Here’s the third part of my seven-part series looking at where the Seahawks stand heading into the offseason, position by position. Salary numbers for 2016 are courtesy of OverTheCap.com. Players signed to futures contracts are not included. Unrestricted free agents can sign with any team. Restricted free agents can either have offers matched by Seattle, or the Seahawks receive compensation. Exclusive rights free agents are under team control unless not offered a contract.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Under contract
Justin Britt ($942,799)
Mark Glowinski ($611,422)
Garry Gilliam ($604,000)
Kristjan Sokoli ($547,621)
Kona Schwenke ($525,000)
Unrestricted free agents
Russell Okung
J.R. Sweezy
Lemuel Jeanpierre
Restricted free agents
Patrick Lewis
Alvin Bailey
The skinny: This is the area to watch for the Seahawks this offseason.
Seattle already went with the low-budget option on the offensive line this season, choosing to divert its financial resources to other areas of the team. That came with mixed results as the line struggled mightily during the first half of the season, stabilized in the second half, but had issues in the season-ending loss to Carolina.
And now Seattle’s two most-experienced linemen, Okung and Sweezy, are unrestricted free agents. The Seahawks already have a ton of money committed to their stars, so it’s hard to see how Seattle could spend more on the offensive line next season than it did this season. That could make it difficult for the team to re-sign Okung in particular, who made more than $7 million this season and has been a Pro Bowler. It may be easier to re-sign the likes of Sweezy, Lewis and Bailey, who won’t have as much value on the open market. But they don’t represent an upgrade.
If Okung and Sweezy can’t be retained, Seattle will have to rely heavily on untested second-year options like Glowinski and Sokoli. Glowinski at least looked competent in his one start this season.
Once again, expect the Seahawks to look long and hard at linemen in the draft. That includes drafting defensive linemen who could be converted into offensive linemen, as the team has done repeatedly in the past. The line could be a priority target in free agency or the trade market, too, especially if Okung departs.
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