Seahawks Press

Top Takeaway

Second-year offensive lineman Grey Zabel delivered massive praise for defensive lineman Byron Murphy, candidly admitting that Murphy “whoops” him in one-on-ones every single time. Zabel highlighted that Murphy’s elite leverage, bull rush, and unique knee-drop technique make him nearly impossible to block one-on-one, forcing double teams that will ultimately free up Seattle’s linebackers.

Press Conferences & Interviews

[Grey Zabel / On Heading Into His Second NFL Season] · Source Zabel took the podium with a relaxed, highly candid tone, sharing humorous stories about building fences on his family’s 71-person South Dakota farm this offseason and joking that the hard labor makes him appreciate just playing football. On the football side, he noted that the offensive scheme features quite a bit of carryover from last year, which is helping the unit play fast while they install new twists to attack defensive looks. Zabel gave immense credit to the defensive line, explicitly naming Byron Murphy and Riley Mills as players who instantly expose any flaws in an offensive lineman’s pass set. He also offered a fun behind-the-scenes detail about the Blue Angels flyovers disrupting practice, mentioning that quarterback “Sam” gets frustrated having to constantly repeat play calls over the jet noise.

Reading Between the Lines

While training camp optimism is usually high, Zabel’s frank admission that it’s “not fun” to face a Seattle defensive line that features “like eight guys that can consistently get home” suggests the defensive front is heavily dictating the pace of padded practices right now. Furthermore, the coaching staff’s decision to maintain significant schematic carryover up front is a clear signal that they are prioritizing processing speed and offensive line comfort over a complete ground-up rebuild.