RENTON, Wash. – Playing in his first game in nearly a full calendar year, the Seattle Seahawks weren’t going to simply throw Abraham Lucas to the wolves against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, placing him on a pitch count to ensure he made it through the game without a hitch.
But as the game wore on, though the third-year right tackle had his share of hiccups shaking off the rust after a lengthy layoff following knee surgery, Lucas exceeded expectations and then some, including in the stamina department. Logging more than 40 offensive snaps in his 2024 debut, nearly a quarter of those plays came in crunch time late in the fourth quarter as Seattle finished off a stirring comeback with an 11-play, 80-yard touchdown drive to snag a 20-17 win in Santa Clara.
With Lucas only having three weeks of practice time leading up to the game, Seahawks offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb couldn’t have been more impressed by how he handled his first game action and seemed to grow stronger as the game progressed.
“He’s got the right demeanor. On the sideline it was noticeable, his intent and mindset,” Grubb said of Lucas on Thursday. “He’s a very intense guy, loves playing. It was great to have him back. I was actually really impressed with his ability to sustain on that last drive. I know that was hard, and just when you get into longer drives like that, if you’re not in game shape yet, it’s certainly tough. It speaks a little bit to his demeanor and the type of mindset that he does have.
“But he played great. He didn’t play perfect, but, yeah, we were all really impressed. I think moving forward he’s going to be a big time difference maker for us.”
Returning to action after missing Seattle’s first nine games, Lucas wasn’t exactly given a soft landing spot for his season debut going against a familiar and formidable foe. Matched up against star pass rusher Nick Bosa, who he had battled against four times previously, he allowed a sack on Geno Smith in the first half when the former All-Pro beat him upfield and bent around the edge to collapse down on the quarterback in the pocket.
But aside from that mistake, which could be partially attributed to running back Zach Charbonnet failing to help pick Bosa up in pass protection in the backfield, Lucas played a mostly clean game in pass protection. Per Pro Football Focus, he only allowed two pressures on 28 pass blocking snaps, receiving a quality 73.4 grade despite his pass blocking efficiency rate falling below 95 percent, holding up quite well down the stretch as Smith took off for two long runs to ice the win.
Bringing much-needed physicality back to Seattle’s offensive line, Lucas also stood out in the run game, creating significant push on the first play from scrimmage to help spring Ken Walker III for a six-yard carry. He dished out a pair of pancakes over the course of the game, driving opponents into the ground with the punishing, aggressive style that endeared him to teammates during his standout rookie year two seasons ago.
It was a far cry from last season when Lucas missed all but six games due to a troublesome knee and looked like a shell of his normal self when he did suit up, lacking the ability to drive defenders off the ball or finish blocks with his usual authority and tenacity.
As Grubb noted, Lucas wasn’t close to being perfect, as the long layoff contributed to a few whiffs on blocks and inconsistent hand usage and footwork at the point of attack among other things. Such issues should be anticipated for a player who didn’t have an offseason program, training camp, or preseason due to an extended rehab that lasted more than 10 months.
But even as Lucas works to get his legs back underneath him in a process that will take several games and require patience from the team in regard to practice workload, there’s no question his return already has made a dramatic difference for the Seahawks, who lost his replacement George Fant to a knee injury in the season opener and were down to their fourth-string right tackle in rookie Mike Jerrell in recent weeks. Pairing him with new starting center Olu Oluwatimi in the starting lineup could give the team stability and continuity up front it has sorely lacked all season long.
Assuming Lucas avoids any further setbacks, he should only get stronger in coming weeks, with Grubb indicating that his pitch count likely will be abandoned starting in Sunday’s matchup against Arizona with Seattle fully cutting him loose and letting him “go out there and eat.” Whether it’s Smith or Walker or another skill player in the backfield, there couldn’t be better news for the offensive line moving into the final seven weeks of the regular season with the NFC West still up for grabs.
