Damien Lewis Set to Take on New Role as Seahawks' Left Guard in 2021

After a stellar rookie campaign in 2020, Seahawks guard Damien Lewis is set to take on a new challenge in his second year in the pros.

During their post-draft press conference Saturday afternoon, head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider offered some mild insight into the future of Lewis and their offensive line as a whole. While the unit has remained fairly intact from last season's disappointingly abrupt end to now, their lone major acquisition of veteran guard Gabe Jackson is going to shake things up quite considerably.

"Gabe's going to play on the right side and [Damien Lewis] will be on the left side," Carroll told reporters.

While the topic was fairly glossed over, with the focus of the presser primarily on their work in this past weekend's draft, it's certainly big news for the future of the Seahawks' offensive line moving forward. It's a fairly surprising move, but one that potentially plays to the strengths of the changes expected to be implemented in the team's offense this fall.

Although Mike Solari is returning for his fourth year as Seattle's offensive line coach, the offense will have some fresh voices with new play-caller Shane Waldron at the helm along with run game coordinator Andy Dickerson. It's anticipated the two former Rams coaches will carry over some of the offensive elements they worked with in Los Angeles, such as wide zone runs, which demand more of a lineman's athleticism and lateral mobility.

Jackson, however, has fared much better in a more power-focused scheme like the Seahawks have utilized in the past. In fact, he's downright struggled with the duties of outside zone. While it's still unconfirmed if that is indeed what Waldron and company have in store, it's hard not to wonder if the 6-foot-3, 335-pound guard is actually a proper fit for this offense or a mere result of circumstance after Seattle swung and missed on free agents Kevin Zeitler and Joe Thuney.

What makes this situation all the more curious is the positional history of both Lewis and Jackson. It was assumed Jackson would revert back to left guard, where he put up two of his best years with the Raiders from 2014-2015, but instead he'll stick to the right side. There, he's averaged a career overall grade of 68.2 from Pro Football Focus.

Lewis, on the other hand, was given All-Rookie honors from the Pro Football Writers' Association for his efforts at right guard last year. He also hasn't played left guard at a high level, logging all of his collegiate snaps on the right side as a two-year starter for LSU.

In 2020, Lewis started 16 games at right guard, including playoffs, and once at center. In all, PFF awarded him with a 71.2 overall grade on the back of an 83.5 mark in the run game, though the outlet wasn't very fond of him as a pass blocker (47.0).

Clearly, the Seahawks feel comfortable enough in his ability to make the move. Or, at the very least, they think Jackson is simply better suited to handle the responsibilities of their new scheme on the right side.

Whatever the case may be, this offensive line may appear more different than initially expected. Despite the limited amount of new faces coming into the fold, competition should be aplenty—particularly at the center position sandwiched between Lewis and Jackson.

What appears to be a three-horse race between 2020 starter Ethan Pocic, Kyle Fuller, and undrafted free agent Pier-Olivier Lestage could be the key to the Seahawks' success or demise this fall. Interior offensive line was arguably the biggest need of theirs entering this offseason following a disastrous end to last year's season, and while Jackson is the only noteworthy addition, the Seahawks feel good about where they're at overall.

"We are pleased with where we are," Carroll said. "... I think it's an excellent position for us."

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