I had very high hopes for Okung and wanted Seattle to draft him. Was extremely happy when we did. His athleticism, strength, and movement were what really intrigued me. With that said, he's shown flashes of the player I thought we had drafted, but has not improved significantly in my opinion. He was given the LT spot early and has had no one that could even be a formidable backup, let alone compete for the start at the position. This is just speculation, but is the biggest problem outside of the injury concerns and mental mistakes he has and continues to make. I feel he knows the LT position is his and that if he's able to be on the field, no one will take it from him. He's not doing everything he can to improve or be the best he can be (again, my opinion). I'm sure he puts work in, but seriously doubt he gives it all he has in the offseason, training camp, between games, etc. I've been wanting a stud offensive tackle the last couple of years for this reason because not only would it have given us another very talented OT on the right side, but them pushing for LT duties on gameday might have given Okung added motivation to be the player so many of us expected him to be. With a young, undersized QB who utilizes his legs when needed, improving the O-Line to be the best possible group we can put on the field to protect our investment/franchise quarterback is always a positive thing. While Wilson isn't as reckless as guys like Vick or RG3, I still cringe when guys like Robert Quinn or Aldon Smith get after Wilson untouched.
I believe Okung's cap numbers go down next year and that's the last year of his rookie contract. Something like a 4 million decrease IIRC (11.2 to 7.2), so instead of signing him to an extension before his contract is up, they may very well let him play it out. Might not be likely, but from what I've seen, offering him what he's been making from his rookie contract on a new one would worry me. He has yet to play an entire 16 game season, false starts/holding seem to happen more often than I'd like, guys beat him more often it seems the last couple of years as opposed to early in his deal.
While we have other needs, if BPA in the first round of this upcoming draft is an offensive tackle prospect who looks to be capable of competing for the LT spot (and depending on who's on the board), I hope we don't think twice. Peat, Ogbuehi, Scherff (one of my favorite prospects regardless of position), Collins, Erving (meh), would be cool by me. Scherff is a guy I think Cable would absolutely love. He's strong, athletic, mobile, plays with a mean streak through the whistle, and could play any position on the line outside of center which would give us some nice options for his rookie year. If he couldn't beat out Okung, he could play RT with Britt being a great backup. Could also have him slide inside at guard so that we can keep both Okung and Britt on the field as well. Carp may be gone after this season and while I like Sweezy, having him compete or as depth would be sweet as opposed to starting. I still think Alvin Bailey would be best as a guard too thanks to his athleticism/mobility, size & strength. Okung-Scherff-Unger-????-Britt with Bailey, Sweezy & someone else competing for the right guard spot. That would be wonderful IMO and if Okung got injured, Scherff could slide over to LT.
Anyway, aside from injuries, I just think Okung knows the position is his and isn't pushing himself to be the best he can be. Glad we brought Britt in, but he's not a LT and I've been clamoring for another stud the last couple of years. Get a guy in Seattle that can challenge Okung and unless the player is a major bust, it just seems like a great situation for our offense, running game/Beast Mode (if he sticks around another year), and Wilson in particular.
