Seattle Seahawks 2008 Season Retrospective: Mansfield Wrotto

by John Morgan on Jul 23, 2009 12:40 PM PDT

Overview: Mansfield Wrotto played in seven games and started four. He finished the season starting at right guard. Stats Inc. credits with him no sacks allowed, but Wrotto was called for one false start and three holds.

What went right: Wrotto is powerful and mean as hell. He has an explosive hand punch and will-to-hurt that grades out better than his actual blocking. Agile in a big man way, Wrotto is nimble in a phone booth and smooth and graceful enough to pull into space. There his power supplements his rudimentary technique and he can bash linebackers and defensive backs without having the best positioning or timing.

What went wrong: Which is to say Wrotto has a lot of talent, but not a lot of skill. He's periodically slow off the snap and too often searches for his assignment after the snap. He doesn't react well to misdirection and is a cape-like blockade against blitzes -- all veronica and no faena. Wrotto does not execute plays well and is best equipped to seek and smash without greater complexities like where, how and when.

Outlook: Wrotto is a good kind of reserve: cheap, talented and young. He made significant strides between his rookie season and 2008. So there's potential, time and reason to believe he's capable of fulfilling his potential. On the bench. Pass blocking is essential even by guards, and Wrotto cannot yet adequately pass block. To say Wrotto cannot yet adequately pass block is to say Wrotto is bad, is an exploitable weakness, and is incapable of doing his duty that is most important to Seattle winning. So he should sit and learn, and the Seahawks faithful should hope he can continue to make strides like he already has and learn to maul pass rushers as effectively as he already mauls run stuffers.

Tweet Comment 11 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Sounds great to me.

He was a DT in most of college, so we are discussing his rookie year(2nd year on the OL) to sophomore year(3rd year on the OL) making enough improvements to keep him. With these improvements I am hopeful that by year 4(next season) we can hand the reins over to him at one of the OG spots while re-signing him to an increased(but still relatively inexpensive) contract extension.

by cashless on Jul 23, 2009 1:05 PM PDT reply actions

"all veronica and no faena"

Whooooosh! (Sound of reference going over my head)

by Groundhog on Jul 23, 2009 1:14 PM PDT reply actions

Not a reference really

Both are bullfighting moves. Roughly, the veronica is this

while the faena involves this

by John Morgan on Jul 23, 2009 1:20 PM PDT up reply actions

Not enough Hemingway in my diet.

by Groundhog on Jul 23, 2009 4:17 PM PDT up reply actions

I tried to be a Hemingway hater

and then I read him.

by John Morgan on Jul 23, 2009 5:20 PM PDT up reply actions

How did his "last" book stack up?

by Groundhog on Jul 23, 2009 6:05 PM PDT up reply actions

I haven't read any of his posthumous stuff.

by John Morgan on Jul 23, 2009 6:10 PM PDT up reply actions

Which "last" book?

I liked A Moveable Feast (his Paris memoirs) very much. Apparently there’s a “newly revised” edition coming out that you shouldn’t bother with. I haven’t read any of his other posthumous works.

by thebyron on Jul 24, 2009 7:49 AM PDT up reply actions

_True at First Light_

Or Under Kilimanjaro.

Appropriately, Under Kilimanjaro and A Moveable Feast tie nicely back into the Wrotto description.

by Groundhog on Jul 24, 2009 10:45 AM PDT up reply actions

Nicely done.

by thebyron on Jul 24, 2009 2:28 PM PDT up reply actions

I really like Wrotto.

Wrotto seems to have great upside and if he is given the time to learn he may be a starter in 2-3 years. He seems to have the run blocking down, but as Mr. Morgan said, his pass blocking still needs work (alot). The one bad part is by the time he is ready to start will he still be a Seahawk, I really hope so, I think he has the potential to be a very good guard down the road.

by JustinWF on Jul 23, 2009 4:05 PM PDT reply actions