The Seattle Seahawks will face the Los Angeles Chargers for their third preseason game on Saturday evening, a critical contest that often sees each team’s starting unit for a full half – making it the most realistic preseason game of the year.
That means there will be plenty to watch for in this one, including some key position battles and of course a chance to see Russell Wilson, Tyler Lockett, Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright in action.
Here are three things I’m going to be paying close attention to during Saturday’s contest, and what kind of ramifications they could have for the Seahawks this season.
How will Rashaad Penny look behind the starting O-line?
So far through two preseason games, Seahawks running back Rashaad Penny has carried the ball 12 times for just 13 yards – including a lackluster six carries for negative two yards against the Vikings.
While that seems like immediate cause for concern, the primary reason for Penny’s ugly statline is the performance of the offensive line.
Penny has not had the luxury of running behind Seattle’s starting unit, instead getting to line up behind a very depleted second group that has been without Phil Haynes, Jordan Simmons, George Fant and Jamarco Jones – with Ethan Pocic stepping in for the starters.
That had made it tough to evaluate Penny’s performance thus far – and while that’s not a concern for coach Carroll it would be nice to get to see him rushing with the ones before the regular season begins.
If Penny’s patient, calculated approach works well with Seattle’s starting line, than the panic many fans feel will be temporarily washed away.
If he struggles, he’ll continue to put distance between himself and Chris Carson for the lion’s share of carries in Seattle’s backfield.
Which WR steps up with David Moore out?
Seahawks coach Pete Carroll reported that receiver David Moore is going to be out for a while with a shoulder injury. He did not provide any specifics, but Moore won’t play in Week 1 and is in danger of getting placed on the injured reserve.
Moore’s potential absence opens up a spot for one of Seattle’s young receivers to claim with a strong performance in Saturday’s game.
Tyler Lockett, Jaron Brown and a healthy DK Metcalf are almost certainly going to make the active roster. If Moore is out, that leaves two additional spots that are likely going to go to some combination of Jazz Ferguson, Gary Jennings and John Ursua.
However, Terry Wright, Malik Turner, Keenan Reynolds and Amara Darboh are all in the picture as well.
Saturday’s game could go a long way toward determining some clarity at that position for the 2019 season.
Will someone pull ahead in the nickelback position battle?
The Seahawks still have four players competing to start at the vacated nickel back spot this season: Jamar Taylor, Akeem King, Kalan Reed and Ugo Amadi.
Amadi has proven himself to be exceptionally valuable as a special teams player, a backup safety, and even potentially a punt returner. That doesn’t mean he is ruled out of the nickel back race, but I do believe his role on this team will be so spread out that having him start at a key position might hurt his ability to contribute elsewhere.
In Seattle’s last game against Minnesota, Taylor and King each had roughly 30 snaps at the nickel spot, while Reed only received six. That’s not necessarily an indication that he is out – but if he doesn’t play much on Saturday that probably seals his fate.
If that’s the case, the battle will come down to Taylor and King – and whichever player loses out is in real danger of not having a job come September.
Saturday’s game should provide a good look at Penny in the starting lineup, a handful of Seattle’s young receivers stepping up, and possibly the conclusion of the nickel position battle.
The game will start at 7:00 p.m. PT.
