Seahawks 90-Man Countdown: Olu Oluwatimi - Rookie Starter at Center?

One of the more decorated centers to enter the NFL in the past five seasons, Olu Oluwatimi will immediately be thrown into a fierce competition to replace the retired Austin Blythe and vie for a starting role right out of the gate.

Author:
Corbin K. Smith
Publish date:
Jul 5, 2023 1:02 PM EDT

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Seattle Seahawks

With the calendar flipping to July and offseason activities in the rearview mirror, the Seattle Seahawks will open training camp at the VMAC later this month, officially ushering in the 2023 season.

To celebrate the new incoming season, we'll be detailing every member of the Seahawks 90-man roster over the next several weeks, exploring best and worst case scenarios and what to expect from each player entering the 2023 campaign.

Olu Oluwatimi, Center

Height/Weight: 6-3, 308 pounds

2022 Stats*: Zero sacks, nine pressures allowed

*College stats at Michigan

Lightly recruited out of DeMatha Catholic High School in Maryland, Oluwatimi enrolled at the Air Force Academy as his lone opportunity to play Division I football. He didn't play any snaps for the Falcons before transferring to Virginia and due to prior NCAA rules, he was forced to sit out the 2018 season. Finally back on the field in 2019, he started 13 games and earned Honorable Mention All-ACC honors in his first season with the program. He remained the starter for the Cavaliers over the next two seasons, finishing as a Rimington Award finalist in 2021, the first in program history.

Rather than take his talents to the NFL, with a year of eligibility remaining, Oluwatimi transferred to Michigan to transition from an Air Raid offense to a pro style scheme. Thriving in his new surroundings while making all of the line calls for the playoff-bound Wolverines, he captured the Rimington Award and Outland Award honoring the best center and interior offensive lineman in the country before participating in the Senior Bowl, eventually landing with the Seahawks as a fifth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Best-Case Scenario: Well ahead of the curve compared to typical incoming rookie centers, Oluwatimi has full command of Seattle's offense from the outset and excels making line calls both in the run and pass game during the preseason, impressing line coach Andy Dickerson enough to leapfrog Evan Brown and become the latest first-year lineman to win a Week 1 starting job with the team.

Worst-Case Scenario: While Oluwatimi handles the mental part of the game with ease, he endures some issues matching up with NFL athletes in the interior during the preseason and gives up a pair of sacks, preventing him from overtaking Brown, who winds up starting the entire season and plays well enough to warrant a long-term contract.

What to Expect in 2023: Out of all of Seattle's incoming draft picks, including first-round selections Devon Witherspoon and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, no player may be more pro ready than Oluwatimi, who played nearly 3,500 offensive snaps at the college level playing in multiple offensive schemes. During offseason activities, he already could be seen on the field relaying calls to his fellow linemen, making a strong first impression on Pete Carroll, Dickerson, and the rest of the coaching staff.

But while Oluwatimi may be primed to make a push for a starting job early, he still will have to prove himself capable when the pads come on in August and a tough test awaits blocking NFL defensive tackles. In addition, Brown should open camp working with the first-team offense and after playing well at the center spot over the past two seasons with the Lions, it won't be an easy task passing him on the depth chart. If he continues to impress from a leadership and communication standpoint and holds his own as a blocker in the preseason, however, he should have a solid chance at finding his way into the lineup at some point in his rookie season to audition for a long-term starting role.

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