NFL analyst makes interesting choice for Seahawks' breakout player to watch

Right guard is by far the biggest hole on the Seahawks' roster right now. While the front office had plenty of time and resources to address this issue over the offseason so far the only answer has been to sit on their hands and seemingly rely on their current options to get better.

Given their extremely sorry record with drafting and developing interior offensive linemen, that's a pretty bold decision to make - one that's unlikely to cost general manager John Schneider his job all on its own, but may play a factor if that's something that happens in the next couple of offseasons.

At the team's OTA practices it was second-year lineman Christian Haynes taking snaps at right guard with the first-team offense, while third-year guard Anthony Bradford rotated in behind him.

There's always a chance that one of those two could break the team's long-standing curse at guard and dramatically improve in 2025, but history says the odds are against it. Still, Haynes was considered one of the top iOL prospects in last year's class - and there's probably a better chance that he has a break-through than Bradford.

According to an analysis by Pro Fooball Network, Haynes is Seattle's one breakout player to watch at next week's minicamp (now June 10-12).

"Christian Haynes didn’t start as a rookie but took 167 total offensive snaps as a reserve. Haynes’ rookie season didn’t come without bumps, as he allowed six pressures on just 113 pass-blocking reps. He’s a gifted athlete with dominant college tape at UConn who should improve with a full offseason in Seattle’s program as as a reserve. Now, he figures to be a starter for the Seattle Seahawks’ interior offensive line."

Haynes' plus athleticism will certainly give him a chance to succeed as a starter, but by now Seahawks fans are well aware that there's a lot more to playing the position.

164 of those 167 snaps as a rookie were at right guard in place of a struggling Bradford, and while he wasn't the worst, Haynes' grades didn't exactly inspire much hope. PFF had him at 51.9 in pass blocking and 49.8 in run blocking for the year.

It's a small sample size and Haynes could yet grow into a fine starter in the NFL - but his relative lack of size (6-foot-2, 313 pounds) is something that's difficult to overcome.