Is Abraham Lucas Becoming a Concern for the Seattle Seahawks?

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The Seattle Seahawks’ front office has been determined to build a reliable and stable offensive line after it helped bring an end to the Legion of Boom. John Schneider used two first-round picks on two of them and focused on building the rest of it hard on certain players. The Seahawks are confident in what they have in their former third-round pick in starting right tackle Abraham Lucas.
Lucas hasn’t been one of the least productive Seahawks’ offensive linemen, but there is starting to be a pattern of concern. The Seahawks had their first loss of the season in Week 3 to one of the worst teams in the league in the Washington Commanders. There were several noticeable aspects in that game, but one of them is Lucas’ questionable play.
Lucas Struggled Against the Commanders

As a whole, the Seahawks’ offensive line played well against the Commanders’ defense. There were some tough plays, but the offensive line wasn’t the reason why the Seahawks only rushed for 44 yards on 18 carries, averaging 2.8 yards per carry. Pro Football Focus praised left tackle Charles and two alternating right guards Christian Haynes and Beau Stephens.
Lucas and left guard Grey Zabel were on the bad side of PFF’s reporting as the two gave up nine of the 11 pressures from the Commanders. It has been a tough stretch for Lucas to start off this season, much like it was last season. He has allowed nine pressures, two quarterback hits and a sack through his first three games. PFF has given Lucas a 59.9 pass-blocking grade through the first three games, which ranks 54th out of 69 eligible offensive tackles. There were times against the Commanders when their numerous blitzes overwhelmed Lucas.
The Bright Side to Lucas and How He Can Improve

The good news for Lucas is that he is one of the Seahawks’ more reliable run-blockers. PFF has given Lucas an 81.9 run-block grade, which ranks fifth in the league among all offensive tackles. He sets the edge incredibly well on run blocks or on screen plays, which allows the interior offensive linemen to climb to the outside or second-level of the opposing defense.
There are going to be limitations to almost all players for the Seahawks. For Lucas, he isn’t as efficient a pass-protector as Cross, but he is a better run-blocker. The coaching staff can compensate for Lucas’ lack of dominance as a pass-protector, which includes getting a tight end to help block the edges. They can also work with him during this early portion of the season by improving with practices and film study. He is only 27 years old and not yet in the prime of his career.
The Seahawks, however, can’t let him become a liability to the point where he is beaten by speedy edge rushers before the quarterback can get situated in the pocket. This was the case in last season’s Week 1 19-17 loss to the San Francisco 49ers when he allowed edge rusher Nick Bosa to account for the game-winning strip-sack-fumble with less than a minute left in the red zone.
Lucas is a much better player since then, but the Seahawks’ coaching staff needs to understand Lucas’ limitations.
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Michael Hanich is a long-time sports journalist with experience across print, digital, and television. He is currently a producer and reporter for WKRG News 5 in Mobile, Alabama, and has covered Alabama football, Auburn football and basketball, and various college and pro teams for Gulf Coast Media and YardBarker.
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