Seahawks bringing Mike Iupati back

Monday the Seattle Seahawks announced they had resigned Neiko Thorpe, which is not unsurprising given the calendar. The offseason program for NFL teams that do not have a new head coach starts on April 15, and with the Hawks set to play their eleventh consecutive season under head coach Pete Carroll, that includes the team. As in years past, that means that lower priority players who have been allowed to explore their market in free agency are signed right around now. That explains why the team announced the Thorpe move on Monday, and then on Tuesday the news continued.

The return of Mike Iupati gives the Seahawks four of five starters from the 2019 line under contract, along with Duane Brown, Justin Britt and D.J. Fluker. Add in free agent Brandon Shell at right tackle, and it appears that the 2020 Seattle offensive line could be much the same line as the team had in 2021. Obviously it’s a group that dealt with injuries this past season, but with the core now set to return for this upcoming season, it appears as though the team will have the chance for much of the continuity it was looking for.

In any case, it’s another interior offensive lineman on the roster, after also adding free agents Chance Warmack and B.J. Finney, which means the camp battle for the guard and center spots should be interesting. Whether 2017 and 2018 draft picks Ethan Pocic and Jamarco Jones will be able to maintain a roster spot after the team has now added another interior offensive lineman to the mix remains to be seen, but the writing on the wall certainly seems to be that their time in Seattle could be limited.