The offensive line, who gets paid?

[OrFan]

Bye bye Carp. The rest, in my opinion, are wait and see.

 

[jammerhawk]

I don't pay Carp, Okung, or Unger. I definitely keep Sweezy and wait and see on Britt and Bailey though Bailey has shown up when he's been allowed to play.

To me Carp is forget about it, and Okung has not played a whole season since arriving after being injury free in college. He's just not worth giving another big contract to as he will miss even more time as he gets to 30. Am slowly coming to the realization that Unger isn't as good as some think, he's also having difficulties staying healthy too, and we can do as good cheaper. Am hoping the team can find another Jeanpierre or even get him back if he is able to play again.

The whole left side of the OL is needing replacement.

 

[Sac]

Okung, and Carp can go.

I like Unger a lot, when he's healthy.

Obviously keep the Sweez and Britt.

It's going to hard to fill 3 starting spots on the O-line though.

 

[bbsplitter]

I see Britt as the rookie version of Giacomini - will end up being dependable (albeit hopefully not in his last year like Giacomini), but not truly a "stud". He has progressed nicely, but calling him an "anchor" on that side of the line is being a little to optimistic IMO.
I see Sweezy getting paid, even if he attracts big money. He is basically vindication of Cable's system and coaching, and he is their "guy". I doubt he goes anywhere for a long time.
Unger - Hard to read what his situation will be. I have a sneaking feeling it might depend on really how much the line improves once he is back, and how much of a drop off PC/JS believe they will have if they move on to one of the backups that have gotten playing time so far.
Carp - I see them hanging on to him if they can get him for cheap.
Okung - IMO I would move on from him, but I also share the sentiment above that he is one of "their guys" and will stick around, maybe not for a second contract but til the end of his current one.

 

[justafan]

I would have said sign Okung at the beginning of the year but his play has really fallen off.Its hard to figure since he is playing for a contract.Mentally physically he isnt the same player.

Carp getting in shape is typical of a player putting out effort he should have put out since the beginning.i wouldnt pay much for him.

Sweezy is playing better.

I never saw the Pro Bowl player in Unger that others have so I am missing something here but experience at center is a huge benefit.

Britt is getting a crash course holding his own so far.

Wish we would have taken Bitonio last year would have been a greatt pick.

 

[brimsalabim]

Unger and Okung should only get new contracts if they are willing to play for back up money.

 

[MontanaHawk05]

Basically - to no ones surprise - we need to address OL in a big way in the offseason, whether thats via draft or FA (likely draft).

Seahawks fans say this every year and will continue to say it until we get the Walter Jones O-line back. It's worth noting that we didn't win a Super Bowl behind that line.

Meanwhile, our current front office went out and did just what we wanted, blew early picks on offensive linemen. What we got is the line that many of you guys now want ejected. What makes you think we won't end up in the same position again? Offensive linemen are not the "safe picks" that everyone thinks.

 

[chris98251]

Russell Okung. Free agent in 2016. - Turns 29 that year. Has yet to live up to his billing due to a constant injury bug, for cheap yeah, but someone will offer him money, I won't be sorry if he leaves, doesn't really play like a top of the line LT and his focus isn't there either based on the jump starts.

James Carpenter. Free agent in 2015. Turns 26 that year. - This has been his best year, can't have a complete makeover if you have someone on the roster that is going to play and he should improve as well, remember he really has not played more than half his contract. My big worry is that once a contract comes he returns to sloth Carpenter.

Max Unger. Free agent in 2017. Turns 31 that year. - Sadly I think his bulked up size is causing him real issues, he needs the size to go against the middle but I think the toll on his body is wearing it down. I would think with all the Centers brought in we already are looking at his replacement and just don't know it. Getting one of the young guys up to speed on making the line adjustment is what we need most, I think our size and skill set is here already.

JR Sweezy. Free agent in 2016. Turns 27 that year. - Kid is going nowhere, he is the shining pupil of Cable, also the guy that sets the tone now for the line play. Lineman can play well into their mid 30's also if they don't suffer a major injury, he could get a 3 or 4 year deal.


Justin Britt. Free agent in 2018. Turns 27 that year. - Non issue right now, he will look better and get better with a healthier supporting cast as well.

 

[Hawks46]

I'd pay all of them....vet minimum.

On the serious side, I agree with most of what you said.

Okung on a value 2 year contract.

Sweezy will get a fair contract for the team. He's a good run blocker, but just terrible in pass pro and unless that changes, he wont' get elite money. Which would suite the FO just fine.

Britt will probably get paid. Assuming he hasn't reached his ceiling, he'll get some money as we just don't have any other options at this point.

Carpenter. He's going to get a vet minimum offer. He hasn't done much else to earn it. He's been in the league long enough to not get owned in pass protection, yet he still does. He also still inexplicably will blow a blocking assignment now and then and I just dont' get why.

Agree with everything Kearly said about Unger. LMJ might even be our starter next year if Unger can't stay healthy.

All of this assuming that our draft picks don't pan out and make anyone expendable. I really hope we pay attention to the OL early this year. We could also use a 1st on a damn good TE if one is available.

 

[olyfan63]

Our FO must feel so snake-bitten on high OL draft choices that they figure they can get "average" linemen now in the 7th round or as UDFA, so why spend a high draft pick for an OL prospect who might turn out to be average. It's been more or less working for them, hard to argue with last year... Getting a bunch of average or just below average OL talent for cheap, so they can spend the $$ in other areas... Look at the mileage we got out of Bowie and Bailey last year, plus Sweezy, and of course Lemuel Jean-Pierre. At least they figured out to move on from truly awful linemen like Paul McQuistan at LT (though almost serviceable as a guard).

Honestly, I see them offering Okung a vet minimum type of 2-year contract laden with games started incentives. And maybe the same with Carpenter. Carpenter has come back from some serious schift in terms of his injuries he's rehabbed. Give the guy some props for having the heart to do the work and rehab and get back, twice IIRC. This year, Carp has been serviceable, even decent at times. I just see the team at least making a Moneyball offer to try to keep Okung and probably Carp too, if the price is right.

Okung's rash of penalties this year are because he's more injured than ever, and he's trying to get a jump to compensate. I just really think it's unfair to come down on a guy who IS an all-pro talent when healthy, and by all accounts I've ever heard, the issue is not heart or effort. Remember the torn pectoral in 2010 on the cheap shot play by Trent Cole? That's an injury which I suspect has never quite fully healed to normal strength. The toe ligament last year, the recurring high ankle sprains a couple years on each leg, and now a torn labrum/sprained shoulder he's been playing through this year, in combination with who knows what other ailments.

Maybe we will move on from a glass Okung; I'm almost talking myself into it. If there's any chance of him being healthy for most of a seasonthough, I bet we keep him.

 

[Tical21]

I'd love to keep Okung. A pretty healthy Okung for about 12 games per year and a backup for four games far outweighs the nightmare that could happen if he leaves. I just don't mess around with that position, and I think he is a tier 1.5 LT when healthy. That said, some team is going to offer him a king's ransom. Can we get in there this season off an injury and pay him early for a big discount? I don't know if his agent will fall for it.

I'd have to watch tape on Sweezy to see how much better than average he is. I hate paying guards, as I think you can pull average ones out your rear end if you have to. He might be becoming special, I'd really have to break it down.

I thought Unger was far overrated during his all-pro season. Very heady player, which does mean a whole lot for a center, but I don't think he physically has the tools to necessitate being paid big bucks either. He might be the type willing to re-structure a little bit.

Hopefully we can keep winning while getting the chance to watch Bailey and Gilliam and whoever our centers are.

In the end, I can't say I'd shed a tear if any of them leave, but if you give the overall package of Okung a B-, it would still scare me to see him go. We're not going to be in the position anytime soon to draft on highly, which is where most of the good ones are found.

 

[kearly]

I hate paying guards, as I think you can pull average ones out your rear end if you have to.

*cough* Tim Ruskell *cough* *cough*

 

[Hawks46]

While it's true the elite LT's are drafted high, they also wash out about as much as other draft picks. The biggest reason Tackles get drafted high is that if they do wash out, you can move them inside to Guard and they can still be successful. If a guy washes out at Guard or Center, you can't move him out to Tackle, so there's a bit of a parachute in the draft position, unlike most.

I want to say Bitonio was drafted in the 2nd round, and the taller kid in NE was drafted in the 2nd round and ended up being good. WHo was it AZ got this year from the Raiders...Solder ? or was that NE's Tackle I'm thinking of.....anyways if memory serves me right, the guy AZ got from the Raiders was drafted in the 2nd as well, so it's not only possible, but more common the last few years

 

[Tical21]

While it's true the elite LT's are drafted high, they also wash out about as much as other draft picks. The biggest reason Tackles get drafted high is that if they do wash out, you can move them inside to Guard and they can still be successful. If a guy washes out at Guard or Center, you can't move him out to Tackle, so there's a bit of a parachute in the draft position, unlike most.

I want to say Bitonio was drafted in the 2nd round, and the taller kid in NE was drafted in the 2nd round and ended up being good. WHo was it AZ got this year from the Raiders...Solder ? or was that NE's Tackle I'm thinking of.....anyways if memory serves me right, the guy AZ got from the Raiders was drafted in the 2nd as well, so it's not only possible, but more common the last few years

This is true, you can find some. Maybe right now because there was a stretch there where that uber elite LT wasn't coming out, but if you look through the HOF, they're almost all top-10 picks, and until the last few years, most of the pro bowl was the same way.

 

[Tical21]

I hate paying guards, as I think you can pull average ones out your rear end if you have to.

*cough* Tim Ruskell *cough* *cough*

Yeah yeah. This is going to make me look moronic, but I didn't want to pay Hutch either.

 

[Tokadub]

I don't even want to put any critical thought into this situation, it's so god awfully pathetic it makes me sick.

Fire Cable, find a replacement for anyone who is not taking a severe pay cut or is already cheap. I hate our offensive line so much every single one of those guys is a damned fool... OR CABLE'S ZONE BLOCKING SCHEME SUCKS! How many times are our guys going to not even cover a guy in favor of a double team... It's like they are all so mentally challenged they never adjust to obvious situations and let guys burn right past them on a regular basis... our Zone Blocking Scheme looks like it's orchestrated by a blind 4 year old ukeface:

 

[Tokadub]

I doubt any other team would pay more than 2-3 million a year for ANY of our scrub Offensive Linesmen... every single one of them is a terrible abomination with laughable skills, zero intelligence, and bad footwork.

 

[Seanhawk]

Wait...they get paid for that crap?!

 

[DavidSeven]

Unless Okung falls off a cliff in 2015, he will get a very good offer from someone. 29 isn't exactly young, but it isn't exactly old either. While I think an extension for Sweezy is in play, I would certainly pay more for Okung than Sweezy. Nature of the position.

As Tical suggested, I think offering Okung a discounted extension after this injury-affected season could be a worthy gamble. If he has a 2012 type season in 2015, then he'll break the bank on the open market. In 2012, he didn't surrender a sack until the last game of the season. The only LT to make it that long. The dude can play. Injury is the only issue. If he gets right in 2015, the market and this fanbase is going to forget about a lot of these early penalties.

 

[theincrediblesok]

I think Bailey should get a chance to start he's been pretty good, and when he's in there for Carpenter it seems the line holds better for pass pro.