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Film Breakdown: Analyzing Seahawks G Phil Haynes’ First NFL Snaps

Haynes wasn’t activated until November after opening the season on the PUP list, but he was thrown into the fire in the divisional round after playing zero regular season snaps. How did the rookie out of Wake Forest hold up in an adverse situation?

During the course of the 2019 season, the Seahawks were plagued by injuries on both sides of the ball with 19 players landing on injured reserve.

Unfortunately, Seattle's offensive line wasn’t immune to these issues. Starting center Justin Britt suffered a torn ACL in Week 8, left tackle Duane Brown had knee surgery late in the season and barely made it back for the divisional round in Green Bay, and left guard Mike Iupati missed both playoff games with a neck stinger.

Even before the season, guards Jordan Simmons and Demetrius Knox landed on injured reserve, depleting depth in the interior of Seattle's line.

After a promising offseason program where he took some snaps with the first-team, fourth-round pick Phil Haynes had his own rookie campaign derailed by injuries. The rookie guard out of Wake Forest surprisingly opened the season on the PUP list after sports hernia surgery and even after being activated in November, he didn’t play a single regular season snap.

But with Iupati already out and Jamarco Jones suffering a concussion against the Packers, Haynes was thrown into the fire, playing 45 snaps with an NFC Championship Game berth on the line. Put in a tough spot, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll applauded his effort in an adverse situation.

“Phil did a good job. What we’ve seen in Phil is that he’s really strong and he plays real square. He did it in that game. He did very well. Was really pleased to see him. He has had such little playtime since he’s been here. It was great to see him do well.”

Playing his first NFL snaps in a tough road environment, how did Haynes perform? And what does it mean for his future in Seattle?

Check out my latest film study as I analyze 12 plays from Haynes' first extended action with the Seahawks at Lambeau Field.