The NFL draft is complete, undrafted free agents are being signed, and the next wave of free agency is approaching for the Seattle Seahawks.
While it’s way, way too early to know anything about Seattle’s final 2019 squad, we are going to take our first stab at predicting which 53 players are going to survive training camp and crack the Week 1 roster.
Quarterback (2) Russell Wilson, Paxton Lynch
Wilson obviously isn’t going anywhere after signing a monstrous four-year, $140 million dollar contract to make him the highest paid player in the NFL.
Lynch is my pick as the backup quarterback, mostly because coach Pete Carroll has made it very clear how much he likes him and what he can do.
Seattle will have at least one other quarterback in training camp, probably South Dakota State’s Taryn Christion who the Seahawks reportedly agreed to bring in as an undrafted free agent.
However, I’m still predicting Lynch will have the backup job come September.
Running Back (5) Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny, Thomas Homer, J.D. McKissic, Tre Madden
Carson and Penny are locked into the 1-2 running back roles, with Carson expected to handle the majority of the duties.
Homer was brought in as a replacement for Mike Davis, who signed with Chicago in the offseason. He is known as an effective pass-blocker so he could see a lot of third-down snaps. That’s bad news for C.J. Prosise, who I believe doesn’t make the 53-man roster out of camp.
McKissic is valuable as a return man and a third-down back as well, so I think he sticks around as Seattle’s fourth running back, even with Homer’s arrival.
Madden is unsigned currently, but Seattle will want someone to serve in the fullback/special teams role, and it makes sense to go get the guy who had that job last year and is familiar with the responsibilities.
Wide Receiver (5) Tyler Lockett, David Moore, D.K. Metcalf, Gary Jennings, John Ursua
Although he has not made it official, all signs indicate two-time Pro Bowl receiver Doug Baldwin is going to hang up his cleats this offseason.
That is part of the reason Seattle went out and nabbed three receivers in the draft, all of whom I believe will make the active roster. That leaves two additional spots, one which will obviously go to Tyler Lockett.
The other will be up for grabs between David Moore and Jaron Brown, although I think Moore will win out ultimately because Seattle can save some cash by cutting Brown.
This will be a position battle to watch, however, as a strong camp from Brown or even Amara Darboh or Keenan Reynolds could push seventh-round pick Ursua into a practice squad role if Seattle feels he would go unclaimed.
Tight End (3) Will Dissly, Ed Dickson, Nick Vannett
One of the few position groups that hasn’t been touched, Seattle has made it clear it feels quite confident with Will Dissly as their No. 1 option at tight end.
Some think Dickson could be cut, but Seattle did not pursue any tight ends in the draft or free agency, so I suspect he will stick around – unless the Seahawks decide to let George Fant stick in that role.
Offensive Line (9) Duane Brown, Mike Iupai, Justin Britt, D.J. Fluker, Germain Ifedi, George Fant, Jamarco Jones, Joey Hunt, Phil Haynes
This was perhaps the toughest position to figure out. I seriously doubt Seattle holds more than nine offensive linemen, but this leaves out some talented players.
I see the starting five of Brown, Iupati, Britt, Fluker and Ifedi being more or less untouched. Where it’ll get interesting is at the backup guard spots. Haynes is the rookie, but he’ll need to beat out Jordan Simmons and Ethan Pocic to make the roster. I think Pocic is for sure out, but Simmons is a big guy who Carroll really likes, so that will be tough.
The team could also cut one of the extra tackles, as they don’t need both Fant and Jones. Perhaps they’ll transition Fant to tight end on a more regular basis, and cut someone like Vannett or Dickson? That seems wild, but I have a hard time seeing them let go of Simmons or Haynes, and they need a backup center so I doubt they both stay and Hunt goes.
Another position that will be worth paying close attention to in training camp.
Defensive Line (9) Ezekiel Ansah, Jarran Reed, Poona Ford, Quinton Jefferson, Cassius Marsh, L.J. Collier, DeMarcus Christmas, Rasheem Green, Nazair Jones
Free agent signing alert: While Nick Perry is getting most of the attention, I think grabbing Ezekiel Ansah makes a lot of sense. He’s a bit bigger, but he is an excellent pass rusher and would help fill the Frank Clark role quite well.
Quinton Jefferson is back to play on the other side, and rookie L.J. Collier and free agent Cassius Marsh will serve as rotational pass rushers as well, along with Rasheem Green.
Jarran Reed and Poona Ford return to dominate on the defensive interior. Replacing Shamar Stephen will be draft pick DeMarcus Christmas, a sixth-rounder who has the size to stack up well inside.
Seattle appears to have more depth on the outside than on the inside, which makes me think Nazair Jones may end up back on the inside after Carroll announced they were going to try him at five-tech. That’s purely speculation on my part, but if they do sign an Ansah/Perry type, they may not need Jones outside.
A few other names to watch here are Jamie Meder and Nate Orchard, two free agents who will compete for a roster spot in camp.
Linebackers (7) Bobby Wagner, K.J. Wright, Cody Barton, Ben Burr-Kirven, Jacob Martin, Austin Calitro, Shaquem Griffin
The Seahawks’ deepest position without a doubt is at linebacker. I had them keeping seven, which is one more than usual, and that’s without Mychal Kendricks – who I think will end up missing most, if not all, of the season with his legal troubles.
Wagner and Wright are locked in as starters, and I believe Martin will step up into the LEO role after the team cuts Barkevious Mingo to save cap space.
That leaves Calitro and Griffin to compete with the two draft picks, Barton and Burr-Kirven, for reserve roles. They can only keep all seven if they don’t have Kendricks or Mingo, so this will be a very tough battle to watch during training camp.
Ultimately, how Barton and Burr-Kirven look as special teamers will go a long way in determining if they deserve roster spots.
And, as painful as it will be for some, it is worth noting that Griffin is not guaranteed his roster spot – regardless of how inspiring his story is. He’s a good special teams player, which could keep him around, but this is going to be a tough training camp for him – especially if Kendricks returns.
Cornerbacks (5) Tre Flowers, Shaquill Griffin, Akeem King, Neiko Thorpe, Kalan Reed
This is another tough position because Seattle doesn’t have a ton of depth here but hasn’t been strongly connected to any free agents.
Flowers and Griffin look likely to reprise their starting roles from last season. King and Reed will surely battle it out for Justin Coleman’s old role at nickel back, although draft pick Ugo Amadi could compete for that spot as well.
Ultimately, I don’t think there will be much change at this spot, although fans will certainly hope the guys they do have show improvement from last season.
Safeties (5) Bradley McDougald, Marquise Blair, Ugo Amadi, Tedric Thompson, Delano Hill
The Seahawks drafted two PAC-12 safeties over the weekend – hard-hitting Marquise Blair out of Utah and the versatile Ugo Amadi from Oregon.
McDougald is locked into a starting spot, although he has the flexibility to play either strong or free safety, which gives Seattle plenty of options up top.
Blair will challenge for a starting spot right away, which will likely push Thompson and Hill into reserve roles.
Amadi will likely be a flexible, rotational depth piece who is capable of playing nickel if needed.
Seattle ran a lot of dime packages last season, something that they could definitely do more of this season if Blair and Amadi prove they are NFL ready.
Special Teams (3) Michael Dickson, Jason Myers, Tyler Ott
Myers was signed to a hefty four-year, $16 million dollar deal after Seattle cut him in favor of the recently retired Sebastian Janikowski last summer.
He’ll join returners Michael Dickson and Tyler Ott in what should be a heavily improved special teams unit in 2019.
