Harvard graduate Nick Easton was an athletic, SPARQ beast offensive lineman second only to SPARQ king Kristjan Sokoli in the 2015 draft (Glowinski was ranked #5 in SPARQ). He was one of my guys in the 2015 draft that I hoped the Seahawks would take a chance on. Instead, they drafted Sokoli, a D-Lineman, and decided to make a Center project out of him. I get the athletic aspect of drafting Sokoli, but he was TOTALLY unproven as an offensive lineman. Sokoli took up a spot on the 53-man roster for the entire 2015 season. Apparently that strategy is likely over, as I don't see the Seahawks using that spot for 2 straight years. Sokoli will likely be a Practice Squad candidate this year.
Like Sokoli, Nick Easton is also very athletic for a big man...6'3", 307 lbs. His 10-second split at his Pro Day was 1.64 seconds...that's extremely fast for a man his size. Aaron Donald ran a 1.63 at 285 lbs. at his Combine. The differences between Sokoli and Easton is that Easton is known to be highly intelligent...graduated from Harvard with honors and a degree in Economics. As a senior, he was team captain of a Harvard Crimson team that went undefeated. He played Center for 3 seasons at Harvard.
Easton went undrafted in 2015 and signed with the Ravens after the draft...but things were looking really good for him. In the preseason, Easton was the highest ranked Center by PFF with a +9.1 grade. He was also the #2 ranked rookie in PFF's Top-10 rookies of the 2015 preseason. Unfortunately, Nick was buried three-deep on the depth chart behind the Raven's Top-10 Center Jeremy Zuttah and Zuttah's backup John Urschel (5th round pick in 2014). This is not new on most teams...regardless of how a player does, an UDFA will most likely play second-fiddle to a guy drafted in the 5th round. Prior to Week 1, the Ravens traded Easton to the 49ers for a 7th round pick...I get that it's not a huge deal, but how often do teams sign an undrafted guy that they are able to trade for a draft pick just months later, the day before final cuts?
Again, now on the 49ers, Easton found himself buried on a depth chart...behind Martin, Kilgore and Farrell. And not surprisingly, Easton also found himself traded once again, this time by the 49ers, in Week 5 of the 2015 season, to the Vikings. This time for Vikings LB Gerald Hodges...Hodges ended up starting 7 games for the 49ers in 2015.
And once again, now on the Vikings, Easton found himself buried on a depth chart...unfortunately for Nick, this time he was behind John Sullivan, who began the season injured, and Sullivan's backup, 2015 breakout Center Joe Berger. Berger was the #2 ranked Center in 2015 according to PFF.
In 2016, Easton again finds himself buried on the depth chart...this time behind 2 of the best Centers in the NFL- John Sullivan and Joe Berger. The consensus opinion on Viking sites is that Easton will not make the 53-man roster this year. He will likely be available on waivers late in the preseason. My hope is that the Seahawks might have a chance to pick him up after he's cut. My belief is that he'd be a better Center than any Seahawk Centers currently competing for the position. At this point, I don't think he'd be worth trading for, but if he happens to make it on waivers past most of the other teams, he'd be a great pickup for the Hawks...especially if my hunch is correct...that at the end of the preseason, Center will once again be an issue going into Week 1 of the 2016 regular season. I don't see Britt as an upgrade over Lewis, but I get the feeling that Britt will not be demoted by Cable or Carroll...at least not before he fails in the preseason. And I don't feel like Lewis is looked upon with favor by Cable.
Nick Easton could be the answer...it certainly couldn't hurt to give him a shot if the O-Line is struggling going into Week 1.
Like Sokoli, Nick Easton is also very athletic for a big man...6'3", 307 lbs. His 10-second split at his Pro Day was 1.64 seconds...that's extremely fast for a man his size. Aaron Donald ran a 1.63 at 285 lbs. at his Combine. The differences between Sokoli and Easton is that Easton is known to be highly intelligent...graduated from Harvard with honors and a degree in Economics. As a senior, he was team captain of a Harvard Crimson team that went undefeated. He played Center for 3 seasons at Harvard.
Easton went undrafted in 2015 and signed with the Ravens after the draft...but things were looking really good for him. In the preseason, Easton was the highest ranked Center by PFF with a +9.1 grade. He was also the #2 ranked rookie in PFF's Top-10 rookies of the 2015 preseason. Unfortunately, Nick was buried three-deep on the depth chart behind the Raven's Top-10 Center Jeremy Zuttah and Zuttah's backup John Urschel (5th round pick in 2014). This is not new on most teams...regardless of how a player does, an UDFA will most likely play second-fiddle to a guy drafted in the 5th round. Prior to Week 1, the Ravens traded Easton to the 49ers for a 7th round pick...I get that it's not a huge deal, but how often do teams sign an undrafted guy that they are able to trade for a draft pick just months later, the day before final cuts?
Again, now on the 49ers, Easton found himself buried on a depth chart...behind Martin, Kilgore and Farrell. And not surprisingly, Easton also found himself traded once again, this time by the 49ers, in Week 5 of the 2015 season, to the Vikings. This time for Vikings LB Gerald Hodges...Hodges ended up starting 7 games for the 49ers in 2015.
And once again, now on the Vikings, Easton found himself buried on a depth chart...unfortunately for Nick, this time he was behind John Sullivan, who began the season injured, and Sullivan's backup, 2015 breakout Center Joe Berger. Berger was the #2 ranked Center in 2015 according to PFF.
In 2016, Easton again finds himself buried on the depth chart...this time behind 2 of the best Centers in the NFL- John Sullivan and Joe Berger. The consensus opinion on Viking sites is that Easton will not make the 53-man roster this year. He will likely be available on waivers late in the preseason. My hope is that the Seahawks might have a chance to pick him up after he's cut. My belief is that he'd be a better Center than any Seahawk Centers currently competing for the position. At this point, I don't think he'd be worth trading for, but if he happens to make it on waivers past most of the other teams, he'd be a great pickup for the Hawks...especially if my hunch is correct...that at the end of the preseason, Center will once again be an issue going into Week 1 of the 2016 regular season. I don't see Britt as an upgrade over Lewis, but I get the feeling that Britt will not be demoted by Cable or Carroll...at least not before he fails in the preseason. And I don't feel like Lewis is looked upon with favor by Cable.
Nick Easton could be the answer...it certainly couldn't hurt to give him a shot if the O-Line is struggling going into Week 1.
