‘Dirty, Greedy, Nasty’: Robbie Ouzts Presents Perfect Fit For Seahawks New Fullback Role

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Joining the Alabama Crimson Tide’s new-look coaching staff prior to the 2024 season, before having much of an opportunity to begin evaluating his group of tight ends, Bryan Ellis’ eyes quickly gravitated to one player on the practice field.

Resembling a throwback punisher from an earlier era, future Seattle Seahawks draft pick Robbie Ouzts stood out like a unicorn amongst his peers with massive tree trunks for legs that appeared to be on the verge of bursting out of the seams on his shorts. As it turns out, Ellis discovered that wasn’t the only potential wardrobe malfunction that Alabama’s equipment department had to circumvent with the player’s unique build.

“We didn't have pants at the University of Alabama to fit Robbie,” Ellis recalled during an interview with the Locked On Seahawks podcast. “Robbie had to get specialized pants because his butt, his quads were so big that he had to have - I mean, it was funny to see - they didn't even go down to his knees. His pants were so short because they couldn't get over his quads. That just shows you how well built he is and how strong he is and what he's good at. It's just having a guy that owns who he is and owns what he's good at.”

While some players in college football possess skill sets that don’t necessarily match their body type and initial impressions can be misleading, much like the pants that didn’t even cover his knees, Ouzts doesn’t fit into that category. Looking the part of a human bulldozer at 6-3, 274 pounds, what you see is truly what you get when he takes the field between the lines.

Right out of chute, Ouzts professed his love and desire for blocking to Ellis, a quality that has become increasingly rare in today’s game with the proliferation of the spread offense where teams prefer to have tight ends who can run all of the routes and create matchup problems as receiving threats rather than an old school inline road grader. With toughness and physicality engrained in his DNA, he loves mixing it up in the trenches and had the physical tools to hold up against powerful defensive linemen in the rugged SEC.

There certainly wasn’t an identity crisis for the Rock Hill, South Carolina native, something his new coach came to appreciate and admire early on in their time working together.

“When you coach tight ends, what's really fun is when you find a guy that says, ‘coach, I'm really good at blocking, and that's what I want to do.’ That's really hard to find. And they don't realize, I think Robbie got drafted as early as he did [by the Seahawks] because he owned what he was really good at and said, ‘coach, I'm a blocker. I know what I am. I know what I'm good at, and I want to be that.’”

In four seasons with the Crimson Tide, Ouzts caught a grand total of 16 passes, or just four per year on average, far from utilized as a consistent receiving weapon. But his value vastly eclipsed whatever could be gleaned from a box score with his blocking prowess, as he logged almost 700 snaps as an inline tight end and helped pave the way for the team’s rushing attack, including quarterback Jalen Milroe, who rushed for over 1,200 yards and 32 touchdowns in 2023 and 2024.

Considering that blocking background, a gritty play demeanor, and an intriguing athletic profile, including a 34-inch vertical jump and 4.45 second short shuttle, the Seahawks tabbed Ouzts as a viable fullback candidate during the pre-draft process for new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak’s system. Even though he only played a handful of snaps out of the backfield in college, he did see some action as an H-back, which should help ease his transition away from the line of scrimmage.

What Ellis also believes will aid Ouzts as he changes positions is his underrated hands. Despite having low catch numbers at Alabama, he reeled in 76 percent of the targets thrown his direction with just two drops and per Pro Football Focus, he generated a healthy 6.3 yards per reception after the catch. He also made his limited receiving opportunities count, scoring three touchdowns as a pass catcher, and that overlooked versatility coupled with his special teams ability should set him up to play in the league for a long time.

“Robbie is going to play 10 years in the NFL because I think his skill set is so unique,” Ellis proclaimed. “There's not a lot of people like him. You're not going to design a bunch of passes for Robbie, but when you throw the ball to Robbie, good things happen. He's got great hands, he's a great athlete. He's able to do things with the ball in his hands once he catches it. He loves blocking. He's physical. When you talk about guys that can block at the next level in the NFL, you talk about guys that have great contact balance… That's what Robbie's so good at, is he will strike you, but then he's so athletic and he stays on such great balance. Once he strikes you, he's able to stay connected to you and finish the block. And I think that's what's so unique.”

Coming into the league, like most rookies, Ouzts will have to earn his keep and won’t simply be handed a starting job. Seattle will have game competition for him after sliding converted tight end and special teams ace Brady Russell to fullback, and those two players will duke it out throughout the summer into the preseason with one roster spot likely all that is up for grabs.

But with what Ellis describes as “dirty, greedy, and nasty” attitude and a rare blend of size and movement skills that cater well to a traditional fullback role, Ouzts has all the physical and mental tools to excel at his new position. From a scheme perspective, it’s hard to envision a better fit to handle the rigors of the job and the dirty work he will be asked to execute in Kubiak’s system.

Now the Seahawks just have to make sure his pants fit.