Coaching camp is underway for the Seattle Seahawks, that means the football-like substance often known as the preseason is simply across the nook. It’s time for followers to get enthusiastic about their favourite gamers, eager for the upcoming season and start to dream of hoisting a Lombardi in February.
Nonetheless, there’s plenty of soccer to be performed between now and the Tremendous Bowl, together with the primary day of coaching camp for the Seahawks Wednesday, which implies it’s camp reporting season and getting excited and labored up over the smallest of particulars. Corresponding to wrist protectors.
In that image, offensive lineman Jalen Sundell is seen sporting velcro strap wrist protectors in lieu of the normal wrist taping like first spherical choose Gray Zabel standing subsequent to him. That is removed from an earth shattering improvement, however it brings the dialog round to one thing that could be price watching throughout coaching camp, which is which offensive linemen go for the velcro wrist protectors quite than conventional tape.
To assist clarify the relevance, here’s a image of Olu Oluwatimi from late within the 2024 season.
Photograph by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Pictures
And right here he’s through the 2023 season.
Photograph by Steph Chambers/Getty Pictures
Digging again to the Senior Bowl in early 2023, Oluwatimi is as soon as once more sporting the velcro protector on his snapping hand aspect.
Photograph by Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire through Getty Pictures
Similar to he did at Michigan in 2022.
Photograph by Wealthy Graessle/Icon Sportswire through Getty Pictures
And as a member of the Virginia Cavaliers through the 2021 season.
Photograph by Brandon Sloter/Icon Sportswire through Getty Pictures
Nonetheless, Oluwatimi didn’t put on one in 2020.
Photograph by Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Pictures
Nor did he put on one through the 2019 season.
Photograph by Mark Brown/Getty Pictures
So, Oluwatimi, who took over because the beginning heart for Virginia in 2019 and has been on the place for the Cavs, Wolverines and Seahawks within the years since, has worn a velcro wrist protector at the least way back to his redshirt sophomore season in 2021. That, in and of itself, is just not exceptional.
The place it turns into noteworthy, although, is watching which different members of the Seattle offensive line have begun sporting the wrist protector versus merely taping their wrist. Particularly, bringing the dialogue again to the middle place and the image of Sundell and Zabel from above, right here is Sundell in faculty with each wrists taped.
Photograph by Christopher Hook/Icon Sportswire through Getty Pictures
In distinction, right here is Sundell through the 2024 preseason for the Seahawks.
Photograph by Rio Giancarlo/Getty Pictures
And on the sector throughout his lone begin as a rookie through the common season.
Photograph by Steph Chambers/Getty Pictures
Now, a participant sporting protecting wrist straps through the 2024 season after which sporting them throughout coaching camp in 2025 is actually not groundbreaking. It’s price paying attention to, given the arrival of a brand new teaching workers for the place group, however it’s not something to get overly labored up about.
Nonetheless, it does increase an fascinating query: If each of the highest two facilities on the roster are sporting the identical type, or at the least related, wrist protectors, then it’s at the least price investigating if another members of the roster are sporting the identical. Coming again to the identical image of Zabel and Sundell from the highest of the put up, it’s a unfavourable on Zabel.
Abe Lucas has worn the protectors since at the least his rookie season after not sporting them in faculty, however for a lot of the remainder of the offensive line they had been nowhere to be seen on the primary day of coaching camp.
Photograph by Christopher Mast/Getty Pictures
From the images taken through the Wednesday observe that the Seahawks revealed on their web site, right here’s a rundown of the offensive linemen pictured and whether or not they had been sporting wrist protectors.
Bryce Cabeldue: No
Mason Richman: No
Charles Cross: No
Oluwatimi: Sure
Sundell: Sure
Lucas: Sure
Christian Haynes: No
Michael Jerrell: No
Sataoa Laumea: No
That is clearly removed from scientific and small pattern caveats and all that, however it could appear that those that play heart usually tend to go for the protector quite than tape.
What may be very fascinating, although, and could also be price keeping track of by way of coaching camp is Christian Haynes. As famous above, he was not sporting the wrist protector throughout Seahawks observe Wednesday, however the Seahawks did publish an image of Haynes getting reps at heart with what seems to be the second crew offense (Image 134/166, for many who don’t have the endurance to sift by way of all of the images).
That is in distinction to at the least one observe through the offseason program, the place Haynes was pictured sporting the wrist protector on his snapping hand whereas taking reps at heart.
What does it imply for the competitors up entrance? At this level, completely nothing as a result of followers will merely interpret it nevertheless they please.
In the meanwhile, it’s simply one of many little issues so as to add to the record of particulars to look at within the coming weeks throughout camp. Possibly it’s nothing, or possibly it proves to be a type of little particulars that sheds mild on the state of the competitors on the spots on the inside of the offensive line as time passes.
Proper now, all it’s is one thing price submitting away behind the thoughts.