Seahawks hiring experienced NFL offensive line coach to replace Scott Huff

Another offensive line coach is joining Mike Macdonald's staff.

SEATTLE, WA - DECEMBER 2: Offensive Line Coach John Benton of the San Francisco 49ers talks with the offensive line on the sideline during the game against the Seattle Seahawks at CenturyLink Field on December 2, 2018 in Seattle, Washington. The Seahawks defeated the 49ers 43-16. | (Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images)

The biggest x-factor for the Seattle Seahawks going into the 2024 NFL season was whether or not offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb could overcome one of the worst offensive lines in the league. If Grubb had been able to scheme his way around it, it's anybody's guess how far this team might have gone in the playoffs.

However, the answer to that question turned out to be a resounding no. Try as he might, former Washington offensive line coach Scott Huff couldn't coach up this group to an adequate level and Grubb's scheme quickly became almost totally reliant on Geno Smith making magic happen while under constant pressure.

The results were predictably bad, and now both Grubb and Huff are out of the picture. Yesterday we learned Grubb is joining Kaelin Deboer in Alabama, and now according to Tom Pelissero at NFL Network, the Seahawks are hiring long-time NFL offensive line coach John Benton to fill Huff's role.

Benton got his start as a coach as a graduate assistant at Colorado State back in 1987. He also spent time at Cal, but most of his career has been as an offensive line coach for several NFL teams. That list includes the then-St. Louis Rams, the Houston Texans, the Miami Dolphins, the Jacksonville Jaguars, the San Francisco 49ers, the New York Jets and most recently the New Orleans Saints, where he was paired with new Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.

Clearly head coach Mike Macdonald wanted to go with a more experienced hand here compared to Huff, who had no prior work at the pro level. While that's a good idea in theory, by now Seahawks fans should know that the players on the field matter more than who's coaching them. The organization has gone through several different offensive line coaches since John Schneider became general manager and exactly none of them have managed to produce a quality unit.

Benton has his work cut out for him - and unless Schneider manages to find him some upgrades he'll likely be another failure in this position.

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