One of the story lines of Seahawks OTAs is the offensive line. There’s a reasonable chance the Seahawks will have no starters on the offensive line returning to the positions they played last season. In addition, Seattle has both its presumptive starters at tackle out with injuries — Garry Gilliam had a cyst removed from his knee and J’Marcus Webb has a pulled calf muscle. Therefore, Thursday’s first-team offensive line consisted of, from left to right: Bradley Sowell, Mark Glowinski, Justin Britt, Germain Ifedi and Terry Poole.
However, quarterback Russell Wilson said he’s not worried about the reconfiguration of the offensive line.
“I think we did a really good job in the draft, first of all,” Wilson said. “I think that helps. Germain Ifedi looks really talented, he’s huge, as big as you can get. J’Marcus Webb is a really big, talented guy as well, played a lot of football for the Raiders. Then you’ve got Brad playing some left tackle for us right now and he can play at any position, played at Arizona and they’ve won a lot of football games, too. So you’ve got three guys who are really talented there, and you’ve got Rees (Odhiambo) and Joey Hunt, too. So I think we have five guys who have come in and really have a great chance of playing and getting a lot of playing time and making a big difference for us. We’re going to need them. It’s going to be a big opportunity for us and we’re looking forward to it. We’re not going to back down from it at all.”
Wilson was also asked about his chemistry with Britt, who is now playing center. It’s Britt’s third position in three seasons, having played right tackle as a rookie two years ago and left guard last season.
“Justin is great,” Wilson said. “He’s one of those guys who gets here really early and he wants to be perfect on everything. He’s so detail oriented in a positive way, and he’s physical as can be. He’s played a lot of football games, he’s played right tackle, he’s played left guard, a little bit of everything. He’s transitioning really well there, and the good thing is we also have Patrick Lewis, too, who’s played big games for us and won a lot of football games for us.”
Thursday was also the first opportunity for the local media to talk to defensive back Brandon Browner since he re-signed with the Seahawks. Browner, who played for New England and New Orleans the past two seasons following three years with the Seahawks, said he was also pursued by Washington, but that it was a no-brainer to return to Seattle.
“It means a lot,” Browner said of returning to the Seahawks. “I’m happy to have a job, I’m happy to be playing with my friends again, I look forward to it.”
Browner played cornerback during his first stint in Seattle, but the Seahawks have talked about using the 6-foot-4 browner as a hybrid cornerback/safety this time around.
“I love it,” Browner said. “It’s kind of similar to some of the things I did in New England. I’ll be matched up on guys who fit my size, even on the run a little bit. It will show my skill set a little bit, I guess.”
Said coach Pete Carroll: “He’s a football player, so we’re trying to find a place where he can help and contribute and bring that toughness and competitiveness he has to add to the team. His attitude is terrific. He’s playing safety and we’re moving around, it gives us a real special player with unique qualities.
“We have really as good a flexibility as we’ve ever had with our guys,” Carroll added about the secondary. “This is as strong as I’ve felt we’ve been going into this portion of the year with the versatility, and the competition is really going to be on. It gives us choices match-up wise if it all stays the same, and that’s a real positive.”
As for whether there’s been any ribbing about the last play of Super Bowl XLIX, when Browner’s Patriots prevailed over the Seahawks thanks to Malcolm Butler’s last-minute goal-line interception, Browner said: “That’ a touchy subject, man. I try to leave that one alone.”
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