Story by
Seahawks Flipped Grey Zabel to Right Guard and Paid for It. Brian Fleury Already Has the Fix
- Story by
- Seahawks Flipped Grey Zabel to Right Guard and Paid for It. Brian Fleury Already Has the Fix
Grey Zabel spent his rookie season and the first seven games of 2026 at left guard. Monday night, four snaps into Jeffery Simmons' first game with the Chicago Bears, the defensive tackle swam past Zabel at his new right guard spot and threw Sam Darnold to the Lumen Field turf, as NFL.com described it . It was an early preview of how the Seattle Seahawks' 34-17 loss would go up front.
Acquiring Quenton Nelson was the right call. Seattle landed the All-Pro guard for third- and fifth-round picks, and Nelson took over at left guard. The mistake was what came with it. Zabel slid to the right side days before a Monday night game, Anthony Bradford went to the bench, and Charles Cross was inactive with an ankle injury, putting Josh Jones at left tackle.
Advertisement
In the r/Seahawks postgame thread, that was the move fans kept circling back to. Several pointed out that the left side mostly held and the trouble kept coming from the right, where Zabel and Abraham Lucas were lining up next to each other for the first time.
Why the Grey Zabel move backfired against Chicago
Nov 2, 2026; Seattle, Washington, USA; Chicago Bears defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons (99) leaves the field after defeating the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field.Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
Simmons finished with a team-high six tackles, a sack, a quarterback hit, a pass defensed and two tackles for loss in his first game since the Bears sent two first-round picks to Tennessee for him. One of those tackles for loss came on a screen to Zach Charbonnet that lost 6 yards and turned a red zone trip into a field goal. Montez Sweat, back in Chicago's lineup, added a sack and three quarterback hits.
Advertisement
The Seattle Times' Tim Booth wrote that some issues were bound to come with Zabel switching positions, Nelson's arrival and Jones stepping in, and that Brian Fleury's game plan didn't account for the changes up front. Darnold was sacked three times. Seattle went 1 of 11 on third down and ran for 81 yards, its second-lowest total of the season.
None of this is a verdict on Zabel. PFF graded him among the NFL's best guards over the final stretch of Seattle's Super Bowl run, and he'll be fine at right guard with reps. Monday was just the wrong night to learn it.
How Seattle can protect the right side Sunday
Sep 25, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Seattle Seahawks guard Anthony Bradford (75) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Fleury already named the tool. When the Nelson trade bumped Bradford out of the lineup last week, Fleury said the staff would find other ways to use him, including six-offensive-lineman packages and the "Barnyard" dive in short yardage. "We were really thrilled with the way he came back and played, and we're excited to still have him on the team and move forward and we'll find the best way to utilize him," Fleury said, per FOX 13 Seattle .
Advertisement
That should be the base plan against Arizona. Bradford has started 40 of his 44 career games, and Mike Macdonald said the line played its best game of the season against Kansas City with Bradford back from injured reserve. Lining him up as an extra blocker next to Lucas, and sliding protection right, gives Zabel a week of game snaps with help instead of on an island. It also lets Fleury keep calling runs to that side without leaving Zabel and Lucas to handle the point of attack alone.
Bradford has called the demotion a business decision he understands , and he's a free agent after the season. Using him as a sixth lineman costs Seattle nothing. With Cross' status still uncertain and the Raiders up after the Cardinals, buying Zabel a couple of weeks to settle in is the cheapest fix on the board.
More on the Seattle Seahawks
Advertisement
This story was originally published by Athlon on Nov 3, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL section. Add Athlon as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
