Seahawks Analysis: Who Will Win Slot CB Competition?

Among several positional battles set to take place on defense, the Seattle Seahawks should have a compelling competition for snaps at the nickelback role further bolstered by the arrival of Julian Love and Devon Witherspoon. Who holds the edge going into camp?

Competition has always been one of the pillars of coach Pete Carroll's philosophy and among several looming battles set to take place at training camp next month, slot cornerback may be one of the most intriguing for the Seattle Seahawks.

Reinforcing an already talented secondary this offseason, Seattle signed former New York Giants starter Julian Love in free agency to a two-year, $12 million deal and used a top-five pick from the Russell Wilson trade on Illinois star Devon Witherspoon, adding two incredibly versatile talents to the equation alongside returning defenders Coby Bryant and Tre Brown. Trying to find places to play everyone will be tricky, but it's a good problem for any NFL team to have.

Looking towards the 2023 season, with the team expected to utilize nickel and dime formations more frequently, how will the Seahawks proceed at slot cornerback? Which player(s) hold the edge going into camp and who could be a wild card?

Here's a case for each of the four players in consideration to play the nickelback role and a final verdict on who will win the job:

Coby Bryant

Starring at Cincinnati, Bryant captured the Jim Thorpe Award as college football's best defensive back in 2021, seeing the majority of his action on the outside across from future top-five pick Sauce Gardner. In four seasons with the Bearcats, he played a grand total of 33 coverage snaps in the slot, allowing two receptions for 30 yards on four targets.

Given his limited experience lined up inside at the college level, Bryant understandably endured growing pains transitioning from the boundary to playing slot cornerback for the Seahawks as a rookie last season. Struggling to acclimate to a new position, opposing quarterbacks completed 47 out of 61 targets for 483 yards, two touchdowns, and a 110.2 passer rating, which ranked 15th out of 16 qualified slot corners with at least 290 coverage snaps.

After giving up a touchdown on a busted coverage in the season opener, Bryant only allowed one touchdown in Seattle's final 16 games, showing marked improvement as the year unfolded / Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

But if there's a reason to be optimistic about Bryant's trajectory as a potential long-term solution in the slot, his play steadily improved as his rookie season progressed. In his first nine games, he allowed 31 receptions on 41 targets for 322 yards, two touchdowns, and 114.1 passer rating, ranking near the bottom in all of those categories. Over the final eight games, however, he allowed just 16 catches for 161 yards, no touchdowns, and a 102.0 passer rating.

While those numbers may not be eye-popping, Bryant clearly made positive strides, as he allowed the third fewest yards after the catch among qualified slots in that span. Add in his penchant for punching out the football with four forced fumbles generated as a rookie and he should be more than serviceable in nickel and dime packages as he continues to grow into the position moving forward.

Devon Witherspoon

Turning in one of the most impressive seasons by a cornerback in college football this century, Witherspoon garnered consensus First-Team All-American honors in 2022 after allowing only a 35.5 percent completion rate and 25.3 passer rating against him in coverage. He led the nation with 14 pass breakups, picked off three passes, and didn't surrender a single touchdown, forcing opponents to stay away from his side of the field in the second half of the season.

While Witherspoon spent the majority of his time playing at the boundary, unlike Bryant with Cincinnati, he saw extensive action inside defending slot receivers. Not surprisingly, he dominated in that role in a somewhat limited sample size. On 61 coverage snaps from the slot, opposing quarterbacks targeted him 15 times and completed only five passes for 36 yards, one interception and a dismal 14.6 passer rating.

Always looking to make big hits, Devon Witherspoon's tenacious playing style and coverage savvy both in man and zone schemes would suit him well for the slot if used there / CollegePressBox.com

Renowned for his physical, hard-hitting style and elite football instincts, playing Witherspoon inside would be an excellent fit skills-wise, as he could help bolster a Seattle run defense that finished 30th in rushing yards allowed last season. In addition, he could be utilized as a blitzer occasionally while having the quickness and savvy in man coverage to hold his own against quicker slot receivers.

At the same time, while Witherspoon would thrive in the nickelback role, the Seahawks invested a top-five draft choice in him in April because of his excellence outside of the numbers. Though he could break past trends by traveling with top receivers, including moving inside on occasion with Mike Jackson checking into the lineup in nickel and dime sets, using him primarily as a slot out of the gate would create questions about why the organization drafted him as early as they did.

Julian Love

One of the more versatile defensive backs in the NFL, Love has basically played every secondary position at one point or another since breaking into the league as a fourth-round pick out of Notre Dame. The 5-11, 195-pound Swiss army knife logged at least 225 snaps at free safety, strong safety, outside cornerback, and slot cornerback over the past four seasons with the Giants, and that rare flexibility stood out to the Seahawks as they targeted him in free agency this spring.

Shortly after signing Love to a two-year deal, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll made it clear the team intended to play him alongside safeties Quandre Diggs and Jamal Adams with high frequency. To make that goal a reality, the fifth-year veteran will undoubtedly have to play some snaps in "big" nickel role that will ask him to cover tight ends, slot receivers, and occasionally running backs out of the backfield.

Though he played most of his snaps as a free safety in New York, Julian Love logged 555 snaps in the slot in four seasons with the franchise / © Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Statistically, Love has been decent, though certainly not spectacular, working from the slot in his first four seasons. Last year, he surrendered three touchdowns on just 21 targets in coverage, but did hold opposing receivers to under 8.5 yards per reception and registered an interception. In 2021, he gave up two touchdowns on 12 completions for 164 yards with an interception, while he didn't give up any scores on 16 targets in his rookie year in 2019.

Along with having the athletic traits and fluid movement skills necessary to play the position, Love has consistently proven himself a capable run defender who has only missed 6.6 percent of his tackle attempts in his career. Depending on whether or not Adams is healthy to start the regular season, his prior experience could be a significant advantage for him working from the slot in Seattle.

Tre Brown

To this point, Brown hasn't been competing in the slot for the Seahawks and saw all of his work during the offseason program playing outside. Offering minimal experience playing inside at Oklahoma and in the NFL, putting him into this battle is squarely a projection compared to the other three players.

Dating back to the beginning of his college career with the Sooners, according to Pro Football Focus charting, the 5-10, 186-pound Brown has played a mere 13 snaps in the slot. This includes four snaps during his injury-shortened rookie season with the Seahawks in 2021, where he was targeted once and didn't allow a completion.

Tre Brown hasn't played many snaps in the slot in his football career, but he has the natural athleticism and skill set to potentially excel there if given an opportunity

But looking back at his pro day workout in March 2021, Brown has the desired athletic traits to potentially transition inside. He ran a blazing 4.42 40-yard dash and posted quality times in the short shuttle and 3-cone drill, showcasing a well-rounded toolbox that should cater well to matching up against speedy slot receivers. He's also a physical player who has never shied away from getting involved in the run game, so he would be a good fit from that standpoint as well.

Of course, as illustrated by Bryant's struggles last year, Brown would have a steep learning curve to deal with moving to an inside alignment he has barely played without the sideline serving as help. Keeping that in mind, it's debatable whether or not he would be able to get up to speed quick enough to truly compete for the nickel role this year.

Final Verdict

Going into a new season, Bryant and Love would appear to be the front-runners to win the starting nickel job simply based on prior experience and could even be rotated in a platoon setup. Both players have logged at least 550 snaps playing inside at the NFL level, giving them an obvious advantage out of the gate against Witherspoon and Brown, and each has enough size to handle matchups against tight ends and bigger slot receivers as well as hold up against the run.

But unlike past seasons, the Seahawks may not need to name a starter and could embrace a by-committee approach. With an abundance of riches in the secondary and several players capable of playing outside and inside while offering different strengths and athletic skill sets, defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt may be able to mix and match any one of the four aforementioned players in the slot in nickel or dime packages depending on situation and opponent.

If Hurtt wants a more natural cover corner against pass-heavy teams, Witherspoon can reduce inside without a hitch and Jackson can check in across from Woolen at the boundary spots. If he desires more size against the run and blitzing flexibility, Love and Bryant have already demonstrated proficiency from the slot in both areas. A feisty player in his own right, even Brown could flourish in that regard.

Ultimately, Adams' health may be the biggest factor in this competition and how the Seahawks proceed with the nickelback role. If he isn't ready for the start of the season, Love will take his place as the starting strong safety, leaving Bryant as the most experienced slot option and Witherspoon as an intriguing alternative. It's possible both players could see snaps inside under such circumstances, potentially even playing on the field together in dime packages with six defensive backs on the field.

Assuming Adams is healthy, Carroll hasn't been shy about his ambitions using three safeties together frequently. With the desire to play Love as much as possible, it should be expected that he would see the majority of the slot snaps, while Bryant may come in during dime sets or in situations where Adams shifts to a money linebacker role.

Regardless, with no shortage of viable options to choose from, the race for snaps in the slot should be one of Seattle's most exciting positional battles to commence once training camp opens late next month.

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