Laquon Treadwell Impresses, Poised to Become 'More Involved' in Seahawks Offense

After multiple years of disappointment in Minnesota and unexciting stints in Atlanta and Jacksonville, the Seattle Seahawks hope to see Laquon Treadwell follow in the footsteps of the quarterback now throwing passes to him and emerge as a surprise contributor down the stretch.

RENTON, Wash. - As a former second-round pick who failed to initially live up to his draft status and bounced around the NFL with multiple teams, Geno Smith knows a thing or two about patiently waiting for a chance at redemption.

Following seven seasons in a reserve role with three different organizations, including serving as Russell Wilson's backup with the Seahawks over the previous three seasons, Smith has been one of the NFL's best stories in 2022. Thriving as Wilson's successor under center and currently leading NFC Pro Bowl voting at his position, he's thrown 19 touchdowns compared to only five interceptions and leads the league with a 72.8 percent completion rate.

Given Smith's immense success orchestrating offensive coordinator Shane Waldron's scheme after being written off due to struggles with the Jets at the beginning of his career, it shouldn't come as a surprise he's pulling for receiver Laquon Treadwell, one of his newest teammates, to experience a similar rebirth of his own in Seattle.

“I’ve always been a fan of him from afar," Smith said of Treadwell prior to Thursday's practice. "I know he went to Ole Miss, was a high draft pick to the Vikings I believe, and I always liked his ability, his talent. Obviously, it’s my first time playing with him, but I’m impressed. He’s got it all."

Like Smith, Treadwell broke into the league as an early draft choice who Minnesota expected to not only contribute early, but develop into a star catching passes from then-starter Sam Bradford. Boasting great size at 6-foot-2, 215 pounds with reliable hands and route running savvy, he was supposed to form a dynamic wideout trio with Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen.

But after torching secondaries at Ole Miss, including posting 82 receptions for 1,153 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior, Treadwell struggled to acclimate to the pro game and caught just one pass for 15 yards in nine games as a rookie. Lacking elite speed, he struggled to create separation and thus remained stuck at the bottom of the depth chart.

Though he took a substantial steps forward increasing his catch totals to 20 in 2017 and 35 in 2018, Treadwell scored only one touchdown in his first three NFL seasons and never came close to meeting expectations. By his fourth season, his fifth-year option had already been declined and he was released at the end of the preseason. Eventually re-signed, Olabisi Johnson surpassed him as the third receiver on the depth chart and the former All-SEC performer found his career at an early crossroads.

Over the past two seasons, Treadwell played in 17 games with the Falcons and Jaguars. Despite setting career highs with 33 catches for 434 yards in Jacksonville last year and receiving a quality 72.0 grade from Pro Football Focus, he didn't make the roster coming out of camp in August and spent brief stints with the Patriots and Cardinals on their practice squads before eventually finding his way to the Pacific Northwest on November 1.

Since arriving as a member of the practice squad, Smith and coach Pete Carroll have been delighted by what they have seen from Treadwell, with both praising the sixth-year veteran for picking up a new playbook quickly and wasting no time making his presence felt on the practice field.

“He’s really smart and it was easy for him. He picked it up week one, so he will be way better as we progress, but he’s on it. No problems there," Carroll said of Treadwell on Wednesday.

Making a positive first impression on coaches and teammates, once Dee Eskridge went down with a broken hand and landed on injured reserve, Treadwell earned his first opportunity to dress for the Seahawks in Sunday's overtime loss to the Raiders after being elevated from the practice squad.

While Treadwell didn't receive a target from Smith on seven offensive snaps in the defeat, he made an impact as a blocker on a crucial play in the fourth quarter that briefly gave Seattle a lead inside five minutes to play. Starting out in the slot on the left side, he ran a drag route across the field before racing out in front to chip a defensive back and spring running back Travis Homer for an 18-yard touchdown on a play action dump off.

Geno Smith referenced Laquon Treadwell's block on Travis Homer's TD reception today.

While it's not the prettiest block you'll see, look how much ground he made up to get a piece of the defensive back. He definitely helped get Homer in the end zone just by getting in the way. pic.twitter.com/O9ROa5xUzx

— Corbin K. Smith (@CorbinSmithNFL) December 2, 2022

Specifically referencing that impressive play, Smith indicated Treadwell has consistently exhibited such effort since joining the Seahawks and his passion for the game is evident on the practice field. After making a positive contribution doing the dirty work in his team debut with limited snaps, Smith hopes to soon be able to get him involved in the passing game to show what he can do with the football as a play maker.

"He can catch, he can run, runs great routes, he’s smart, he picked up the offense right away, and he was out there in the game, and was just balling his butt off. He was running around, making plays, made a key block on Homer’s touchdown," Smith remarked. "You can see how much the game means to him, how much he loves the game, and how passionate he is. I can’t wait for him to get the ball in his hands because everyone else can see how great he is.”

Reverting back to the practice squad after Sunday's game, Treadwell has two elevations remaining before Seattle must promote him to the 53-man roster per NFL rules. This gives the team ample flexibility to audition him on offense and special teams over the next few weeks with Eskridge sidelined for at least three more games, if not longer, and see where he may fit into plans the rest of the season.

Despite a disappointing start to his career where he has struggled to stick with numerous teams, Treadwell has always had the size and pure pass-catching talent to be a difference maker if he could put everything together. Coming off a season where he managed to produce solid numbers for a punch-less Jaguars offense, after being pleased by his first outing with the Seahawks, Carroll looks poised to give him a more extended run to see if he can provide an unexpected boost and enjoy his own Smith-like career revival.

“He did fill in fine. It was his first game, and he had a chance to go with us. Hopefully, we will play him more, he didn’t do anything to keep us from thinking that. He looks like a good ball player, he is really comfortable with the game, he has experience, and we can feel that, so it’s a good addition for us. I would expect him to be more involved in the next few weeks.”

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