Seahawks signing former Panthers, Oklahoma offensive tackle Tyrus Thompson, according to league source, after losing George Fant to torn ACL
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) August 20, 2017
Thompson was a somewhat highly touted lineman at Oklahoma, starting at left tackle ahead of Daryl Williams (a player who went two rounds earlier in the 2015 draft).
Teams reportedly had mixed feelings about him. While some thought highly of his size, length and athletic potential — others were suspicious about his effort.
The difference between Williams and Thompson was pretty obvious. Williams played with an intensity and an edge lacking in Thompson. He had the skill set to start at the next level but questions lingered about his desire to make it happen.
That kind of makes sense when you look at his career to date. Drafted by the Vikings in round six, they cut him by September 18th. He lasted a few months on Jacksonville’s practise squad before signing with the Lions in January 2016. That spell in Detroit lasted until May. He switched to New Orleans but was cut in October.
After a year in the league he’d already had four teams.
His latest stop was in Carolina where he lasted a few months and was cut a week ago. All of the teams listed above have had issues with their O-lines, so it’s not encouraging that he hasn’t been able to stick anywhere.
He’s yet to feature in a NFL game.
This is the situation Seattle faces, however. There isn’t a ready made market for replacement left tackles. They’re being forced to look for someone who can supply depth and might be able to stick as a backup. Thompson has the athletic potential and the size (6-5, 324lbs, 35 inch arms). Lance Zierlein noted in his NFL.com blurb:
“Has NFL talent and athleticism. Is able to climb up to the second level and engage assignments. Effective wall-off blocker. Can change direction in pass protection and is able to adjust in space to get to moving targets. Light on his feet for a big guy. Has the feet and length to be a starting left tackle in the league. Has athleticism to recover when beaten in pass protection. Can move laterally and make tough blocks when needed.”
Thompson might not last long in Seattle — but in terms of the available options to bring someone in at a cheap cost to provide some competition and depth at tackle, this was one of the few possible moves that carried some upside.
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Definitely worth a shot. Right now, your OL is…
Locks:
Odi
Joeckel
Britt
Abushi/Glow
Ifedi/Pocic
If they signed no one else, your other locks would be Joey Hunt (all 5’10 265 lbs of him) and Jordan Roos, a UDFA. Yes, I like Roos, but I like him better on the Practice Squad.
Rob- Who are some potential ‘post GM4 cut’ names you’ll be paying attention for?
I don’t see them spending a roster spot on Joey Hunt… we have too many WR/RB/TE prospects to waste a spot on a pure Center… I feel Pocic will not start, but dress as the backup C/RG/RT…
Roos seemed like a practice squad player…until Fant went down…
Odhiambho / Joeckel / Britt / Glowinski / Ifedi
Pocic / Aboushi
Roos
Who knows what happens next! #CraZyEclipse
The way Pete talked about Roos last week — he was a virtual lock for the roster.
I’ve not studied who may or may not make the cuts to be honest — I will probably have a look after game three.
Joey Hunt is listed at 6-2/299 on the Seahawks roster. He’s actually 6-1-3/4″/299. The Seahawks have used more than one center smaller than him in the past. When he was first acquired he was listed at 6-0/299 on Seahawks.com which was a TYPO that was corrected a few days later. He is indeed slightly under optimum height as a center by an inch or two, however not by as much as some people seem to think. He is also a pretty good center that will probably be on the “bubble” this season so his future is a bit cloudy only because he plays just the one position, I think TC likes him a little though, so that might help him stick around on the 53(?)
I see it as unlikely that Hunt makes the roster, UNLESS Pocic were to win a starting job. If Pocic is starting, they probably keep Hunt as the backup center.
Rob,
Any reason you can think of ifedi could get a look at left tackle? Then picnic at right.
I’m not Rob but I don’ think Ifedi at LT is a good idea. He’s been slow in the first couple of games getting beat off the edge.
On the right side, it’s in front of Russell so he can see it coming and has a better chance of escaping the pressure. On the left, his back side, he could get hit from behind without even knowing it’s coming.
I think they’ve ultimately decided Ifedi is a right sided guy. Never even considered him at LT or LG.
Guess the Hawks really like their own guys, and added this guy for depth reasons. He might not even make the team after the cut to 53. It comes as no surprise that they like their own guys and aren’t breaking the bank out of desperation. The line should still skake out as follows imo…
LT: Joeckel
LG: Odhiambo
C: Britt
RG: Aboushi
RT: Ifedi
Backups: Glowinski, Pocic, Roos
I dunno. They could, but it sounds like they really like Joeckel at LG. If he’s excellent at LG and average at LT, then we would likely have:
A: average LT + mediocre LG (Odhiambo, Roos, etc)
or B
B: bad to mediocre LT (Odhiambo, other)+ good to excellent LG
I’m not sure which would be better. Personal preference would be option B (keep a better interior pocket) but who knows.
This situation sucks. Not season destroying like injuries to RW or ET3, but still sucks.
Honest question for anybody who has really paid attention to Odhiambo at LT: Is he really that much worse of an option than Joeckel? Remember, Joeckel was so bad at LT that even before his injury last year the Jags had declined to pick up his option. He was below average (well below?) at tackle.
He fits the bill of a guard imo. He’s a little short for LT (6’4″ versus typical LTs who are 6’5″ to 6’9″). His arm length is not ideal for tackle (sub 34″). There is a clear size difference between him and either Fant or Joeckel. As for his play I’d say he actually looks pretty fluid in his pass sets, unlike Ifedi who looks slow. The problems come down to experience and being undersized at the position. I saw enough to say that Odhiambo would make a good guard, not tackle. Joeckel is the most experienced tackle on the roster and is best equipped to protect Russ’s blindside this season. Time to cash in on that $8 mil investment.
My memory may be faulty, but iirc when Luke came out, he was expected to go high because he was a sure thing, not because he had a massively high ceiling. Jacksonville has had major issues with offensive talent for years, aside from MJD and (if we are going back that far) Taylor/boselli/Jimmy Smith.
I haven’t seen much of him play, but how much of the perception of him being a poor player is owed to his high draft status and being on an awful team?
Personally, I think Odhiambo is probably better guard material. If they determine that they want to keep Joekel at LG for continuity, I partly expect that maybe they would open competition up at LT between Odhiambo and Ethan Pocic, but that’s just my hot take.
I think Will Pericak is an option. He plays both G and T and is out of PS options. I would like to see Pericak play T in a preseason game. I think Thompson is a PS player this year.
LSU was going to move Pocic to LT for the 2016 season. They left him at center because they had no one else to man the middle and a couple of freshman that could play LT. It is possible we see Pocic (whom I already consider a swing tackle) challenging Odhiambo over the next two weeks. Pocic’s quick feet probably play better on the left side, anyway.
Spot on……
Spot on…
Supposed to be posting under Aaron’s comment. Sheees!!!
It seems like the strategy is to have solid playing guards and centers, and accept that the tackles will need more development. Which makes sense considering the greater number of guards and centers (relative to team spots) coming out of college.
It sounds as though Thompson needs to have a fire lit under him, and this might be the locker room and coaches to do it for him. And Pete’s positive attitude could be the needed change for him. Worth a shot, and it gives them another practice body if nothing else.
I would say he is running out of options, that’s for sure.
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Even with Fant down I think this guy has no shot. Given the way Carroll and Cable talk about Odhiambo, I think either one of Aboushi or Glowinski are going to start LG (I honestly prefer Aboushi as LG going into the season, given club control stuff).
Gone for the weekend and articles fly up on this site…love it!
My take on Fant is the same I’ve read from some others. This sucks. It does not, however, derail this season. Fant was admittedly a pretty poor LT last season albeit one with a high upside. I think either Joeckel or Rees will perform at least as well as Fant did last year, with the other being in all likelihood a better LG than Glow was. That means the left side of the line will still be improved from last year. Joeckel has both big time college and NFL experience at LT. Rees played LT for some big games in college. Another thing to consider is the fact that Russ has been getting rid of the ball much quicker which slows down the pass rush. Swing passes to RBs, chips from RBs/TEs, etc. will be used to slow down DEs. The run game becomes even more important now to keep defenses honest and that seemed to be where Rees’ strength lies.
The real question from this whole situation is how they deal with the LT position in future years. Fant had one poor year and is now injured. Can they trust him to come back and play LT or do they try to draft one next year for competition and club control? With Britt being entrenched at C, do they try Pocic at LT? He doesn’t have ideal length either, but he seems very technically sound and has shown good pass pro for the most part. The Fant injury has implications not only this year, but for future years and drafts as well.
I think LT has to move to the top of their draft wish list and as I mentioned above, I expect Pocic to get reps in practice at LT. He is their most athletic linemen. I think they like Joeckle at LG and Glow at RG. Why move two guys to positions where they are not at their best. We should keep them where they are and fill the LT spot with Odhiambo of Pocic.
This is the way I’m leaning, as well. Carroll didn’t close the book on Joekel being at LG and he praised Glowinski for his play against the Vikings at RG. Pocic has shown up better as a pass blocker than run blocker, I kinda think he might get looks this week at LT.
I don’t think he has the length to succeed against bull rushes. Technique can only get you so far. But hey, no harm in giving him a look in preseason (as long as Russ isn’t out there…)
Yeah, that’s fair. I think at this point, any option is going to have it’s blemish. IMO, I think his footwork and balance might well warrant the look.
Yeah, agreed. He may not have the upside of Fant, but he’s much more experienced. I think he’s liable to perform at least as well as Fant would have in the short term.
Pocic-Joeckel-Britt-Glowinski/Aboushi-Ifedi seems like a decent line, with the other RG, Hunt, Odhiambo, Thompson as the reserves (or maybe Roos fits in there somewhere)
I agree they should at least give Pocic a look at LT. How cool would it be if this situation would lead to finding a good fit at LT on a rookie contract? Talk about a silver lining.
+1.
Say Pocic gets reps at LT and wins the job. Rees can be the backup LT/LG. Who becomes the backup for RT? Pocic’s versatility was great as a backup as he could play C/RG/RT. Can Pericak play RT along with G and C? If so, that would go a long way towards him making the team.
I think Aboushi has experience at RT. If Pocic were to win LT, maybe they also work Odhiambo as a swing tackle, with Roos backing up Joekel
Losing Fant was a really tough injury. At this point it is a scramble. First worry is fielding a decent starting line. Second worry will be the replacements.
I wouldn’t be surprised if they pick up one or two more offensive linemen during that final cuts of preseason. Seahawks need to make some decisions about how long to hold onto Hunt and others. I like them = but the question is will there be better players out there? I’m guessing yes just because of the large number of cuts about to occur.
Shaq Griffin looked very good last week. His kick step is already pretty solid, and most importantly he isn’t giving up passes over the top. Stefon Diggs was beating him underneath, but there is no problem there as Shaq wasn’t giving up YAC. If he continues this level of growth over the next two games, I could actually see him starting opposite Sherman… which is great but also slightly scary with Aaron Rodgers up week 1.
Agreed. He’s definitely doing what he needs to do in our scheme. As long as his tackling stays good he should start week 1
I’m looking forward to seeing him start. I’m sure there will be some bitching because he is going to be targeted and there will be catches. As long as he breaks up the passes he can get to, has solid tackling, and doesn’t let receivers get behind him, he should be fine.