After losing both starting tackles for the year by Week 3 and seeing each of the interior offensive linemen go down at different times during the 2016 season, the Minnesota Vikings made improving O-line depth a top priority of the offseason.

That depth was on display Friday night in Seattle. Neither starting lineman on the left side, tackle Riley Reiff and guard Alex Boone, suited up against the Seahawks, which forced the Vikings to start Rashod Hill and Nick Easton in their respective positions.

The makeshift first-team line did not give up a sack and sprung running back Dalvin Cook for 40 yards on just seven carries. Despite the strong performance, head coach Mike Zimmer isn't getting too excited about the offensive line depth just yet.

"Last year I thought we were in pretty good shape, too, then the Titanic crashed," Zimmer said.

One of the biggest differences between the 2016 O-line and this season is the emergence of Hill, who was picked up off Jacksonville's practice squad midway through last year.

"He's improved with his technique every day, he's improved with his mental errors every day, so that's kind of been the process, but he has to keep cleaning things up to get to where he needs to be," Zimmer said.

Hill has received valuable experience during training camp, taking first-team reps for two straight weeks and starting both preseason games while Reiff recovered from a back injury. With Reiff back at practice, Hill has occasionally slid over to the right side to spell veteran Mike Remmers.

"I think the biggest thing with Rashod is if he continues to be good with his sets and his hand placement, he's a pretty tough guy to pass rush against," Zimmer said.

A battle is still waging in camp over the center position. Easton and third-round pick Pat Elflein have each started one preseason game and have mixed in at practice, spending some time at guard.

Zimmer had hoped to name a starting five following the matchup with Seattle, but said that he hasn't decided on the right combination. He also opened the door to starting both Elflein and Easton.

"I'm hopeful that this week we can see how it goes," Zimmer said. "We might have some different combinations in there this week, too. But I don't know when I'll make the decision."

Pat Shurmur, who is entering his first full season as the Vikings' offensive coordinator, is looking for the type of run blocking he saw against Seattle as his group works to turn around the NFL's 32nd ranked run offense last year.

"I thought early in the game we ran the ball well, you could see guys getting to the second level, I thought they fought hard and were active," Shurmur said.