RENTON, Wash. -- During one drill Thursday, Seattle Seahawks rookie right guard Germain Ifedi got matched up with veteran defensive tackle Ahtyba Rubin.

"I don't want him to change anything," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said of Germain Ifedi. "I want him to keep battling and keep pushing. I want him to match the passion that he sees from the guys across from him." AP Photo/Elaine Thompson

It was a one-on-one drill, and Ifedi won this round. But what stood out was how he kept after Rubin until the whistle blew or the coaches announced that the rep was over. This has been a constant throughout camp. Ifedi has mixed it up with Michael Bennett and others on the defensive side of the ball.

"He knows I won't back down," Ifedi said. "The team knows I won't back down.

"You can't be a nice guy on the field, or you won't be on the field very long."

Ifedi said Bennett has been a great guy to him off the field, but the offensive line and defensive line have gotten into quite a few scuffles through the first five practices of camp. The defensive line is the more talented, more accomplished group. But what the coaches have noticed is that the offensive linemen have stood their ground.

After practice, head coach Pete Carroll gushed about what he's seen from Ifedi so far.

"I love the way he's approached the game," Carroll said. "Him engaging in what he needs to do and what he can and can't do, that's all we're figuring out right now. I don't want him to change anything. I want him to keep battling and keep pushing. I want him to match the passion that he sees from the guys across from him.

"I think he's the real thing in terms of tough and physical and cares and all that. It's going to be a bit before he can get his football together, but it's going to happen, and I want him to be just the guy that he is. He's hard, tough, cares a bunch, and we just need him to make good decisions is what we need him to do."

The Seahawks' offensive line is a work in progress. Bennett and Cliff Avril have given them fits at times during team drills. And the toughness won't matter if they can't block anyone. But at this point in camp, the coaches seem excited about what they've seen from guys like Ifedi and Mark Glowinski.

From left to right, the starters have been: Garry Gilliam, Glowinski, Justin Britt, Ifedi and J'Marcus Webb. The team is taking a look at veteran Jahri Evans Friday, and if he signs, they could switch some things around. But regardless of who's on the field, the message from assistant head coach/offensive line Tom Cable will be the same.

"We're not here to back down," Ifedi said when asked what Cable's advice has been. "This offensive line isn't going to back down from any challenge, but don't let it take you outside your game. Still play your game, still do your assignment. Even if something like that happens, move on to the next play, and play the next play like it didn't happen because that's what's going to happen on the field."