Every new Seattle Seahawks draft class brings plenty of intrigue and excitement, and that’s continuing this year after a massive trade up to select South Carolina safety Nick Emmanwori early in the second round. But while we bring you new notes about Emmanwori’s first camp, don’t forget about Seattle’s previous classes.
A freakishly athletic rookie is fun to watch, but it’s the Seahawks in their second, third or fourth years who have a chance to build towards a real jump.
That group is headlined by cornerback and former fifth overall pick Devon Witherspoon, who’s looking and sounding even more confident at OTAs and minicamp. But it also features outside linebackers Boye Mafe and Derick Hall, DBs Riq Woolen and Coby Bryant, defensive linemen Byron Murphy (another important piece) and Mike Morris, and linebacker Tyrice Knight, among others.
Those young players have high expectations for the defense themselves.
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Hall sees no reason they can’t be a top-five unit (and will tell you that yes, defense still wins championships). Knight feels like, after shedding a bit of weight, he’s even better in Year 2. And Morris thinks this is the best defense he’s ever been part of, a statement that includes several impressive Michigan teams.
“I haven’t felt this way about a team since probably 2021,” Morris told us on Bump and Stacy. “I just feel like the bond we’ve created in OTAs, a lot of guys are here, we’ve done more stuff off the field, our wives do stuff together. So you get the family aspect not only in the building (but) outside of it as well.”
Also making the defense great? The mind behind it. Macdonald got plenty of attention and acclaim when he turned Baltimore’s defense into the best unit in the league. But Morris was already familiar with his head coach from his time with Michigan, where Macdonald was defensive coordinator in that 2021 season where the Wolverines were eighth in the nation in points allowed and made the College Football Playoff.
The most casual way Morris could describe it was that Macdonald “adds a bit of seasoning” to something to make the defense a bit more complicated and layered (he used a makeup analogy you can hear during the interview).
While our own notes about practice can be useful takeaways, why not ask Morris himself about the teammates that are standing out?
“I’m gonna say (safety) Ty Okada,” Morris said. “We just talked about it in the defensive meeting room. He’s just been letting loose and having fun. He probably leads the team in picks in OTAs. He’s just been balling, and on special teams he’s been balling.”
Asked to choose an offensive teammate — something a defensive player will always hate to admit — who’s been having a good spring, Morris picked offensive lineman Jalen Sundell.
“He dominated all of our lifts.”
You can hear more from Morris on Wednesday’s Bump and Stacy show. If you missed previous interviews, you can find them on the Seattle Sports YouTube page. We’ve spoken with Knight and Hall recently, while Wyman and Bob caught up with Love and Mafe. And if you are dying to hear more about how Emmanwori will be used on this defense, Mike Macdonald’s answer from an interview with Brock and Salk is also available.
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