Seattle Seahawks 90-Man Roundup: All-American Garret Greenfield Ready to Surprise?
With OTAs now opening across the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks will open training camp at the VMAC in a little over two months, officially ushering in the first season under new coach Mike Macdonald.
In preparation for the new incoming season, we'll be detailing every member of the Seahawks 90-man roster over the next several weeks, diving into scheme fits, exploring best and worst case scenarios, and predicting what to expect from each player entering the 2024 campaign.
After a decorated college career at South Dakota State, does Garret Greenfield have the talent to make a surprise push for a spot on Seattle's final roster?
Background
Redshirting his first season on campus at South Dakota State, Greenfield broke out during the 2020-21 season by earning All-American honors as a right tackle for the Jackrabbits. After starting 14 games in 2021, he switched to left tackle and continued his dominance, returning to All-American form for a squad that opened up run lanes for seven 200-plus rushing yard performances and allowed just 18 sacks. Wrapping up his collegiate career on a strong note, he helped the Jackrabbits capture an FCS Championship while earning his Third All-American honor and received an invite to play in the East/West Shrine game. Despite an impressive combine workout, he went undrafted and signed with the Seahawks as a priority free agent.
Scheme Fit
With over 1,400 college snaps at both tackle spots, Greenfield joins the Seahawks with swing tackle capabilities, though right tackle will likely be his best bet to stick around. Anchoring the Jackrabbits physical rushing attack, he performed at his best in gap-oriented schemes, which the program ran nearly 60 percent of the time in his career, per Pro Football Focus. But he has enough athleticism to be able to handle zone concepts as well.
Best Case Scenario
Already competing for snaps against sixth-round pick Michael Jerrell, Greenfield outperforms his new teammate after excelling against a higher level of competition in college, leap-frogging the former Findlay standout on the depth chart. Though he doesn't make the final 53-man roster, Seattle prioritizes re-signing him as a practice squad developmental player with upside to play down the road.
Worst Case Scenario
Lacking in the power department in the run game and susceptible to NFL speed in pass protection, Greenfield struggles early in training camp and after a rough pair of preseason outings, the Seahawks waive him and he doesn't return as a practice squad player.
What to Expect in 2024
Interestingly, the Seahawks drafted Jerrell over Greenfield despite the latter having the more impressive resume with three All-American selections at the FCS level to his name, prioritizing athleticism with their late-round draft pick. With that said, Greenfield isn't a slouch athletically, as he posted a ridiculous 38 1/2-inch vertical jump at the combine at 311 pounds. He also has more polish as a pass protector and comes from a run-heavy offense where he served as a key road grater in the trenches, so there's plenty of talent to work with.
However, like Jerrell, Greenfield's path to a roster spot will be a tricky one given the depth Seattle has at the tackle spots. Along with veteran George Fant, Stone Forsythe started eight games last year and has grown quite a bit since coming into the NFL as a sixth-round pick in 2021, giving the team four capable starters already on the roster. It's possible both rookies could be practice squad candidates or even get plucked by another team off waivers, but unless he manages to outperform Forsythe, it's hard to see a spot on the 53 right away for Greenfield.
Previous 90-Man Roundups
Buddha Jones | Devin Richardson | TaMerik Williams | Rason Williams II | Ro Torrence | Nathan Pickering | Dee Williams | Devere Levelston | Kobe Lewis | Sunny Anderson | Mike Novitsky | Max Pincher | Easton Gibbs | Hayden Hatten