Seahawks Boost OL Depth, Sign Ex-Washington Standout Nick Harris
Adding competition at the pivot position on the first official day of free agency, the Seattle Seahawks will be reuniting new offensive line coach Scott Huff with one of his former pupils with the Washington Huskies.
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the Seahawks have agreed to terms with fourth-year center Nick Harris on a one-year, $2.51 million contract. With incentives, the deal could be worth up to $3.26 million.
After being unable to crack Cleveland's talented starting lineup, Nick Harris will be seeking a starting job in his return to the Pacific Northwest as a Seahawk.
Thriving under the tutelage of Huff, Harris emerged as one of the top centers in the country at Washington, earning First-Team All-Pac 12 honors in 2018 and 2019. Despite his accolades, his name wasn't called at the 2020 NFL Draft until the Browns selected him in the fifth round at pick No. 160 and he played 146 offensive snaps in 12 games as a rookie.
Interestingly, Harris never earned a full-time starting job in Cleveland in part because the team signed former Seattle starter Ethan Pocic, who rejuvenated his career as the starting center for one of the NFL's best offensive lines. Injuries also contributed to his lack of playing time, including missing the entire 2022 season with a knee injury suffered in the preseason.
But when the 25-year old Harris has had a chance to play, he has been stellar in pass protection. Making a pair of starts in place of Pocic last season, per Pro Football Focus, he yielded just three pressures and no sacks on 169 pass blocking reps. In limited action in 2021, he didn't give up any pressures on 44 pass blocking snaps, receiving a solid 75.3 pass blocking grade.
Weighing under 295 pounds, while he won't be mistaken as a body mover at the center position, Harris packs more punch than expected in the run game and has enough lateral mobility to excel in zone blocking schemes. He posted a decent 67.2 run blocking grade in 2021, though he regressed to an average 58.7 score last season.
Returning to his old stomping grounds and reuniting with Huff, Harris will be thrust into a competition with second-year center Olu Oluwatimi, who the Seahawks drafted in the fifth-round out of Michigan last year. After losing the starting job to veteran Evan Brown in training camp, Oluwatimi started one game and saw 129 offensive snaps in his rookie season, showing promise as a pass blocker with one pressure allowed on 70 pass protection reps.
Looking towards next season, Seattle will want to see what Oluwatimi can do as a full-time starter, but Harris' previous connection with Huff gives him a significant advantage heading into what should be an intriguing training camp competition. He also has started a game previously at right guard in Cleveland, so it's possible the team could give him a look there if Oluwatimi earns the starting job.
With Harris now in the fold, it appears unlikely Brown will return for a second season with the Seahawks after starting 16 games at the pivot position last season. With that said, his prior starting experience at guard may keep the door open for him to re-sign on a cheap one-year deal later in free agency and compete for a starting job elsewhere on a revamped interior offensive line.
