Drafting offensive wingers often rarely creates widespread excitement among the NFL fan base.
Seahawks preseason observation
But, given the long-term problems Seattle Seahawks face in the gamblers, Northwest Pacific fans spent their first-round picks this spring on highly touted offensive winger Gray Zabel.
Zabel impressed in his first NFL action challenge.
Zabel, expected to be Seattle’s first week left-back, played the first two offensive series in his preseason opener against the Las Vegas Raiders Thursday night. The 6-foot-6-foot, 316-pound North Dakota product earned the outstanding 81.2 professional football focus, the fourth-highest Seahawks offense.
Zabel appears to have performed well in preventing the Raiders' first-string defensive tackle, Jonah Laulu, from passing protection, including a special game, who was completely trapped in a bad swim attempt at Laulu. Zabel is also a force in running competitions, and the rookie's fourth-round defensive end Tonka Hemingway once entered the ground.
On Friday morning, Zabel's drama earned him acclaim from NFL network analyst Brian Baldinger, who was one of the “Baldy's Crash” on social media (watch here).
“Boy, his debut,” said former NFL offensive winger Bardinger. “He's a pit fan. He just stays on you until you hit the ground and he rolls onto your top. … Once he sticks with you, he won't leave you.
“Okay, how long do you need, lock the lock? Do you need 3 seconds? Do you need 4 seconds? How long do you need? I will give you the time as long as you need to be here. … He did a great job last night. He was awesome last night. He was very fun.
Baldinger then sent a message to Seahawks fans.
“Everyone deserves the Zabel jersey,” Baldina said. “Start buy them now. They're going to fly to the shelves. This guy is going to crash every week. I can tell it already.”
More information about the Seattle Seahawks
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•Stacy’s Seahawk Takeaway: Outstanding People, Pete, Marshawn, More
•Pete and Geno on returning to Seattle with the Raiders
•Pete Carroll crashes John Schneider's pre-match interview
•Bump and Stacey: The Seahawks should engage in the Mika Parsons trade