RENTON - Training camp’s seventh practice gave the Seahawks exactly the kind of matchup fans want to see when the pads are on and the competition gets tight: Jaxon Smith-Njigba against Devon Witherspoon.
Best on best. Star on star.
Smith-Njigba, the NFL offensive player of the year, went up against Witherspoon, the three-time Pro Bowl cornerback, in a one-on-one goal-line drill that felt more like a showcase than a routine rep. Sam Darnold handled the throwing, with only the quarterback, receiver and defensive back involved.
Smith-Njigba came off the line from outside left, drove straight at Witherspoon, then snapped hard left in the end zone. Witherspoon grabbed him on the cut, and the NFL side judge threw a flag on the play. Darnold’s throw came in hard over Witherspoon’s helmet and into Smith-Njigba’s hands for a touchdown in the back left corner of the end zone.
About a thousand fans on the grass berm erupted. Witherspoon argued the call with the official. Smith-Njigba headed back and high-fived Darnold.
Elsewhere, Elijah Arroyo kept building on a strong camp.
The second-year tight end and 2025 draft choice had another productive day, catching two touchdowns on sharp routes in that same one-on-one period. On one rep, he sold a move to the outside right before cutting sharply left and turning around safety Rodney Thomas for a score. He also caught another touchdown from Darnold in the back of the end zone, beating starting safety Ty Okada on a deep tight-end route that seemed to leave Okada and Witherspoon confused on that side.
Seattle spent a second-round pick on Arroyo out of Miami last year, but his rookie season barely moved the needle. He played only 40% of the offensive snaps and finished with 15 catches in 13 games.
This camp, though, he looks like a different piece in a different system. With Brian Fleury taking over as offensive coordinator after coaching tight ends for the San Francisco 49ers the previous six seasons, the Seahawks’ passing game has shown more tight end usage and more depth down the field.
Rookie second-round safety Bud Clark also got his first extended run with the starting defense in 11-on-11 work. For six practices, he had been with the twos, but Saturday brought his first real stretch with the ones after Pro Bowl safety Julian Love appeared to get much of the nearly three-hour workout off.
“It felt amazing,” Clark said. “Everything was moving fast, and I felt like I was moving fast with it. I adapted to it pretty well.”
Clark also had a reunion earlier this week with Seahawks legend Richard Sherman. The two had connected in May during offseason work as well, but this time the Hard Knocks crew was rolling with Clark mic’d up under his practice uniform.
“I was on mic and everything like that, but I felt like we talked outside,” Clark said.
“He ended up giving me his number, and things like that. So we got to chat. I loved it.”
Clark smiled while talking about the meeting, and joked that the camera time should help guarantee he shows up in the first Hard Knocks episode on the Seahawks’ camp. That episode airs Tuesday on HBO.
Tory Horton had his most eye-catching practice since returning to the field.
His last game action came in November at Washington, when he scored two touchdowns before doctors later found a cracked shin that ended his rookie season. Saturday marked his fourth straight practice and sixth overall in camp, and he turned that workload into two touchdowns on back-to-back drives in 11-on-11 work.
On the first, Horton rose over 5-foot-10 cornerback Shemar Jean-Charles and ripped Drew Lock’s pass out of the air in the end zone. On the second, he worked from the left slot on a seam route and caught a Darnold bullet in stride as he sprinted through the starting secondary for another score.
Horton spent much of the day working with both the first- and second-team offenses, his most extensive scrimmaging since the injury. It was another sign he is moving forward after surgery in February to have a metal rod inserted in his lower leg to help heal his tibia.
A few other lineup notes rounded out the day. Ernest Jones returned at middle linebacker and handled the starting defense’s signals after leaving Friday’s practice with a trainer before the end. Anthony Bradford was back at starting right guard after watching the end of practice Thursday without pads, while Christian Haynes returned to second-team right guard.
Rookie first-round pick Jadarian Price kept working heavily with running-backs coach Thomas Hammock on pass protection and pass catching, and he again split first-team back reps with George Holani during scrimmaging.
There were also several absences. Wide receiver Jake Bobo and rookie third-round pick Julian Neal each missed their fourth straight practice, and a source said Bobo may be dealing with a hamstring issue.
Fullback Robbie Ouzts sat out for the first time in camp. Nose tackle Brandon Pili missed his third consecutive practice with a lower-leg issue.
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