With the preseason about to begin and the battle for roster spots intensifying, wide receiver is a position group to watch closely on the Seattle Seahawks.
The top three spots on the depth chart, of course, are solidified. They belong to DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who have the potential to form one of the top receiving trios in the league.
Behind them, Jake Bobo appears to have a strong hold on retaining his role as the No. 4 receiver. After bursting onto the scene last season as an undrafted rookie free agent out of UCLA, Bobo has made a pair of highlight-reel catches in training camp and continues to show his value in special teams.
“He complements our receiving room well, and then we’re really excited in the (special) teams phase,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said after Saturday’s annual practice at Lumen Field. “I think he provides more than a normal receiver would provide in that phase. It’ll be fun to see how he fits into the receiver room and how that thing all shakes out, because we’ve got a lot of talent.”
Two words: Jake. Bobo. 🔥#GoHawks x @BoeingWA pic.twitter.com/kQcgnr7PDL
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) July 29, 2024
After Bobo, things get really interesting.
“One through three, set in stone,” former Seahawks receiver Bryan Walters said Monday as he guest-hosted Seattle Sports’ Bump and Stacy. “Four, pretty much set in stone. I think Bobo has locked the fourth receiver (spot) down and he’s shown he can be reliable. But then you go (to) five and six, I mean, you could have five different guys there.”
NFL teams typically carry five or six receivers on their 53-man roster. But under the new kickoff rules – which likely will result in teams using two returners – it’s possible some teams could decide to keep seven wideouts on their roster.
“I think one of the biggest question marks on this team is gonna be how many receivers are they gonna keep,” Walters said. “Are they gonna keep six or are they gonna keep five? Are they gonna keep seven? I mean, you could potentially see seven. It’s probably not likely, but just the way the roster is, if these guys can be on special teams, they could do it.”
Top contenders for the final WR spots
Here’s a look at the top contenders who figure to be in the mix for the Seahawks’ final wide receiver spots.
• Laviska Shenault Jr.: After being drafted in the second round by Jacksonville in 2020, Shenault reached the 600-yard receiving mark in each of his first two seasons with the Jaguars. Following a trade to Carolina, his production dipped. He had 272 yards receiving in 2022 and then just 60 yards last year while being limited to eight games due to injuries. Shenault, who signed with Seattle in April, enters the preseason listed as the No. 1 kick returner on the team’s official depth chart. He returned nine kicks in his two seasons with the Panthers, averaging 27.7 yards per return.
• Dee Eskridge: The 2021 second-round pick has struggled to stay on the field over his three seasons in Seattle, landing on injured reserve three times and also serving a six-game suspension last year for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Even when healthy, his production hasn’t lived up to his draft status, as he’s totaled just 17 catches for 122 yards and one touchdown. But he has shown flashes of potential with his blazing speed, especially as a kick returner. He had eight kick returns for 224 yards in 2023, including a 66-yard return against San Francisco that was the third-longest return in the NFL last year. He enters the preseason as the No. 1 punt returner and No. 2 kick returner on Seattle’s official depth chart.
• Dareke Young: As a rookie seventh-round pick in 2022, Young caught two passes and played 109 offensive snaps. However, he didn’t have a single target last season while being limited to just six games due to a groin injury. Over his two seasons with Seattle, he has logged 310 special teams snaps.
• Easop Winston Jr.: The former WSU Cougars star had a big performance in the Seahawks’ final preseason game last year. He spent nearly the season on the practice squad, but did appear in one game for Seattle, logging a pair of offensive snaps. He appeared in three games with New Orleans in 2021, catching one pass and returning 10 punts for an average of 11.9 yards. He enters the preseason as the No. 3 punt returner on the Seahawks’ official depth chart.
• Cody White: After bouncing around several training camps as an undrafted free agent in 2020, White caught on with Pittsburgh. He appeared in 16 games with the Steelers in 2021 and 2022, hauling in six catches for 35 yards. Then after being waived by Pittsburgh during roster cutdowns last season due to an injury, he landed on the Seahawks’ practice squad.
• Hayden Hatten: Hatten is an undrafted rookie from Idaho, where he topped 1,200 yards receiving each of the past two seasons and earned Associated Press second-team All-American honors last fall. He hauled in a school-record 16 TD receptions in 2022 and broke Idaho’s career record with 33 TD catches.
• Dee Williams: Williams is an undrafted rookie out of Tennessee. In his two seasons with the Volunteers, he averaged a school-record 15.4 yards per return on 35 punt returns. He also returned 13 kickoffs, averaging 21.1 yards per return. He enters the preseason as the No. 2 punt returner and No. 3 kick returner on Seattle’s official depth chart.
