Position Battle Primer

What competitions can Seahawks fans can expect to see in training camp?

If continuity plays a key role during Mike Macdonald’s second training camp with the Seahawks (read about continuity in Thursday’s Joe) then we should expect players like Olu Oluwatimi, Anthony Bradford, and Kenneth Walker to feel safe about their starting jobs.

However, if staying the same as last year worries the coaching staff, as it probably should on the interior of the offensive line, then these competitions are truly wide open going into training camp.

This is not a prediction, just a refresher on which position battles we can expect to carry into training camp.

Starting Roles - Definitely open

Center

Options: Olu Oluwatimi, Jalen Sundell, Christian Haynes

Right Guard

Options: Anthony Bradford, Christian Haynes, Sataoa Laumea

These two starting offensive line positions are far more intertwined than the usual competitions at guard and center because the coaches have not even settled on who their guards and centers actually are yet:

• Christian Haynes is working as both a guard and a center

• Jalen Sundell is working as both a guard and a center

• Sundell is potentially playing up to three roles right now

It seems that not only are the Seahawks open to Sundell competing at guard if he loses to Oluwatimi at center, but also with Haynes competing at center if he loses a competition at guard.

It is interesting that Haynes, a right guard throughout his career, seems to have more of a chance to move to center than he does to left guard.

Of course, Grey Zabel is expected to be the left guard and there’s no indication of anything else happening, but we should always be alert. At times a coaching staff will work on a vision that they want for months until changing course at the last second when it becomes apparent to them that there’s a bigger issue at hand than positional value.

In other words, it’s a little disconcerting that the Seahawks haven’t settled on a starting center. It leaves the door open for Zabel to still be moved to center at some point in the future and that wouldn’t be the best thing for his value.

That’s why it is even more important that Oluwatimi, Sundell, or even Haynes ends up standing out and winning the job outright early in camp.

Cornerback

Options: Free Agent, Josh Jobe, Nehemiah Pritchett, Shemar Jean-Charles

Even more so than the interior offensive line, which despite its inadequacy is a position with a lot of known quantities, cornerback is a question mark without an answer.

There are still questions to which cornerback role Devon Witherspoon will play, as well as concerns shared by some — but not all of us — that Tariq Woolen will have a more consistent season than the previous two.

And those are just the two corners that we know are locked into roles.

Mike Macdonald told reporters this week that the competition for spots 3, 4, and 5 “is exciting” but added that the corners currently on the team (which we can assume include Jobe, Pritchett, and Jean-Charles) still have to land their prove-it shots to keep the team from signing outside free agents.

If we’re being completely fair though, the Seahawks are going to add someone like Shaquill Griffin, Rasul Douglas, or Jaire Alexander before the season begins because you don’t go out of your way to meet players at a certain position unless you’re looking.

Yeah, someone’s going to win this competition and start at cornerback, but the most likely outcome of this news is that Seattle has a weakness on their defense and it’s at cornerback. How can they mitigate that weakness (like finding a perfect role for Nick Emmanwori) by adding strength at other positions?

Starting Roles - Any Questions?

These jobs might not be available, but are also not locked down by the leading candidates depending on how training camp goes.

Z and X Receiver

Options: Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Tory Horton

Without getting into any other “What if?” scenarios like Jake Bobo or Ricky White, the only true elephant in the room at receiver that we know of is Horton overtaking MVS as the team’s third starting wideout.

There are those who see Horton as being a quicker study for the NFL than most fifth round picks, which means that Valdes—Scantling, often only a “borderline starter”, could be pushed out of the job he signed up for in Seattle before it even begins.

However, there’s also some questions as to how Klint Kubiak plans to mix his receivers into the standard X, Y, Z positions given that Cooper Kupp and Jaxon Smith-Njigba are the only two guaranteed starters and yet so alike. MVS and Horton have experience at both X and Z, so it could just be a choose-your-own-adventure based on the situation.

When MVS was on the Packers, Tyler Dunne wrote about why he’s the perfect fit as the X in Green Bay’s offense:

Such is the glorious life as the “X” receiver in a Packers offense, lining up on the weakside of a formation. Take it from one of the team’s best wideouts ever: Antonio Freeman. That’s exactly where Freeman excelled before Ray Rhodes moved him to the “Z” spot in ‘99. Because here, as the “X,” you’re often the lone receiver opposite the tight end side. Here, you’re away from the muck and confusion. Here, you draw 1-on-1’s and your raw ability takes over.

To him, this set-up is perfect. With Adams drawing so much attention on one side of the field, MVS can dominate on the other.

That season was actually a step back for Valdes-Scantling (he led the NFL with 20.9 yards per catch the previous year, but missed five games and posted a career-low yards per target) although he had a mini-resurgence playing for Kubiak on the Saints in 2024.

But a healthy Tory Horton could unlock Kubiak’s passing game and every fan would rather see the young rookie breakout over a 30-year-old journeyman.

Running Back

Options: Kenneth Walker, Zach Charbonnet

It shouldn’t be a debate, but Walker’s well-documented recent issues with nagging injuries could open the door for Charbonnet to steal a better gig.

We can scream about who the better “fit” is all we want in June and July, but going down to an actual competition with pads on and opponents trying to tackle you is a much different story. If Walker were to miss an early game in the season and Charbonnet plays better than him — as he did when he had 134 yards and 2 TDs in a win over the Cardinals — then the winner is the hot hand.

Tight End

Options: Noah Fant, A.J. Barner, Elijah Arroyo

The Seahawks have made no indication that they plan to release or trade Noah Fant for cap savings other than the fact that they used a second round pick on Arroyo and signed veteran Eric Saubert as the fourth tight end.

Maybe that is an indication?

Depth Pieces

Last Receiver

It’s consistently a hot topic of training camp, “Who will be the last receiver to make the team?”

After four players we assume are locked in (JSN, Kupp, MVS, Horton) and then Jake Bobo, there’s:

• Ricky White

• Dareke Young

• Steven Sims

• Cody White

• John Rhys Plumlee

• Tyrone Broden

• Montorie Foster

What the Seahawks really have to factor in here is special teams value and likelihood that the waived players will not be added by another team and make it to the practice squad. Under those guidelines, White, Young, and Sims seem to have the most special teams value and potential interest on the market.

If the Seahawks keep six receivers then they might have to choose between Young and Sims. If they keep seven, it means losing depth at another position.

RB3

Can Kenny McIntosh hold off Damien Martinez for a the third running back role — which can quickly turn into the first — and what about George Holani?

These may not be 100% of the potential training camp battles though, so which ones would you like to add in the comments?

Seaside Joe 2292