The Seattle Seahawks signed guard Cordell Volson to their practice squad on Thursday morning. They released safety AJ Finley in a corresponding move. What did they see?
Most notably, Volson completes the trio of interior offensive linemen who all used to play together at North Dakota State. Center Jalen Sundell and guard Grey Zabel were teammates on the NDSU Bison before either had ever declared for the NFL draft or joined the Seahawks. Now, they’re multi-year starters together on one of the best teams in the league — using the same communication wavelength they found at the FCS powerhouse. Zabel has even mentioned that Sundell was a mentor to him while they worked closely together in the Bison’s winning culture. Could Volson be their third musketeer?
Sure, he likely won’t get an opportunity to take snaps against the Las Vegas Raiders right away off the practice squad, nor should Seattle fans be clamoring for him to. However, he can help in a very specific way.
Volson played on the interior with Sundell and Zabel in college, where Sundell played center, Zabel played left guard, and Volson played right guard. When superstar guard Quenton Nelson is healthy, the Seahawks will want him to slot in at left guard and have to choose between Zabel and Anthony Bradford at right guard. Volson comes in to teach Zabel what right guard looks like and knows the language he learned it under at North Dakota State. That’s why this makes sense.
Volson and Zabel share similar frames. As soon as Zabel entered college, Volson was an older veteran who showed him what right guard looked like. By all accounts, Zabel’s frame is only matched by his ability as a question-asker and overall learner. He communicated how difficult the transition to right guard was in Week 8 against the Chicago Bears. This is a brilliantly process-oriented signing from a coaching staff who values interpersonal communication and teaching as much as physical capabilities.
Follow seahawkswire.usatoday.com and @TheSeahawksWire on X for human analysis of all things Seahawks.
This article originally appeared on Seahawks Wire: Seahawks sign Cordell Volson to reunite NDSU offensive line trio
