The Seattle Seahawks switched things up at left tackle in Week 17 against the San Francisco 49ers, replacing Jamarco Jones with George Fant – both who were playing in place of veteran Duane Brown who is dealing with “a pissed off knee” – according to coach Pete Carroll.
Brown is a longshot to play on Sunday against the Eagles, which likely means the team will roll with Fant for the second consecutive week.
While the Seahawks will no doubt miss Brown if he is unable to suit up, Fant earned the praise of his coach after holding 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa in check last week.
“He looked good again,” Carroll said on Monday. “Played very solid, very confident. Played physical football and got out on the perimeter and did some nice blocks and did some things that we like doing with Duane. That’s a really good sign for us. We’re really happy because we need him to come through and he came in and did a nice job going against one of the best pass rushing groups in the NFL. He handled what he needed to handle pretty well for the most part.”
Fant has primarily played tight end this season, serving as an extra run blocker in Seattle’s big packages up front. He has played well in that role, but his performance as a pass-protector on Sunday is what has the Seahawks confident he can continue to help them if they remain without Brown.
“It just gives us some confidence moving forward,” Carroll continued. “We’re a little uncertain how that was going to look, particularly this past week. These guys coming up are good, too. They rush like crazy, so we’re going to need him.”
Seattle is still holding out hope that Brown will make it back this week, but if he doesn’t, expect Fant to start again at left tackle.
How he performs will have a big impact on if this team advances to the divisional round of the NFC playoffs this year.
