Coming to any conclusions during the preseason is foolish. What we can do is identify individuals who helped their cause to make the team or get additional snaps. The Seahawks were not particularly impressive as a team on Thursday night as they came back from a 10-0 deficit to win 24-13. There was the triggering poor run defense, blown coverages, and very little running room created by the offensive line. Amidst the rubble, there were some flashes that may indicate diamonds are there to be found.
Jake Bobo probably had the cleanest game of any of the newcomers. The undrafted free agent out of UCLA was a productive college player with height and good hands, who was deemed unworthy of a draft pick due to his very slow speed. There are plenty of 300 pound men in the NFL who run faster than Bobo. Despite that limitation, he is is a relatively polished receiver who runs solid routes and is a reliable catcher. He may stand to gain the most from the litany of issues facing the Seahawks receiver corps.
Dee Eskridge, who already is going to miss the first six games due to suspension, was injured on the opening kickoff and did not play the rest of the night. Dareke Young is nursing a groin injury that may be serious enough to keep him out an extended period. Cade Johnson was carted off the field with a head and neck injury (considered a precaution). That largely leaves Cody Thompson and Bobo as options for the fourth receiver.
Matt Landers may have something to say about that, as he has a 6’4″ build with 4.3 speed, and had a nice touchdown in this game. He just does not seem nearly as ready to play as Bobo.
The other player who got my attention was Derick Hall. I was pretty uninspired by his pick at the top of the second round, as he seemed like a one trick pony who could one-arm stab a tackle and push him back. I did not see a lot of bend or counters in his pass rush. There has been a lot of buzz around him in recent days and it showed up in this game despite him registering no stats.
Hall made most of his impact on twists with the defensive end, where he started outside and then looped underneath and hit the inside gap. He was fast and powerful. He created pressure multiple times. Opponents moved backwards when he struck them. There appears to be NFL power in him, and this might be a guy who could rapidly ascend the depth chart.
Where a guy like Darrell Taylor has the speed and bend to rush the passer, he lacks some of the strength to set the edge in the run game. Hall may prove to be a better starter where Taylor can be a rotational pass rusher. There is a lot left to learn, but it was a notable debut for the rookie.
Mike Morris was literally right beside him. Morris was a 5th round pick and has put on weight to play defensive end. He is 6’6″ and that is not an easy height to play with leverage on the line. He appeared to reset the line of scrimmage multiple times. He was credited with 1 QB hit, but was a key part of multiple pressures and tackles for loss.
Levi Bell deserves a mention. I was joking about him when the broadcast started. He seemed like classic camp fodder. I changed my tune by the end. Bell may have no shot to make this team, but he played with a high motor, showed some speed and get-off, and made more than his share of plays. He finished with a sack and three QB hits. There is some juice to his game that will definitely have me looking for him next week.
Coby Bryant got extensive action at safety and made some nice plays. He was physical in striking players coming downhill. It was harder to assess his coverage as the Seahawks played a lot of zone, but it felt like Bryant could be a nice fit there.
Boye Mafe did not quite live up to the hype of him being a totally different player. He seemed pretty similar. He set the edge against the run a couple of times, but also was pinned or pushed around a few times as well. He showed some pass rush, but not a lot.
Devin Bush is so much smaller than I realized. He and Bryant looked to be similar sizes. Bush, wearing 0, may accentuate his slender build. He made a few nice plays on defense and on special teams. He looked faster and more aggressive than Cody Barton, which is a low bar.
Olusegun Oluwatimi had a solid start. There are some calling him out as playing really well. I thought there were a few nice plays, but there was nothing approaching dominance that would have me beaming. His level of competition was quite low as well. He seemed to anchor relatively well and had some nice combo blocks in the run game. Evan Brown is not a dominant center, so Oluwatimi may have done enough to re-open the starting competition after Brown had started to pull away.
Anthony Bradford had the most memorable plays for an offensive lineman, including a forceful pancake block that had him screaming in celebration. It has been a surprise that Bradford has not pushed Phil Haynes at all for starting reps. Bradford had a holding penalty and missed some blocks, but there were some nice moments to build on.
Bryant Koback stood out at running back. He showed some speed and good hands. Zach Charbonnet was mostly quiet in his handful of snaps. It was fun to watch him try to bowl guys over.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba has a super high set of expectations with him. He was fine in this one. Generally, I want them to put him in bubble wrap and save him for the season, but it was good for him to get out there and get hit a little.
Drew Lock continues to be a bit of funhouse mirror, where people see something totally different depending on their perspective. He showed he still can throw awful interceptions and make great touchdown throws. That is who is. People tried to blame the pick on a tipped pass, but that had nothing to do with it. It was a bad throw to a double-covered receiver where Lock clearly did not see the underneath defender who he threw directly to.
Lock is fine as a backup. The constant comparisons to Geno Smith are silly. There are fewer examples of Smith’s path through the NFL than there are defenses as good as the Legion of Boom. Lightning will not strike twice.
Good game for Easop Winston Jr. as well. He made a nice catch on the first touchdown and was reliable the rest of the way. He may be a practice squad candidate.
A few other notes:
- Tyreke Smith was credited with a TFL, and was okay, but looks pretty limited as an athlete
- Jerrick Reed II has a couple nice plays
- Jon Rhattigan started poorly but seemed to improve as the game wore on
- Jonathan Sutherland, the UDFA from Penn State, was aggressive and had a nice QB hit on a blitz