logo
3 Seahawks defenders on roster bubble after 2025 NFL draft

3 Seahawks defenders on roster bubble after 2025 NFL draft

USA Today05-05-2025

3 Seahawks defenders on roster bubble after 2025 NFL draft
The Seattle Seahawks made a total of 11 selections during the 2025 NFL draft. While the majority of those occurred on offense, general manager John Schneider utilized two picks on defense. Pairing that with undrafted free agency, the addition of so many high-upside prospects is bad news for several veteran Seahawks defenders.
We've identified three defenders who are firmly on the roster bubble.
D'Anthony Bell, S
The Seahawks signed veteran safety D'Anthony Bell earlier this offseason after parting ways with Rayshawn Jenkins. Bell probably hoped to compete for the No. 3 role behind Julian Love and Coby Bryant, but that pipe-dream faded following the Nick Emmanwori selection. The experienced defender will now be relegated to special teams duties.
Mike Morris, DE
Mike Morris totaled just 70 defensive snaps last season. The third-year fifth-round selection is entering camp firmly on the roster bubble. Fifth-round rookie Rylie Mills is a younger prospect with more upside at the rotational position. Mills could replace Morris.
Nehemiah Pritchett, CB
Nehemiah Pritchett struggled in limited action as a rookie, allowing 13 receptions en route to a Pro Football Focus coverage grade of 35.6. The Seahawks didn't draft a cornerback, but they landed several high-upside undrafted free agents, including Isas Waxter and Zy Alexander. Pritchett is competing for a back-end roster spot.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Za'Darius Smith: 'Hopefully,' I'm back with the Detroit Lions
Za'Darius Smith: 'Hopefully,' I'm back with the Detroit Lions

Fox News

time22 minutes ago

  • Fox News

Za'Darius Smith: 'Hopefully,' I'm back with the Detroit Lions

Defensive end Za'Darius Smith remains a free agent, but, in the end, he wants to be back with the team that he went to the playoffs with last season, that being the Detroit Lions — who cut him in March. "Hopefully, I can get back to Detroit because the coaching staff and everybody in the front office are great," Smith told USA TODAY Sports. "When I'm there, I feel like a leader and like I can influence the young guys and do great things. Hopefully, I can get back to where I want to be in Detroit." Smith split the 2024 season with the Cleveland Browns and Lions, who acquired him at the NFL trade deadline after suffering a myriad of defensive injuries, including to star pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson, a 2023 Pro Bowler. In all, Smith finished the 2024 regular season with a combined nine sacks and 35 combined tackles. Smith ranked 21st among edge defenders in pass-rush grade (76.5), 33rd in overall grade (74.7) and 85th in run-defense grade (62.8) according to Pro Football Focus. Now, should Smith return to Detroit, there are some changes on the coaching side, as the Lions lost defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn — who became the new head coach of the New York Jets — and promoted former linebackers coach Kelvin Sheppard to the position. They also have a new defensive line coach in Kacy Rodgers, among many other coaching changes. The 32-year-old Smith, who expressed that he's focused on "getting a ring now and winning a championship," thinks he and Hutchinson could be a special duo off the edge. "I'm still a veteran. He's [Hutchinson] still a young guy. I can help him with a lot of things. He's already great, but as a player, there are some tools that I know that I can help him with," Smith said. "And there are some things as a young guy that he can help me with." Smith, a three-time Pro Bowler, spent the first four seasons of his NFL career with the Baltimore Ravens (2015-18), followed by a three-year stint with the Green Bay Packers (2019-21), one season with the Minnesota Vikings (2022) and a season-plus with the Browns before being acquired by the Lions during the 2024 season. Elsewhere, Detroit re-signed defensive tackle Levi Onwuzurike, defensive end Marcus Davenport and linebacker Ezekiel Turner to one-year deals apiece, while adding defensive tackle Roy Lopez and selecting Ohio State defensive tackle Tyleik Williams with the No. 28 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Last season, the Lions went 15-2 and claimed the No. 1 seed in the NFC before losing to the Washington Commanders in the NFC divisional round. Detroit's defense surrendered 244.0 passing yards (30th in the NFL), 98.4 rushing yards (fifth), 342.4 total yards (20th) and 20.1 points (seventh) per game. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!

It didn't take DK Metcalf long to show the Steelers what they're getting in their new wide receiver
It didn't take DK Metcalf long to show the Steelers what they're getting in their new wide receiver

Fox Sports

time27 minutes ago

  • Fox Sports

It didn't take DK Metcalf long to show the Steelers what they're getting in their new wide receiver

Associated Press PITTSBURGH (AP) — The scene looked familiar. Maybe that's because it was. A defender racing downfield, ball in hand. DK Metcalf in relentless — and remarkably fast — pursuit. Five years ago, it was Metcalf memorably tracking down Arizona's Budda Baker 90 yards from the line of scrimmage to prevent a touchdown, a play that would be in the NFL GIF Hall of Fame, if such a thing existed (give it time, it might). On Tuesday, in Metcalf's first official practice with the Pittsburgh Steelers after being acquired in a trade with the Seahawks in March, he nearly caught new teammate Minkah Fitzpatrick as Fitzpatrick dashed toward the end zone with a turnover. This time, the whistle blew before Metcalf's white No. 4 jersey reached Fitzpatrick's No. 39. Nobody was robbed of a score. Nobody was mic'ed up. And no video evidence of the sequence will ever reach the internet. Still, the max effort from a two-time Pro Bowler during a time of year coach Mike Tomlin describes as 'football lite' was noticeable. 'I mean, that's just football,' Metcalf said with a shrug on Wednesday. 'If you see a turnover, I'm not just going to walk and let him return the ball. Like I'm going to go get his (butt).' It's the way Metcalf is wired, one of the many reasons the Steelers made the aggressive move to swing a deal for the 27-year-old, then immediately sign him to a massive extension. While Pittsburgh has a knack for finding talented wide receivers in the draft — from Antonio Brown to Martavis Bryant to JuJu Smith-Schuster to Diontae Johnson to George Pickens — the one thing it has struggled with is finding a pass catcher who can be a difference-maker on the field without being a headline-maker off it. Metcalf will have the chance to check that box and perhaps rewrite the narrative that surrounds his career in the process. He spent six seasons with the Seahawks as an imposing (6-foot-4) and dynamic downfield threat who also happens to be a willing blocker. The fire that runs through him, however, would sometimes singe teammates and coaches in Seattle, while also occasionally drawing attention from officials. Metcalf's challenge in Pittsburgh will be channeling things properly on a team that is in flux at quarterback. Yes, Aaron Rodgers — who famously met up with Metcalf in California during the offseason for a throwing session not long after Metcalf was acquired by Pittsburgh — will have the ball this season. What happens after that, however, is uncertain. Metcalf is committed to the long haul, and that includes providing leadership to a room that is largely lacking outside of 12-year veteran Robert Woods, signed in May. While Metcalf is still in the 'getting to know you' stage in Pittsburgh, he understands the standing that his resume and his contract command. 'I'm more of a lead by example-type guy," he said. 'I'm not a big rah-rah guy or walk up to you and say something to you on the spot (guy).' He would rather pull someone off to the side for a quick chat rather than 'blast' them in front of the whole team. That might be a step in the right direction for a group that's spent the past few years trying to weather Pickens' petulant behavior. Pittsburgh opted to move on, shipping the talented but mercurial 24-year-old to Dallas last month. While it might feel like addition by subtraction in a locker room that was over his antics, on the field, it also could create a void. Metcalf, however, cautioned against the idea that the unit can't be productive. He pledged to be an 'open book' to Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson, both of whom Metcalf called 'special." 'I'm going to be asking them questions as well and how they see the game," he said. "So just piggybacking off of what they do and just bouncing ideas off each other.' He also plans to continue to bounce things off Rodgers, whose quick release combined with Metcalf's innate ability to beat defenders off the line of scrimmage could create the kind of opportunities that didn't come enough last season, when Metcalf only turned 35 of his 66 receptions into first downs, a career low. Rodgers and Metcalf have quickly hit it off and even spent some of their downtime together challenging each other by playing a trivia game. Metcalf called Rodgers 'a fun person' and believes there's an opportunity for both of them to turn the chemistry they're building into something special come late fall. 'Hopefully,' he said, 'we can put a product on the field that you know can last a lifetime.' ___ AP NFL: recommended

Joe Flacco talks about 'embarrassing' TikTok dances: 'Be an adult'
Joe Flacco talks about 'embarrassing' TikTok dances: 'Be an adult'

Yahoo

time29 minutes ago

  • Yahoo

Joe Flacco talks about 'embarrassing' TikTok dances: 'Be an adult'

Joe Flacco is the elder statesman of the Cleveland Browns quarterback room. Having just turned 40 in January, Flacco has morphed into the "back in my day guy" and is now just one step away from telling the young whippersnappers to get off his lawn. Flacco has embraced that youthful energy in the twilight of his NFL career, taking the opportunity to pose for a fun photo at media day with rookie, Dillon Gabriel. Advertisement Regardless, he continued to provide plenty of entertainment for the media following Wednesday's minicamp practices, turning the session into a chat about social media, TikTok and posting dancing videos online. Flacco began discussing Twitter, now known as X, as it has evolved into a primary source of news. "The difference now is, everybody's getting their stuff from there, and it's treated a little bit more seriously because that is the main news source," Flacco said, via 92.3 The Fan's Daryl Ruiter. "You still have the same thing you always had, which is a million different opinions, but it kind of blends your actual news source with a bunch of other stuff." The quarterback went on to say that Instagram is the only social media platform he's used and made one thing clear –don't expect him to show up in a TikTok dancing video anytime soon. Advertisement "No TikTok dances," Flacco said. "The fact that people want to get on their phones and show people. That's embarrassing! You're an adult. Be an adult. I can't wrap my head around that." He followed up with some advice for the parents. "I get it, you have kids and you wanna have fun with your kids," Flacco added. "Like, have fun with your kids in private." Flacco appears to be no fan of the current social media landscape, but he also extended his media availability to discuss the good old days. While he wasn't walking up and down the rolling hills in 10 feet of snow to school, the quarterback did end up speaking about players who think offseason activities are too hard in the modern NFL. Advertisement "We're out there for an hour 15 minutes and guys think it's hard," Flacco said via Yahoo Sports' Jori Epstein, referencing the two-a-days that used to be commonplace in the NFL. He went on to add that organized team activities (OTAs) used to be over two hours, highlighting just how much has changed since he entered the league in 2008. In other words, Flacco was in a reminiscing mood as the Super Bowl champion prepares for his 18th season in the league. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Browns' QB Joe Flacco calls TikTok dances 'embarrassing'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store