Seahawks DTs Training Camp Preview: Bold Predictions, Projected Depth Chart

With few returning veterans on the roster after shaking things up in the trenches defensively, the Seattle Seahawks are gambling on a blend of marquee free agents and unproven rookies to right the ship and help their defense take a big step forward in 2023.

RENTON, Wash. - During a surprising season that culminated with nine wins and a playoff berth, the Seattle Seahawks proved skeptics wrong with most of their dominos falling perfectly in line, including Geno Smith emerging as a Pro Bowl quarterback and a superb draft class making major contributions as rookies.

But while Seattle easily exceeded expectations in the aftermath of trading Russell Wilson to Denver to earn a wild card, the team wasn't without significant flaws. Most notably, despite having an experienced defensive line headlined by returning starters Poona Ford and Al Woods and newcomer Shelby Harris, opponents gashed coach Pete Carroll's defense on the ground all season long, averaging nearly 150 rushing yards per game for a 30th overall ranking.

After a blowout 41-23 loss to the 49ers in the wild card round, a frustrated Carroll wasn't shy about highlighting where the Seahawks needed to improve the most to catch up with their NFC West rivals, telling reporters in his end of season press conference that they had to become "more dynamic" up front.

"It's killing me, yeah, it's killing me," Carroll said. "We’ve kind of been in the same mode, we have to get more production out of the guys, they have to be more of a factor. We need to make the position really competitive, if we can. We will see what we can do.”

Wasting little time getting to work on addressing Seattle's biggest need, general manager John Schneider waived Harris, Woods, and Quinton Jefferson as cap casualties, creating the financial flexibility to make a big splash. One year after reportedly asking for defensive tackle Dre'Mont Jones as part of the trade return package for Wilson, the team signed him outright as a free agent, backing up the Brinks truck and handing him $51 million on a three-year deal.

After a rare instance of Schneider breaking out the checkbook to land a marquee free agent, the Seahawks weren't done spending to rebuild their defensive line. Reuniting with a familiar face, only a couple days after officially signing Jones, the team brought back former second-round pick Jarran Reed on a two-year deal after spending the previous two seasons in Kansas City and Green Bay.

The immense turnover continued into April, as the Seahawks didn't bring back Ford, Harris, Jefferson, or Woods and instead used a pair of day three draft picks to further fortify the interior defensive line. First, following an impressive meeting with him in the pre-draft process, the team used a fourth round pick on Mississippi State nose tackle Cameron Young. Then, one round later, they snagged Michigan standout Mike Morris with plans on transitioning him inside full time after playing off the edge in college.

Rounding out the group with a versatile veteran ready to compete for starting snaps right away, weeks after bringing him in for a free agent visit, Seattle agreed to terms with Mario Edwards shortly after the draft.

Once the dust settled and the Seahawks kicked off their offseason on-field program in May, only veterans Bryan Mone and Myles Adams remained from last year's disappointing unit. Though Harris remains unsigned, Ford, Woods, and Jefferson all relocated to the AFC East, ensuring the group - for better or worse - would look almost unrecognizable.

Will the near full-scale retool in the trenches achieve Carroll's goal and make the front line more dynamic? Quickly approaching the start of camp, with no clear answer to that question until the season starts in September, no position group on Seattle's roster may be under greater scrutiny in coming weeks and months.

For those who view the glass half empty, aside from drafting Young, the Seahawks didn't make any other notable moves attempting to replace Woods, one of the few bright spots on last year's squad. With Mone recovering from a torn ACL and potentially out for a large chunk of 2023, the team currently doesn't have a single healthy defensive tackle weighing more than 320 pounds, and that lone player - Young - has not played a single NFL snap.

While nose tackles are far from solely responsible for how an NFL team plays run defense, going into a new season without a massive space stuffer such as Woods or Mone to eat up blocks and keep linebackers Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks free could be a major problem for Seattle considering how putrid its run defense was for the entirety of last season. Asking Young to immediately vault into the starting lineup may be asking a bit much from an unseasoned rookie.

Across the board, the Seahawks aren't near as big as they were last season with Jones weighing in under 285 pounds and Reed just a tick over 300 pounds. Behind them, Edwards is smaller than Ford, Harris, or Jefferson at 281 pounds, Adams may be a couple Big Macs under 300 pounds, and Morris is hovering just under 300 pounds on his skyscraper tall 6-6 frame. That lack of girth could be a significant problem against teams that desire to ground and pound them on Sundays.

But for the optimists who see the glass half full, Seattle unquestionably will be more athletic up front than a year ago, starting with the arrival of Jones. The former Ohio State standout has been one of the league's premier interior rushers for three seasons running, registering at least 5.5 sacks and 30 quarterback pressures each season, making him one of only four defensive tackles to accomplish that feat during that span.

"I'm definitely a hungry player," Jones told Seahawks.com after signing with the team. "I'm here to be a solution, not a problem. All my life I've been an underdog in a way, always kind of counted out in a way. So that's what motivates me, that's what drives me. Every play, every game, I take it very seriously."

Away from Jones, though Reed only had 2.5 sacks for the Packers last season and may not be as agile as he was earlier in his career, he still proved to be a disruptive interior pass rusher with 33 pressures. Playing well in an expanded role a year ago, Adams has the quickness and penetration ability to create havoc as a run defender and pass rusher, while Morris has excellent athletic traits for playing inside and may have a ceiling above his towering presence with proper coaching.

Even at nose tackle, Young posted an excellent 1.73-second 10-yard split on his 40-yard dash and a 28 1/2-inch vertical jump at the combine, quality testing numbers for a 300-plus pound defensive lineman. Meanwhile, undrafted rookie Jonah Tavai, who registered 29 sacks in his final two years at San Diego State, provides outstanding quickness at 280 pounds as a potential pass rushing specialist inside.

In other words, while there are plenty of what ifs, there is also plenty of intrigue assessing the Seahawks new-look defensive front, which may be the team's greatest unknown heading towards the new season.

Ultimately, Seattle's success or continued plight at the line of scrimmage may boil down to whether or not athleticism wins over brawn and young players such as Young and Morris can grow up quickly. After moving on from quality vets such as Ford and Harris among others, the organization took a roll of the dice initiating an all-out makeover and how that experiment plays out could have a direct impact on how much the team's defense improves from ranking 25th in scoring last season.

Projected Depth Chart

Competition to Watch

Reed vs. Edwards: Given his prior background as a five-year starter for the Seahawks and the money invested to bring him back to town, Reed should be viewed as the heavy favorite to start opposite of Jones at one of the team's 3-tech defensive tackle spots. But while his familiarity playing for defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt will present a built-in advantage against the competition, he hasn't posted more than three sacks in a season since 2020 and his run defense wasn't quite as consistent as previous years in Green Bay. Now 30 years old, he will have to prove on the practice field that he remains a viable NFL starter.

If there's a contender to push Reed for his starting role, Edwards fits the bill thanks in part due to his ability to play defensive tackle and slide outside in a pinch. Primarily playing off the edge for the Titans last year, while he only had three sacks, he produced a career-best 34 pressures. In addition, he received a 72.7 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus last year and has been a stout run defender throughout his NFL career, which would be a huge boost to the team's porous ground defense from last season.

After Seattle signed Edwards in May, Carroll confirmed the veteran would battle for a starting spot and such commentary shouldn't be viewed as smoke. The team holds him in high regard and he will get a fair shake at taking the job from Reed next month.

Wild Card

Morris: Under most circumstances, a day three draft choice changing positions likely would signal a long-term project and Morris may very well still fit that profile. However, while he did mostly play off the edge in a breakout season for Michigan last year, he does have previous experience sliding inside in the rugged Big Ten. With him weighing in close to 300 pounds upon his arrival at rookie camp, he has enough size to hold up in the trenches as long as his height doesn't create leverage issues and he develops his hand technique to battle through blocks.

Maybe most importantly, however, though Morris' athletic testing at the combine would have been below average for an edge defender, his quickness and explosiveness will be a major asset inside. Aside from possessing a quick first step to split gaps in the run game, his lateral movement skills and ability to turn speed into power as a rusher could make him a handful for guards as a situational impact player on passing downs early in his career. With questions galore up front, he will have a prime opportunity to compete for playing time as a rookie.

Bold Predictions

1. Even under the premise Young gets off to an encouraging start, the Seahawks will trade for a veteran nose tackle before Week 1.

Looking back at Schneider's history, this shouldn't necessarily be viewed as a bold take. He has never been afraid to deal for players in late August, including trading for cornerback Justin Coleman and tight end Jacob Hollister in previous years. What would make this more on the bold side, however, would be trading for an established starter, which he hasn't done that late in the process.

Which players could potentially be available before the season even begins? It's way too early to know who may be on the market, but after battling injuries the past two years, Ravens nose tackle Michael Pierce could be a potential target with a reasonable $3.27 million cap hit in 2023. Veteran Jonathan Hankins of the Cowboys could also be a possibility with the team bringing in first-round pick Mazi Smith as a projected day one starter in the middle. Both players could be had for a late day three pick if their respective teams are looking to move them.

Other candidates could emerge, but if past activity is any indication, Schneider and Seattle's front office will be monitoring the rest of the league closely looking for affordable veteran reinforcements to beef up the middle.

2. Taking on a bigger role as the year progresses, Morris will finish second behind Jones in tackles for loss by Seattle defensive tackles.

As a fifth-round selection transitioning to a (somewhat) new position in the NFL, Morris will be a long shot to start for the Seahawks as a rookie. The team has invested enough money in Jones, Reed, and Edwards to acquire proven veteran talent with previous experience in a similar scheme that those three players should be in line for the bulk of snaps out of the gate. Adams could also be in the mix after performing admirably with an expanded workload late last year, leaving only so many opportunities for the newcomer starting his career.

But as previously mentioned, Morris' athleticism and pass rushing pedigree present quality traits that tend to play well early in the league. Given the team's desperation for dynamic playmakers up front and Carroll's willingness to throw young players into the fire as rookies, if he's able to flash in the preseason and takes to coaching, it wouldn't be a surprise at all to see him quietly climb the depth chart as the year unfolded into an impactful role and taking advantage of the additional snaps with plenty of splash plays in the backfield.

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