Noah Fant Excited to Play in Seahawks' Tight End 'Favorable' Offensive Scheme

With multiple play callers calling the shots, tight ends have often become forgotten in Seattle's passing attack in recent seasons. But as he begins the second act of his NFL career, Fant sees that changing in a big way thanks to a scheme that caters well to the position.

RENTON, WA - Less than a month after joining the Seahawks as part of a blockbuster trade sending quarterback Russell Wilson to the Broncos, tight end Noah Fant had yet to practice or work out at his new team's facility.

But on April 13, even before seeing him on the field a single time, general manager John Schneider and Seattle's front office demonstrated their faith in Fant as a major part of their post-Wilson future by picking up his fifth-year option. While he didn't delve into all of the details of his phone conversation with Schneider following Thursday's fifth OTA session, he expressed gratitude to the organization for believing in him and wanting him around long-term.

“I was excited about it. Obviously, that was a huge testament," Fant said. "It kind of showed their faith in me. The only time I saw them was when I came in for my physical, but that was really cool to be a part of, getting a call from [John] Schneider, and just kind of talking about the plans and stuff. It was something that was really cool, and I'll cherish for sure.”

Nearly two months after Fant became the first player to have his fifth-year option exercised by Schneider, the Seahawks have finally had a chance to see their new weapon on the field during the final phase of their offseason program. While little can be gleaned from "fake football" practices as coach Pete Carroll calls them, the fifth-year tight end has flashed the athleticism and soft hands that made him both a first-round pick in 2019 and a desirable asset to acquire in 2022.

Already familiar with quarterback Drew Lock, who came to Seattle with him in the trade and completed 74 passes to him over the past three years in Denver, Fant has been working on developing chemistry with Geno Smith, the other returning veteran competing to replace Wilson. In Tuesday's practice, he high-pointed a goal line fade pass from Smith in the back left-hand corner of the end zone and hauled it in for a touchdown against tight coverage, at least by OTA standards.

From the outset, Fant has been impressed by Smith's leadership and communication skills and as evidenced by his touchdown reception two days earlier, the two already seem to be hitting it off.

“Not being around Geno before, I think first thing coming in, I noticed that he's a leader," Fant commented. "You could tell that he's a guy that's been in the league for a long time, very smart, likes to communicate with guys, whether it be on the field, in the locker room, just likes talking to guys getting to know you. So I feel like the whole team has welcomed me with open arms, including Geno, and that's been something that's been really cool to be a part of.”

Away from building a rapport with Smith, Fant's top priority during these non-contact, controlled practices in May and June remains focused on mastering offensive coordinator Shane Waldron's system. While he believes it's the most complex scheme he's played in due to the verbiage and terminology, he views that as a positive for a number of reasons.

For one, Fant has appreciated how Waldron and the rest of Seattle's staff hold players accountable and emphasize attention to detail in their coaching, which has helped sharpen the process of learning a new offense and improved his knowledge of the game. He has seen that pay dividends for Lock acclimating with his new team as well.

But most importantly, at least based on his early impressions of the scheme, Fant loves how "favorable" Waldron's offense is for tight ends. Featuring extensive pre-snap motion, 12 personnel groupings, and an emphasis on play action passing, he sees some parallels to the offense he and Lock played in as rookies with the Broncos as well as the balanced schemes deployed by two NFC West rivals.

“Definitely more complex, which is a good thing, a lot more ways to move around, a lot more ways to get guys open, which is really cool to see," Fant stated. "I definitely think it's very similar to the offense we've been in before. I see hints of 49ers, hints of Rams, hints of different teams in there that Coach Waldron has kind of made it into his own and made it something that's really cool to be a part of. So I'm excited to be in this offense. I think I can do some good things in it, and we'll see what happens.”

When asked why his system caters well to the position, Waldron smiled, telling reporters that having a talented player such as Fant, who has 1,905 yards and 10 touchdowns on his resume, at his disposal makes it easier to have a "tight end friendly" offense. It also doesn't hurt having an experienced, well-rounded starter in Will Dissly and an athletic, pass-catching 6-foot-7 tight end like Colby Parkinson available to utilize in a variety of ways as well.

Given the depth and versatility Seattle has amassed at the position with several players possessing differing skill sets and strengths, even after losing Gerald Everett in free agency, Waldron feels the group provides him immense flexibility as a play caller and he's eager to see how things shake out.

“The group of guys right now can do a little bit of everything, so the more tight ends can do, the more chances we can move them around and not necessarily just have to line them up in a static inline position and give them a chance to move around and present different looks for a defense," Waldron explained. "We've got guys between Will Dissly and Colby Parkinson. Noah's joined the mix now, and Tyler Mabry that can all do a little bit of everything. So in that regard, it makes it friendly for the tight end, I think, in terms of getting out in the pass game, helping out in the run game, doing a little bit of everything, not necessarily just one thing.”

While Fant and Waldron's comments may seem like a breath of fresh air, the reality is that the Seahawks have struggled to maximize tight ends in the passing game for several years running. Since Jimmy Graham departed after the 2017 season, the team has not had a single player at the position eclipse 500 receiving yards in a season. Aside from Everett setting a career-best with 478 yards a year ago, Jacob Hollister is the only other tight end in the past four seasons to surpass 300 yards.

But for skeptical fans who feel they have heard this song before only for the notes to fall flat and tight ends to remain underutilized, coming from the same coaching tree as Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay, Waldron undoubtedly wants Fant and his counterparts to be a major part of the passing game. For Seattle's offense to be effective and efficient next season, getting them more involved will be critical to sustaining drives and moving the chains.

And in an odd way, if there's a potential positive to the quarterback change, Smith and Lock should be more aggressive attacking the middle of the field than Wilson ever was for the Seahawks. Though results in OTAs must be taken with a large grain of salt, that has already become apparent over the past couple of weeks on the practice field.

While he acknowledged there's still much left for him to learn before the season starts in September, Fant loves his fit in Waldron's offense and with his fifth-year option exercised, he will have ample time to grow in the system. Off to an excellent start, he's confident the tight end group will have a far greater impact than they have had in recent seasons and he couldn't be happier with his new surroundings playing in a scheme he believes will best accentuate his talents.

"That's where it kind of gets a little bit touchy is you have to know what you're doing. You have to know conceptually of what's going on. But once you get that down, the options are endless of what you can do, which is exactly what I want to be in.”