Here's a daily position-by-position look at where things stand for the Seattle Seahawks heading into organized team activities, minicamp and training camp this summer.
Offensive line
Clearly, this is the team's biggest concern area with two starters gone from last season (center Max Unger and left guard James Carpenter) and another starter (right guard Justin Britt) beginning his second NFL season.
"I look at it like it's a start-over job," said Seattle offensive line coach Tom Cable on 710 ESPN Seattle radio. "You have to take the opportunity to start over with the group and retrain everybody like you're putting a new group together."
Center: Likely starter –- Patrick Lewis. Contending backups -- Lemuel Jeanpierre, Kristjan Sokoli.
It was a bit of a surprise the Seahawks didn't draft an actual center. They selected Buffalo defensive tackle Sokoli in the sixth round and are moving him to center.
"When I first asked Kristjan if he would switch, he said he would rather play defense," Cable said on 710 radio. "I said, 'OK, but I didn't ask you what you'd rather do. I asked if you're willing to do it.' When we worked him out later, he said he would do whatever he can do to play in the NFL, so I knew where he heart was."
Sokoli (6-foot-4, 300 pounds) is a gifted athlete, but a long way from being ready to play center effectively in the NFL. It will take time, which must mean the Seahawks coaches have a lot of confidence in Lewis.
Guards: Likely starters -- Alvin Bailey at LG and J.R. Sweezy at RG. Contending backups -- Terry Poole, Mark Glowinski, Kona Schwenke.
Bailey lost 30 pounds in the offseason to get down to his actual playing weight of 320. Obviously, he's serious about taking over as the starter for Carpenter, who signed with the Jets. Poole, a fourth-round pick from San Diego State, will battle at the LG spot. He played OT in college.
Sweezy is starting his fourth NFL season and is locked in unless something surprising happens. Glowinski, also a fourth-round pick this year, is the most fundamentally sound rookie for the Seahawks, and the strongest. Schwenke was a DT at Notre Dame who is moving to the OL. Jeanpierre also can play either guard spot.
Tackles: Likely starters -- Russell Okung and LT and Britt at RT. Contending backups -- Garry Gilliam, Jesse Davis.
Not much doubt about the starters here. Okung is one of the better LTs in the NFL and Britt will continue to improve after starting every regular-season game as a rookie. The coaches are high on Gilliam, a rookie last season who played tight end most of his career at Penn State. Cable also really likes Davis, a rookie out of Idaho who played the defensive line his first two years in college. Poole also could move to tackle.
