’s Kyle Crabbs both have the Seahawks selecting versatile North Dakota State offensive lineman Grey Zabel with their No. 18 overall pick.
That prompted former NFL wide receiver Michael Bumpus to flip on Zabel’s college tape. And he was a big fan of what he saw.
“He has great pad level,” Bumpus said during Wednesday’s Four Down Territory segment on Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy. “He’s aggressive with the hands. And the thing that excited me the most is seeing him get out into the open field on screens.
“On paper, you have blocking assignments (on screens). But sometimes in real life, those assignments go away, and you’re just looking for guys with different color jerseys on. And I’m watching him just seek out the bad guys and blow these dudes up.”
The 6-foot-6, 305-pound Zabel started all 16 games at left tackle this past season while helping North Dakota State win the FCS national championship. But he also possesses a unique level of versatility, having played right tackle and both guard spots in previous seasons with the Bison.
That versatility was on full display during last month’s Senior Bowl, where Zabel excelled at both guard and center.
“Is he center? Is he guard? Does it matter?” Crabbs wrote in his mock draft. “Seattle needs help on the interior and Zabel was a shining star during Senior Bowl practices, playing all three interior spots after playing left tackle for the Bison. The amount of flexibility this pick gives the Seahawks certainly helps ensure the improvement of this line in 2025.”
Furthermore, Bumpus said Zabel’s lateral movement would fit well in new Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak‘s wide-zone rushing attack.
“I watched him run a lot of wide zone (in college),” Bumpus said. “… He does a great job with that post hand on the double team, then getting up to the linebackers, while getting width and creating these run lanes for the running backs.
“I like what I see,” he added.
Listen to the full Four Down Territory segment at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune in to Bump and Stacy weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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