Roster outlook

Projecting a 53-man roster at this stage of training camp is far more about framing where the major competition is than attempting to truly prognosticate. The Seahawks have the deepest roster in camp that we have seen in at least a couple of years. The cuts will be excruciating in some cases. Guys like Jaye Howard and Ron Parker could not make some of the older Seahawks squads, and went on to star for the Chiefs. We will likely see a repeat of that this year.

Take a look at how many players the Seahawks kept at each position last year, and what their average has been since Pete Carroll and John Schneider took over:

You will notice that I am projecting one less receiver than last year, one more tight end, one more corner and one less safety. There are a few different swing players who can fill multiple roles, like DeShawn Shead and Brandon Browner that could change the typical calculus for how many people they keep at each secondary position.

Current projections

Quarterbacks

I still believe the team will try to pickup someone from another team if they can, but Trevone Boykin is the guy for now.

Running backs

Even with the glut of great running back talent, the decision should be pretty easy. They kept five last year, and I have a hard time seeing them let any of the guys go that I have highlighted. There is a chance that Tre Madden could overtake Brandon Cottom or that Zac Brooks makes the squad if there is an injury, but otherwise this should be set.

Wide receivers

I have them only keeping five this year. The main reason is that I like the tight end talent they have better than the receiver talent. The fifth receiver barely sees the field, so keeping a sixth doesn’t make a ton of sense. My current projection is that Kasen Williams snags the last spot due to being a better receiver than Douglas McNeil and a more valuable special teams player than Kevin Smith.

Tight ends

This is going out on a ledge a bit. I really like Brandon Williams. I think they do to. Add to that the potential for Jimmy Graham to be less than full health or have issues in durability, and it makes sense to keep an extra player at this position just in case.

Offensive line

This one is tough to project. I have Joey Hunt making it over Patrick Lewis and Will Pericak making it over either Terry Poole or Kristjan Sokoli. Lots left to figure out here. One thing I don’t think will change is the number of players they keep. There is enough cross-training that they can afford to keep just nine linemen, and I don’t think any of the bubble guys are so good that they have to find a spot for them.

Defensive line

This should be pretty easy to project. The main question is whether they keep Brandin Bryant on the inside or Ryan Robinson on the outside. I currently have Bryant winning the last spot since interior players with rush ability are very hard to find and Cassius Marsh can also play defensive end.

Linebackers

Another relatively straightforward projection. If Eric Pinkins can beat out Mike Morgan, those two could flop. Marsh is a lock due to his ability to play defensive end as well and being a core special teamer.

Cornerbacks

This was tougher. I have them keeping an extra corner with the notion that they value Tye Smith more than Steven Terrell. That’s a big leap considering Terrell is a far more accomplished special teams player. This could easily slide back to five players at corner and then Smith is on the outside looking in.

Safeties

The fact that Shead can play safety as well seems to give the team some flexibility about keeping one less dedicated safety on the roster. Keep an eye on Tyvis Powell. He could be too good to let go, which would be bad news for either Smith or Browner.

Special teams

I have Drew Farris as the long snapper for now.