The Seattle Seahawks drafted 11 players this year, five of which we know had official pre-draft visits. Nick Emmanwori, Jalen Milroe, Rylie Mills, Tory Horton and finally, Bryce Cabeldue. The Kansas OL has a lot of experience with 50 starts and excellent athletic potential.
Will he be able to compete for the guard spot?
Who is Bryce Cabeldue?
Cabeldue played in high school as a defensive end and left tackle, earning all-state honors on both sides of the ball. He also played basketball and baseball before becoming a 3-star recruit. Most of the offers he received were from Division II. He even received offers to play basketball as well. His best offer until 2020 was an offer from Texas State. Then, he received his only Power-5 offer, committing to Kansas and adding 60 pounds to his 240-pound frame coming out of high school.
He was a four-year starter for the Jayhawks in over 50 games. He played most of his games as a defensive tackle until he was moved to left tackle after Dominic Puni was drafted by the 49ers last year. In 2024, he allowed three sacks and eight pressures in 344 pass-blocking snaps.
Bryce Cabeldue played just five snaps at guard in college, but says his measurements and performance in the East-West Shrine Game have led teams to consider him as a guard. He says that’s all he’s been practicing this offseason and that he feels “pretty comfortable playing guard right now.”
Athleticism
Bryce Cabeldue was the fourth-most explosive player among all offensive linemen in the draft. He wasn’t invited to the NFL Scouting Combine, but he did participate in the Big-12 Pro Day, an event with important teams from the Conference, and he was clearly the best player there.
85th percentile 10-yd split with 1.73s;
96th percentile 40-yd dash;
80th percentile shuttle;
61st percentile 3-cone;
82nd percentile vertical;
94th percentile broad;
76th percentile bench;
In addition to drawing attention at the Big-12 Pro Day, he had an excellent week at the Shrine Bowl. He was one of the highlights of the practices and games.
He’ll face a lot of Seahawks roster competition
Let’s be honest, the Left Guard position is already held by Grey Zabel. So, all that’s left is to fight for the right side of the line, and there’s a lot of competition there.
Anthony Bradford, was a starter even though he was questioned by the fans;
Sataoa Laumea, who took over the starting job when Bradford was placed on IR;
Christian Haynes, a third-round pick who failed to start as a rookie but has high hopes in the new wide-zone scheme;
Josh Jones could still be an option because of his versatility as a G/T;
Could the Seahawks try to move Haynes to center? Would the team be willing to part with Bradford? The likely answer to both questions would be no. That doesn’t help Cabeldue’s case for a starting spot.
Excellent fit for the running game
In addition to being a prolific blocker for the zone run scheme, Cabeldue also has the physicality and aggressive mindset to run the gap.
His arms are short and he should only play guard in the NFL, but he has a lot of upper-body strength and uses that to move opponents.
He received an 81.0 zone-blocking grade last season. This masterfully executed reach block is one of the most important blocks in the scheme and Cabeldue dominates it.
This is one of the hardest blocks to make. It’s basically a reach block at the second level. Cabeldue has the mobility and good angle to beat the LB and make the play happen.
Showing off another of his useful traits for the scheme. He double-teams and advances to the second level, sealing the gap against the LB who has no chance.
Good mobility and notice his eyes “hunting” for targets to block. Excellent processing and ability to adjust during movement.
Work on pass protection
He has a good exit from his stance and a variety of pass sets. Here he threatens a more conservative pass set and three steps later he goes after the defender in a jump set.
Notice that the EDGE’s alignment makes it take him a while to get into Cabeldue’s frame. He remains patient without rushing and gets a good anchor.
He has a very strong grip. This helps maintain his excellent anchoring in pass protection.
He is lining up here against a blitzer and a player much faster than him. The blitzer threatens the inside gap, Cabeldue takes a step inside, but manages to recover and stay in front of the opponent.
Because of his short arms, he needs to be careful not to allow opponents to access his chest and control the snap. Cabeldue still manages to recover during the snap.
The defender’s outstretched arms defeat Cabeldue. He tries to stay engaged and commits what would be a holding in the NFL.
He puts too much weight on his outside foot at times. This ends up being an invitation for pass rushers to attack the inside gap. And
Final Thoughts
His first challenge will be making the roster. As I said above, there will be a lot of competition for the guard spots. I don’t think he has the potential to play center, but his history as an OT can help in an emergency, even if his role in the NFL is really guard, which also helps to eliminate his main weaknesses such as short arms and overcommitting to the outside gap.
To draw a parallel, the Seahawks drafted Sataoa Laumea last year in the sixth round as well. I think Cabeldue comes in with a higher floor and more potential for the future. He was a player who could have left at the end of the fourth round and the Seahawks got him in the sixth.
At worst, the Seahawks got a high-level backup; at best, he could become a solid starter. The big question is that for that to happen, someone will have to leave.
