Connor Williams Passes Physical, Opens Negotiations With Seattle Seahawks

With other teams still potentially in the mix, the Seahawks hope to ink Connor Williams before the veteran free agent flies out of town.

Miami Dolphins running back Chase Edmonds (2) celebrates scoring a touchdown with teammates lineman Connor Williams, center, and Robert Hunt, left, during the fourth quarter of an NFL game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Sept. 25, 2022. / JIM RASSOL/THE PALM BEACH POST / USA

Making excellent progress after suffering a torn ACL last December, free agent offensive lineman Connor Williams has several teams in pursuit of his services, including the Seattle Seahawks.

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Williams passed his physical on a free agent visit with the Seahawks at the VMAC on Tuesday and began negotiating with the team, though a deal "isn't imminent" and he continues to speak with other teams as he looks for his next NFL opportunity.

The 27-year old Williams, a former second-round pick out of Texas in 2018, began his career as a left guard for the Cowboys, playing north of 3,300 snaps at the position in his first four seasons. He transitioned to center after signing with the Dolphins as a free agent before the 2022 season and thrived in coach Mike Macdaniel's offense, ranking fourth and first in overall blocking grades via Pro Football Focus over the past two years respectively.

Last season, before going down in December with an ugly knee injury, Williams only allowed six quarterback pressures and a single sack on 280 pass blocking snaps and posted a 98.7 pass blocking efficiency rating, fifth-best among qualified centers.

Since Williams has extensive starting experience at both center and left guard, Seattle could potentially sign him to compete at either position. Heading into the start of training camp on Wednesday, veteran Laken Tomlinson will be penciled in as the starter at left guard after signing a one-year contract in April, while second-year center Olu Oluwatimi will have the first crack at replacing departed starter Evan Brown after seeing limited action as a rookie.

Williams also played right guard as a rookie for Dallas in 2018, but he hasn't seen any action at that spot since and Seattle already has a three-way competition ready to commence between incumbent Anthony Bradford, third-round pick Christian Haynes, and second-year blocker McClendon Curtis. Of course, if none of those players seizes hold of the job early in camp, Williams has a strong track record playing multiple positions and easily could be thrust into the competition in a pinch.

As Schefter noted, Williams signing with the Seahawks is far from a done deal and with him still being a relatively young player with 77 career starts under his belt, other teams will continue to make a play for him if he's healthy. After signing receiver Marcus Simms and tackle Jalen Sundell on Tuesday, the team would need to make a corresponding move to open up a spot for the veteran.