The Seattle Seahawks have just over a month remaining before the start of training camp, where 90 players will compete to be one of the 53 players on the roster heading into the 2019 season.
After an offseason that featured a hefty amount of roster overhaul, coach Pete Carroll and company will have a lot of tough decisions to make this offseason in order to build the most competitive team they can.
One position that will have a new starter in 2019 is nickel cornerback, after the team lost Justin Coleman to the Lions in free agency.
The Seahawks ran defensive sets featuring a nickel corner about half the time last season, so they’ll need to find someone they are comfortable having on the field a fair amount.
The Seahawks brought in a handful of players to compete for that role, but they’ll have to beat out a few returners who are ready to take that next step as well.
Here is a look at four players who could realistically start at nickel next season for the Seahawks.
Jamar Taylor
The elder statesman of the group, 28-year-old Jamar Taylor was signed this offseason after spending 2018 split between the Broncos and the Cardinals.
He is a six-year NFL veteran who ranked in the top-20 cornerbacks in the league back in 2016 while with the Browns – at least according to Pro Football Focus.
However, his performance has waned the last few seasons, making him the ultimate low-risk, high-reward signing for coach Pete Carroll and the Seahawks.
Taylor has primarily played outside in his career, but he does have experience in the slot – more than anyone else on Seattle’s roster.
However, if his performance doesn’t improve he will have a hard time even making the Seahawks roster, nevermind winning the starting job at the nickel.
Akeem King
When Coleman jumped ship to Detroit, the immediate favorite to win the nickel job in Seattle was 26-year-old special team extraordinaire Akeem King.
King’s journey to potential NFL starter is a wild one. He was originally selected in the seventh round of the 2015 NFL draft by the Falcons. He played in five games his rookie season, but didn’t reach the NFL again in either 2016 or 2017.
After that, he came to Seattle and won a job as a backup defensive back and special teams player. He appeared in all 16 games last year, racking up 16 solo tackles and one quarterback hit and serving as one of Seattle’s best performers on the special teams.
Now, King has a chance to step into a role frequently populated by unheralded late-round picks. Could King be Seattle’s next Cinderella at the nickel spot?
Kalan Reed
King is not the only player who fits the bill as an unheralded late round pick who could blossom into Seattle’s next star nickelback.
Kalan Reed was “Mr. Irrelevant” in 2016, the final pick of the seventh round by the Titans. He appeared in seven games for them between 2016 and 2017, and spent the majority of the 2018 season on Seattle’s practice squad.
While he lacks NFL experience, he has a great blend of size (five-foot-eleven, 199 pounds) and speed (4.38 in the 40-yard dash at his Pro Day).
While Taylor has experience as a nickel back, and King has experience playing with the Seahawks, Reed might actually possess the best set of traits to play the nickel spot in Carroll’s defensive schemes.
He’ll still have to outplay those guys in order to win the job outright, but Reed is very much a dark-horse candidate for that job in 2019.
Ugo Amadi
A wildcard option the Seahawks appear ready to explore is having rookie safety Ugo Amadi play the nickel position. Amadi, who played some nickel while at Oregon, appeared quite a bit at nickel during rookie minicamp – a fact that surprised and impressed coach Pete Carroll.
“He’s a very well-versed football player and had no problem,” Carroll commented on the final day of minicamp back in May. “He played a lot of nickel in the camp, which was good. More than I thought he would. And he was very comfortable there.”
Carroll had previously indicated that they plan to have Amadi play primarily safety, so it it still unclear just exactly where the versatile rookie will end up next season. He’s certainly going to be a factor on the special teams, and Carroll even hinted that he could factor into the return game as well.
However, if no one else steps up at the nickel spot, don’t be surprised to see the rookie Amadi get a shot at it.
The Field
More than likely, one of the four players mentioned will be Seattle’s starting nickelback in 2019. However – they aren’t the only options on the Seahawks roster, and coach Carroll is certainly not afraid to think out of the box or to give the job to the player who most deserves it.
For example, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Jeremy Boykins in the nickelback battle, as coach Carroll specifically called him out during a radio segment with 710 ESPN Seattle back in March.
“A guy not many of our fans know in Jeremy Boykins did a really nice job in camp, we know he can do that,” Carroll stated when asked about the nickel position.
The team could also give Neiko Thorpe a look at the nickel spot, after the special team stalwart was re-signed this past offseason. He doesn’t have much experience there, but he does have NFL starting experience and a solid understanding of Seattle’s defensive sets.
Finally, the team brought in two undrafted free agent cornerbacks in Derrek Thomas and Davante Davis.
Thomas is a very intriguing prospect, but at six-foot-three and 189 pounds, he profiles more as an outside corner than a nickelback. The same goes for Davis, although his physicality makes him more of a fit at safety. However, either could be utilized across from big tight ends if Seattle feels they deserve a roster spot.
With so many options, coach Pete Carroll will have a blast this summer watching this position battle play out.
Who do you think will end up winning the nickel role in Seattle for the 2019 season?
