Seahawks 90-Man Roster Rundown: Dareke Young

The second of the Seahawks' two seventh-round draft picks, Young will aim to turn his freakish athleticism into an NFL career this summer.

With the calendar flipping to June and offseason programs wrapping up across the country, NFL training camps will begin around the NFL in less than two months time. To celebrate the new incoming season, the All Seahawks staff will be breaking down the Seahawks 90-man roster over the next several weeks, exploring best and worst case scenarios and what to expect from each player entering the 2022 campaign.

Dareke Young, Receiver

Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 224 pounds

2021 Stats*: 25 receptions, 303 receiving yards, four touchdowns

*College stats at Lenoir-Rhyne

Taken by the Seahawks with pick No. 233 in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Young became the second prospect out of Division II school Lenoir-Rhyne to be drafted in the last three years. He paid a top-30 visit to Seattle during the pre-draft process and blew the team away with his DK Metcalf-esque physique and an athletic skillset deemed by many as elite. The COVID-19 pandemic and a knee injury helped limit him to just seven games played between the 2020 and 2021 seasons, bringing his collegiate career to a close with 73 receptions, 1,176 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns to his credit. He also tallied 658 rushing yards and eight scores on 88 touches, but only saw one carry over his final two years after the school moved away from the Wing-T system he prominently featured in. There are questions that will need to be answered this summer, particularly in regards to his jump from Division II ball to the NFL, but the raw talent he possesses will make him an intriguing name to keep an eye on during training camp and the preseason.

Best Case Scenario: Young proves capable of adjusting to the sport's highest level, showing too much upside and versatility in the preseason for Seattle to run the risk of losing him on waivers. 

Worst Case Scenario: Young gets lost in a crowded receiver room, looking far too raw to consider for the active roster and possibly even the practice squad.

What to Expect in 2022: There's so much talent here that it's difficult to imagine Young doesn't at least stick with the team via its practice squad this summer. Both offensively and as a special teamer, the rookie will have to outshine several other receivers with more experience and rapport in Seattle, but it's likely the Seahawks will ultimately be patient with his development in the end. If opportunities wind up being vastly limited due to the volume of receivers on the roster, he could leave Seattle underwhelmed coming out of the preseason. But there's also a non-zero chance he could be must-watch TV in the latter halves of the Seahawks' dress rehearsals, especially if he's deployed in a multitude of ways. 

Previous Seahawks 90-Man Roster Profiles

Kevin Kassis | Cade Brewer | Liam Ryan | Deontez Alexander | Elijah Jones | Josh Turner | Scott Nelson | Joshua Onujiogu | Jarrod Hewitt | Darwin Thompson | Matt Gotel | Lakiem Williams | Tanner Muse | Greg Eiland | Aaron Fuller | Shamarious Gilmore | Cade Johnson | Dakoda Shepley | Deontai Williams | Bubba Bolden | Josh Johnson | Vi Jones