Germain Ifedi provided the final and perhaps most endearing image from the first round of the NFL draft.
Immediately after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced Ifedi as the Seattle Seahawks’ choice with the 31st-and-last selection of the first round, the television coverage panned to a view of Ifedi’s home in Houston, where the offensive lineman from Texas A&M was watching the draft with a dozen family members and friends. Ifedi had just fielded the phone call from Seahawks general manager John Schneider, and he and his people were jumping around with the giddiness of a bunch of 6-year-olds who just heard the first tones of an approaching ice cream truck.
“You get that call and you don’t know who it’s from. It could be the bill collector, you don’t know,” Ifedi explained about his justifiable enthusiasm. “I heard ‘John’ and I jumped out of my seat. I didn’t hear the last name, it could have been John anybody, but I heard John and I knew it had to be the guy.”
Indeed, both Ifedi and the Seahawks have expressed genuine enthusiasm for the coupling ever since the moment Ifedi’s named was called. And why not? In their unique way Idefi and the Seahawks are an ideal fit.
During his teleconference with the Seattle media following his selection, Ifedi even described himself as a “Seahawks” type of lineman.
“What does that mean? Just the type of guy they have is really what I meant,” Ifedi said. “The guys that compete and win, no matter what the circumstance.”
Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable, who evaluated Ifedi for the Seahawks during Texas A&M’s pro day, agreed: “He did a fantastic job in his workouts. I felt like he demonstrated a lot of the traits that we look for since we’ve come to Seattle.”
That’s not to say the Seahawks had a sure-fire future Pro Bowler fall into their laps when they selected Ifedi. In fact, there were some significant questions surrounding Ifedi heading into the draft. He started his collegiate career at right guard, then played his final two seasons at right tackle. But some scouts question whether he proved he can stick at tackle in the NFL, or whether he’ll have to move back to guard — the Seahawks, after initially saying Ifedi would start out as a right tackle, have played him at right guard during rookie minicamp. There were also concerns about Ifedi’s technique in pass protection.
The grades Seattle received from the pundits for drafting Ifedi in the first round were all across the board. Most deemed the pick acceptable, but largely because the Seahawks traded down and were able to add a third-round pick in the process.
But technique is not the primary attribute the Seahawks use to evaluate offensive linemen. Schneider and coach Pete Carroll went on at length prior to the draft about the difficulty of evaluating college offensive linemen in this day of the spread offense, when many linemen never even get down in a three-point stance. This is particularly problematic for a run-first team like Seattle, which has no idea whether many of those coming out of college are capable of exploding off the line at the snap.
That’s the primary reason why the Seahawks have taken unconventional steps in building their offensive line — drafting defensive linemen (J.R. Sweezy, Kristjan Sokoli) and converting them into offensive linemen at the NFL level, taking chances on former tight ends (Garry Gilliam) who were converted into offensive linemen late in their college careers. Seattle is looking first for players who possess the physical tools, then the Seahawks believe they can coach them into becoming proficient offensive linemen.
And tools are something Ifedi has in spades. Schneider and Carroll raved about Ifedi’s size (6-foot-6, 324 pounds, 7-foot wingspan), mobility and competitiveness. The Seahawks are banking on their ability to take someone with tools and turn him into a player.
“He’s a little bit raw fundamentally, so there’s some cleanup to do,” Cable admitted. “It’s an easy fix, I think.
“It’s really the style of play (at Texas A&M),” added Cable, who’s said the hope is for Ifedi to progresses to the point of moving back to tackle. “What they do, everything is kind of a retreat set and you back up, catch and hold on. In this league that won’t do it. You’ve got to close space on people and use your strength and your power and size. So he’s going to have to learn how to do that. He’s going to have to learn how to play with leverage. … The cool thing is he’s wired to do that. It’s a matter of teaching him and getting him the reps to do it. But I’m very excited that the distance for me, getting him where he needs to be, I think is rather short.”
Not only does Ifedi fit into what the Seahawks envision for their offensive line, Ifedi already feels a connection with Cable, who he will be spending plenty of time with the next four years.
“He was very honest with me,” Ifedi said of Cable during his pro day. “He told me what he liked about my game, he told me what he thinks I can improve.
“He told me I’m a good athlete, I have all the tools, but at times I can let my technique go awry,” Ifedi added. “I can let my game go out of bounds. You want the truth, and he’s one of the first offensive line coaches that gave me an honest, no-B.S. assessment. I instantly had respect for him after he said that.”
So maybe Ifedi won’t be the immediate fix for Seattle’s offensive line. It’ll take time for Cable and company to iron out all the wrinkles.
But like a pair of jeans it’s all about the fit, and Ifedi appears to be the right fit for the Seahawks.
Check out Nick Patterson’s Seattle Sidelines blog at http://www.heraldnet.com/seattlesidelines, and follow him on Twitter at @NickHPatterson.
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