Thursday set the tone with the Seahawks’ first full pads practice, but Friday turned the volume up again. The energy was there, the emotion was there, and so were the collisions. It was the kind of practice that gives a team things to feel good about and a few things to clean up before camp rolls on.
At the center of the positive buzz is Sam Darnold. A lot of the outside noise has focused on whether he can keep playing at a high level without offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, but through the first six practices he has looked in control.
On Friday, that showed up again. Darnold was sharp, decisive, and playing with confidence, not leaning on his coordinator as a safety net the way some skeptics have suggested.
He has given himself a real shot to prove he belongs among the league’s top ten quarterbacks.
The passing game has more than one storyline worth watching. Darnold and Rashid Shaheed keep building chemistry, and Shaheed continues to look like one of the most explosive players on the field this camp.
Elijah Arroyo is also making progress, especially as a tight end who can open up the middle of the field and connect on mid-to-deep throws. Tory Horton has been another encouraging presence, and after dealing with a cracked tibia last season that limited him in some games, he hasn’t shown any signs of that injury in camp so far.
On defense, Byron Murphy II keeps stacking strong days and looks like the player opposing offenses should circle first. D’Anthony Bell has been getting work at the hybrid safety/linebacker spot with Nick Emmanwori sidelined, and the Seahawks have been mixing in different options if Emmanwori is unavailable. That group includes Bell, Nehemiah Prichett, and rookie Bud Clark, who got a handful of first-team reps in certain packages.
Friday also had more tension than any other practice this camp. Things started heating up during pass rush drills when Bryce Cabeldue took issue with J.R.
Singleton finishing the rep. Murphy stepped in to back up Singleton, and the edge carried over into team drills when Derick Hall hit Cabeldue in the back.
A few plays later, Cabeldue and Connor O’Toole were shoving each other as the practice kept getting chippier.
There was another hard moment when Leonard Williams chased down A.J. Barner after a 15-yard catch, with Barner not appearing to expect the contact as he was finishing his route. Camp fights happen, and this one doesn’t look like anything worth overreacting to.
The one player to watch a little more closely is Hall, given his history of some cheap shots. The source of that concern is last season’s Week 16 incident, when he was suspended for a game after stepping on the leg of Los Angeles Rams guard Kevin Dotson.
The biggest question coming out of practice, though, is Ernest Jones IV. The star middle linebacker left in the middle of practice with an injury, and there’s no word yet on how serious it is.
If Jones needs time, the Seahawks have at least seen Tyrice Knight shine in camp. Knight has been excellent and is in position to step in next to Drake Thomas.
In Other News...
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The first weekend of Seahawks training camp has already offered a useful early look at a rookie class that is trying to make its case in a hurry. Seattle spent those opening practices evaluating eight first-year players in drills and team periods, with each one getting a chance to show how he might fit into the roster picture. Some have started to build momentum, while others are still working through injuries or trying to carve out space behind established veterans.
For a team that always leans on competition to shape the bottom of the roster, these early reps matter more than they might seem in July. The rookies are being tested in different roles across different units, and the staff is watching not just who flashes, but who can keep stacking good days. One name has clearly begun to climb the depth chart, which only adds more intrigue to a group that already looks like one of camps more interesting evaluations. [Read more 🡒]
Bud Clark Just Got His First Real Taste Of Seahawks Legacy
Bud Clarks first rookie minicamp with the Seahawks came with a reminder of what this franchise has meant to defensive backs for more than a decade. On May 1, the rookie safety met Richard Sherman, the retired five-time Pro Bowler who showed up unofficially to help guide Seattles defensive backs, giving Clark an early introduction to the standard and the legacy attached to playing in the secondary here.
The NFL is spotlighting that moment ahead of the August 4 premiere of Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Seattle Seahawks, which will follow the team through its title defense and the day-to-day rhythm of camp. For Clark, it was a first brush with one of the most recognizable names in Seahawks history, and for Seattle it was another example of how the past still hangs around the present in a place where the defensive backfield has always carried extra weight. [Read more 🡒]