Seattle, WA
‘We Thought About 12’: Seattle Seahawks GM Explains Decision to Roster 11 O-Linemen
At first, the Seattle Seahawks keeping 11 offensive linemen on their initial 53-man roster was a shock. It’s a position group in flux following a poor season-long performance in 2023 followed by an injection of young talent this offseason — a few of whom may take a few years to develop.
But general manager John Schneider and head coach Mike Macdonald understood the risks of waiving any of their young, on-the-bubble big men. Offensive linemen are a premium position in the NFL, and the performance of all five men at each spot can make or break an offense.
Take rookie sixth-round pick Michael Jerrell, for example. Jerrell is a 6-4, 309-pound tackle who runs a 4.96 40-yard dash and started 40 games from 2021–23 at the University of Findlay — an NCAA Division II school. His athletic traits and testing stack up with some of the top prospects who competed at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Jerrell may be less polished and could take longer to adjust to the opposing talent level in the NFL. Still, he is a prospect multiple other teams could be interested in claiming off waivers if he were to be left to the madness of final cutdown day.
When speaking to local media following the first practice after cutdowns on Tuesday, Jerrell was honest about the difficulties of adjusting to the NFL, stating “There was a rough start at the beginning.” He leaned on veteran tackle George Fant, who helped him slow the game down. His confidence wasn’t shaken.
“I’ve always felt like I belong from the day I got my number called,” Jerrell said.
The Seahawks didn’t want to risk losing athletes like Jerrell and some of the other young linemen on Seattle’s initial roster like undrafted rookie center Jalen Sundell and rookie sixth-round guard Sataoa Laumea.
“We thought about 12, and that’s just the landscape of what the National Football League looks like; not just the National Football League, it’s college football,” Schneider told local media on Wednesday. “It’s not a position of great depth, and you need a whole group of guys working as one, so you need to continue to keep trying to figure it out. I think there are several teams that kept 11, maybe 12.”
It’s not the first time Schneider has kept double-digit offensive linemen on the initial roster. Just three years ago, in 2021, Seattle also kept 11 men in the trenches after training camp. They have kept nine each of the last two seasons, and that’s been the most common number Schneider and Seattle have gone with since he became the general manager in 2010. Seattle has kept 10 offensive linemen five times in that span.
As expected, Schneider said there will be more roster movement before Week 1. Now that cutdowns are over and practice squads are assembled, it will be easier for the Seahawks to elevate players and waive others without losing them to other teams.
Seattle’s offensive line has been a revolving door both on the field and in who holds starting positions for the last decade — mostly since the team traded former All-Pro center Max Unger to the New Orleans Saints in 2014 in return for tight end Jimmy Graham, which didn’t work out as planned.
The new faces, the addition of veteran center Connor Williams and the potential rise of 2022 first-round tackle Charles Cross have Seattle hoping to halt that trend.
“It’s a position where it’s a mentality position; it’s a unit, it’s a group,” Schneider said. “Usually, you could see guys that are like Pro Bowl players and difference makers, and they might be the only real talented guys in the group. It’s a position that you have to have a specific skill set, you have to have a specific mentality. You have to be coached in a specific way, but then you also have to be able to work together … you have to have that continuity, and it’s rare to have that continuity.”
Every offensive lineman Seattle has drafted since 2021 remains with the team, with tackle Stone Forsythe now being the longest-tenured member (sixth round, 208th overall). But, in a few more years, Schneider wants set-and-forget players in the trenches who have been with the team long enough to develop as a unit.
“When we were in Green Bay, we were blessed to have five guys that played together for 10 years,” Schneider added, “and then three or four of them developed and became Pro Bowl-caliber players, so it’s a function of the whole group.”
Anyone waiting for the ferry, taking a stroll along the revamped Seattle waterfront or visiting the Seattle Aquarium just got a new option for finding a sweet treat: Ben & Jerry’s is coming to Pier 54.
A lease announcement last week shared that the new shop will be operated by local franchise owners Lance and Moria Blair, owners of the Green Lake and Gig Harbor Ben & Jerry’s locations. They pair is also opening another Seattle location in Northgate soon.
The permanent shop announcement comes after Ben & Jerry’s operated a pop-up at the waterfront location last simmer.
“As a Seattle native, the waterfront holds a special place in my heart,” Lance Blair said in a news release. “I could not be more excited to be a part of bringing Ben & Jerry’s to Pier 54 and continue building connections with the local community while serving visitors from around the world.”
The new location comes as local ice cream chains Molly Moon’s and Salt & Straw have also expanded into the downtown area in the past year.
Where is the new Ben & Jerry’s location?
The new Ben & Jerry’s is located at Pier 54 on the Seattle Waterfront: 1001 Alaskan Way, Seattle, WA 98104.
The shop will be open Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Where are the other Ben & Jerry’s locations in Seattle?
The ice cream chain operates four other locations in the Seattle area:
- Alki Beach: 2742 Alki Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98116
- Bellevue: 166 Bellevue Way NE Bellevue, WA 98004
- Green Lake: 7900 E Green Lake Drive N Suite 104, Seattle, WA 98103
- Kirkland: 176 Lake Street South, Kirkland, WA 98033
How many locations does Ben & Jerry’s have in Washington?
Ben & Jerry’s has ten locations across Washington, including two in Issaquah and three in the Spokane area. See the full list of locations at benjerry.com/ice-cream-near-me.
Zachary Fletcher is a trending news reporter with USA TODAY Network’s Washington state team. Keep up with him on X (@zdfletch), BlueSky (@zfletcher.bsky.social) or reach him at zfletcher@usatodayco.com.
Seattle, WA
VIDEO: Mayor Wilson proposes renewing, expanding Seattle Transit Measure by doubling the sales-tax percentage that funds it.
Through the end of this year, 0.15% of the sales tax you pay funds the voter-approved Seattle Transit Measure. That would double to 0.30% if the City Council and Seattle voters approve the renewal/expansion that Mayor Katie Wilson officially introduced this afternoon. She said it’ll make living in Seattle more affordable by enabling more people to “live car-free or car-light.” She acknowledged that raising the sales tax isn’t ideal but noted that it’s one of the few revenue-raising tools available under state law. Besides paying for more transit – 280,000 additional Metro bus trips a year, 100,000 more than the current measure funds – it also would pay for 22,000 free ORCA transit passes, more than double what the city provides now, said acting SDOT director Angela Brady during the announcement event at City Hall. The passes are now available to Seattle Promise scholars, low-income Seattle Preschool Program families, and Seattle Housing Authority residents. The measure’s renewal/expansion would also make those passes available to Housing Choice Voucher participants.
The mayor’s announcement says the Transit Measure isn’t just about buses: It also would “support the design and delivery of Sound Transit’s West Seattle Link Extension, Ballard Link Extension, and Graham Street Station.” The 0.30% sales tax would generate an estimated $138 million average per year for the 10 years of this measure, which is proposed to go to voters in November. Council review starts this Thursday and will be led by District 1 City Councilmember Rob Saka, who chairs the council committee that oversees transportation. We’ll add the specific text of the proposal when we get it; the slide deck for Thursday’s council meeting is now available, and we’ll add some highlights from that soon.
SEATTLE — With less than two weeks before Seattle hosts matches during the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup, Seattle City Council Public Safety Committee Chair Bob Kettle is escalating his criticism of Mayor Katie Wilson’s decision not to activate newly installed CCTV cameras in the Stadium District and suggesting she is violating established law.
In a sharply worded letter sent Monday, Kettle argues that the mayor’s decision to pause activation of the city’s Technology-Assisted Public Safety Pilot Program is inconsistent with city law and the ordinances approved by the Seattle City Council.
RELATED | Mayor Wilson hosts discussion on surveillance and security, takes questions from public
“I believe that she is not operating according to the ordinances, the law with respect to the stadium ordinances, and her duties under the charter,” Kettle said in an interview on Tuesday.
The dispute centers on 22 CCTV cameras that have already been installed in and around Seattle’s Stadium District but remain inactive as city leaders debate privacy concerns and the circumstances under which the system should be used.
Kettle said the approaching World Cup is what prompted him to send the letter.
“Basically, we’re less than two weeks out from the World Cup, and we’re not ready,” Kettle said. “We have capacity with these stadium cameras, they’re up, they’re installed, but they’re not turned on.”
In his letter, Kettle argues that the council already approved the surveillance technology through council-approved ordinances, specifically outlining the limited circumstances under which the program can be paused.
According to Kettle, those conditions include situations where the city is compelled to release camera data for civil immigration enforcement, gender-affirming care investigations, or reproductive healthcare matters, or when city leaders determine the technology is being used for those purposes.
RELATED | City leaders say Seattle ready for World Cup, despite concerns with surveillance, drones
“Neither condition has occurred that would merit a temporary program pause,” Kettle wrote.
The councilmember contends that the Seattle Municipal Code and the approved surveillance impact report provide no authority for the mayor to indefinitely delay the program’s implementation beyond those specified exceptions.
The mayor’s office has defended its position, saying activation decisions will be guided by public safety experts and intelligence assessments ahead of the World Cup.
“Mayor Wilson continues to consult public safety officials regarding circumstances that might warrant use of the expanded set of cameras during the FIFA World Cup,” the mayor’s office said in a previous statement. “We appreciate councilmembers’ perspectives, and those will be part of ongoing discussions.”
The previous statement continued:
“With regard to credible threats: Identifying a credible threat involves multiple experts from federal, state, and local agencies monitoring and assessing various streams of information. In collaboration with one another, they weigh incoming intelligence and jointly recommend whether to elevate security operations. Mayor Wilson’s decision whether to activate the Stadium District cameras will be informed by this group’s recommendation.”
The mayor’s office has been asked if there is a change in perspective given Kettle’s letter. In a new statement obtained by KOMO News on Tuesday, the mayor’s office said Wilson’s position remains “unchanged.”
“Per our legal review, we believe council has the authority to pause the use of adopted surveillance technology but cannot require its use,” the mayor’s office said in Tuesday’s statement. “The Mayor is ensuring that our use of surveillance technology is protective of civil rights, liberties, and privacy and provides sufficient data privacy safeguards. The Mayor has a duty to make sure our use of these technologies is responsible.”
Kettle argues that waiting for a specific threat before activating the cameras misunderstands modern security planning.
SEE ALSO | Seattle mayor’s verbal missteps prompt national and viral attention, leadership questions
“There are credible concerns,” Kettle said, citing worries about drones and other security issues surrounding a major international event.
He pointed to examples, including the 1996 Atlanta Olympic bombing and the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, arguing that public officials often do not receive advance warning before attacks occur.
“This idea that you’re going to get a credible threat warning is not right. It’s not the professional standard,” Kettle said. “The 22 cameras are installed, they’re ready to go, they just need to be turned on.”
Opponents of the camera expansion have raised concerns that footage could potentially be sought by federal immigration authorities or used in ways that conflict with Seattle’s sanctuary city policies.
Kettle dismissed those concerns, arguing that the council built extensive safeguards into the legislation governing the cameras.
“We don’t have facial recognition,” Kettle said, noting the city established restrictions and oversight measures as part of the technology program.
He also argued that federal agencies have their own surveillance capabilities and do not need Seattle’s camera network to conduct enforcement operations.
Kettle said he sought legal guidance before sending the letter and believes the mayor’s decision is inconsistent with the ordinances governing the program.
“I asked the question, if Mayor Harrell had to do all this in terms of ordinances, why is it that Mayor Wilson does not?” Kettle said. He said attorneys reviewing the issue identified concerns centered on the language governing when the program may be “paused.”
While Kettle stopped short of calling for legal action against the mayor, he said he wanted to publicly highlight what he views as a conflict between the administration’s actions and council-approved law.
“Her move related to the pause is not right, and essentially a violation,” Kettle said.
Kettle said Seattle is the only one of the 11 World Cup host cities that does not have its full camera system operational and warned that the city is running out of time.
“We have to take action now to get ourselves ready for the World Cup,” he said. “That is ensuring that we have all the pieces in place, and that we’re using the capacities that we have to their full ability.”
Kettle said he was scheduled to meet with members of the mayor’s team on Tuesday and hopes a resolution can be reached before the first World Cup matches arrive in Seattle.
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