The Seattle Seahawks drafted former University of Washington tight end Will Dissly in the fourth round last season, expecting to get a dynamic blocking tight end to pair alongside veterans Ed Dickson and Nick Vannett – who are more adept at catching the football.
At least, that was the plan. Dissly surprised everybody by demonstrating an incredible ability to haul in the football and scamper for yards after the catch, making him one of the biggest surprises in the first three weeks of the season before a knee injury wiped out the rest of his rookie year – and could limit him to start the offseason programming with the Seahawks.
“Will’s working really hard, he’s coming back,” coach Pete Carroll commented at the NFL combine on Thursday. “He’s gonna be right in the middle of the action.”
Dissly had eight receptions for 156 yards and two touchdowns last season, including a 66-yard touchdown reception in Week 1 against the Broncos.
Dissly’s absence forced Seattle to rely more on Nick Vannett and even George Fant at tight end until veteran Ed Dickson returned from the IR.
Assuming everyone is healthy going into the season, Carroll expects to utilize each of those guys in different spots throughout the year.
“We love the big tight ends which we showed you with George Fant last year, he did a great job for us,” Carroll commented. “Will, George and Eddie Dickson that’s a pretty good group right there. They all are different and we’ll use them according to their strengths.”
“We’re counting a lot on Will for sure.”
