The Seattle Seahawks are set to take on the Denver Broncos on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. PT.
Fans won’t get to see Russell Wilson on the field, unfortunately, as he is sitting this one out to allow Geno Smith and Paxton Lynch to continue their battle to back him up this season.
“We’ve got a big competition in the quarterback position in particular,” coach Pete Carroll commented on Wednesday. “We want these guys to play as much as they can and play their way into their spots. I don’t want this to be decisions we have to make without a lot of great information. That’s what’s most important right now.”
The Seahawks are expected to rest a handful of other veteran starters as well, which could include Tyler Lockett, Duane Brown, and Bobby Wagner.
It will be a great opportunity for the rookies however, who will enjoy their first game experience in front of the home crowd.
The Smith and Lynch battle is just one of a handful of storylines for fans to pay attention to in this contest.
How DK Metcalf looks against a real opponent
Ever since his extraordinary performance at the NFL combine, Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf has been the talk of the town.
Will his elite combination of size and speed make him a force in the NFL, or will his unpolished route-running and subpar performance in college lead to him being another athletic bust at the pro level?
Thursday’s contest against a real secondary will be the first really big test for the rookie receiver.
That’s not to say Seattle’s secondary isn’t real, but they have focused primarily on not injuring anyone or getting injured themselves during training camp, and it has made judging how impressive Metcalf is a bit challenging.
A few plays where he beats the Denver secondary and brings in a highlight reel catch and the hype train will reach warp speed for the second-round pick.
Backup quarterback position battle
For the first time in his NFL career, Russell Wilson will not play in the first preseason game of the season.
Geno Smith has been named the starter, although he is expected to split the game with fellow quarterback Paxton Lynch.
The two veterans are marred in an intense position battle, and while Smith appears to be outplaying Lynch so far, there is still a lot that could happen in the next few weeks.
Thursday’s game will give fans a glimpse of what life without Wilson would look like for the Seahawks.
While it certainly won’t be pretty, it will help Carroll and company make an important roster decision heading into the regular season.
Barkevious Mingo as a pass rusher
The Seattle Seahawks have made it very clear that they want veteran linebacker Barkevious Mingo to focus his energy on developing into an edge rusher.
The decision makes sense. The Seahawks are absolutely stacked at the linebacker spot, with Mychal Kendricks, Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright as the starters and a pair of rookies – Cody Barton and Ben Burr-Kirven – serving as valuable backups.
Mingo may not make the roster if he cannot prove his worth as a pass rusher, an area of tremendous need on this Seahawks team following the injuries to L.J. Collier and Ezekiel Ansah and the six-game suspension for Jarran Reed.
If Mingo can get to the quarterback successfully during the preseason, he has a great chance of cracking the roster as a blitz-package defensive end.
If he can’t, his days in a Seahawks uniform could be numbered.
