Report: Seattle Seahawks T Abraham Lucas 'Should Be Good' For Regular Season

The Seahawks have yet to activate Abraham Lucas from the PUP list, but a new report suggests the team remains optimistic about his availability for Week 1.

September 18, 2022; Santa Clara, California, USA; Seattle Seahawks offensive tackle Abraham Lucas (72) after the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

While the Seattle Seahawks have yet to see third-year right tackle Abraham Lucas return to action with eight training camp practices in the books, the organization remains positive about his outlook for being ready for the start of the regular season internally.

According to ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler, who unleased several interesting nuggets in his camp preview after visiting the Seahawks last week, the team believes Lucas "should be ready" for Week 1. The former Washington State standout currently remains on the PUP list after undergoing offseason knee surgery and didn't participate at all in the offseason program due to his rehab.

Just two seasons ago, Lucas emerged as a foundational building block for Seattle's offensive line, making history with left tackle Charles Cross as only the third pair of rookie tackles to start a season opener for the same team since the 1970 merger. The two wound up starting 16 regular season games together, helping lead the team back to the playoffs before being ousted by San Francisco in the wild card round.

Unfortunately, injuries set Lucas back from the get go entering his sophomore campaign, as he missed a big chunk of the offseason program after a shoulder procedure. Then, early in the second half of the Seahawks season-opening loss to the Rams, he exited with knee discomfort and landed on injured reserve a few days later, ultimately missing 11 out of 17 games.

Given Lucas' uncertain status after an injury-riddled year and offseason surgery, Seattle made sure to add insurance in advance, bringing back veteran George Fant on a two-year deal in free agency. The team also invested a sixth-round pick in Findlay tackle Mike Jerrell and versatile second-year blocker McClendon Curtis has seen the bulk of his snaps in camp at right tackle as well.

Earlier in camp, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald didn't provide much clarity on Lucas' situation, acknowledging that the team and player had hoped his recovery would be a bit faster than it has been to this point. He also didn't completely rule out the possibility that Lucas could potentially be on the PUP list to open the season, though he remained hopeful that wouldn't be the case and told reporters that that player was now running full speed.

Based on Fowler's report, the Seahawks appear to be optimistic about Lucas' chances of being able to get back in time for Week 1, which would be a huge boost for the offense. Without his presence a year ago, the team played musical chairs with Stone Forsythe, Jake Curhan, and a 41-year old Jason Peters each starting multiple games in his place, which contributed to a dreadful 28th ranked rushing attack and relentless pressure on quarterback Geno Smith.

Per Pro Football Focus, Seattle's right tackles were responsible for 37.3 percent of the pressures on Smith's drop backs last season, the highest percentage among all qualified quarterbacks by nearly six full percent. In contrast, with a healthy Lucas in 2022, only 19.2 percent of the pressures on Smith were charged to the right tackle, which ranked a far better 14th overall out of 24 quarterbacks.

If Lucas isn't quite ready, the Seahawks won't force the issue and rush him back, as Fant provides them with a far superior contingency plan in the short term. But with the regular season still a little over a month away, there's plenty of time to get him back on the practice field and from the sounds of it, he has a good chance to make that happen soon with an eye on being ready to roll for the opener.