{"id":854244,"date":"2026-04-05T00:31:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T00:31:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/854244\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T00:31:36","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T00:31:36","slug":"former-seattle-seahawks-rookie-expected-to-shake-up-offense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/854244\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Seattle Seahawks Rookie Expected to Shake Up Offense"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"Tory\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Tory Horton is expected to return to practice by training camp according to Seahawks general manager John Schneider<\/p>\n

The Seattle Seahawks<\/a> expect wide receiver Tory Horton<\/a> to return by training camp this season. His return animates general manager John Schneider, who dreams about pairing Horton with Rashid Shaheed<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sounds like Tory Horton (shin) will be limited in the spring as he continues to recover, but the Seahawks are expecting the second-year receiver be ready for training camp, and Schneider is excited about pairing him with Rashid Shaheed. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a lot, a lot of speed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Horton injured<\/a> his shin in the middle of the year, which caused him to miss the rest of the season. However, prior to his injury, Horton was proving to be an impact player for the Seattle Seahawks, especially in the red zone. In eight games, Horton caught 13 receptions on 22 targets for 161 yards and 5 touchdowns. Horton\u2019s impact was also felt on special teams where he gained 14.9 yards per return. He even had a 95 yard return for a touchdown against the New Orleans Saints<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Following Horton\u2019s injury, the Seattle Seahawks traded<\/a> for Shaheed from the Saints, sending their 2026 fourth and fifth round picks. He struggled in the receiving game, only producing 15 receptions on 26 targets for 188 yards. Regardless, Shaheed was a difference maker on special teams as the Seahawks won their second championship in franchise history. He returned to Seattle in free agency after signing<\/a> a three year $51 million contract.<\/p>\n

Return of Horton and Shaheed Gives Seahawks a New Look on Offense\"Rashid<\/p>\n

GettyWith JSN, Shaheed, and Horton, the Seahawks could be more pass heavy in 2026.<\/p>\n

The return of Horton and Shaheed could mark a change in style for the Seahawks. As John Scheider said, \u201cThat\u2019s a lot, a lot of speed.\u201d A calibration in offensive scheme has not been a stranger to head coach Mike MacDonald.<\/p>\n

Seattle ranked<\/a> 30th last season in overall pass percentage at 50.29% as they wanted to become more run heavy. In 2024, the first season of MacDonald\u2019s tenure, former offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb had the Seahawks 5th in overall pass percentage. Grubb was let go and the Seahawks hired Klint Kubiak, now head coach for the Las Vegas Raiders<\/a>. The change in perspective created many changes.<\/p>\n

Kubiak decided to focus on splitting carries between Zach Charbonnet<\/a> and Kenneth Walker III<\/a>. However, current Offensive Player of the Year Jaxson Smith-Njigba<\/a> witnessed a career high in all statistics as he became the focal point of the passing game. Subsequently, the focus on Smith-Njigba made the other receiving weapons supporting characters of the offense.<\/p>\n

Former triple crown receiver Cooper Kupp<\/a> saw his production hit career lows. He only had 47 receptions on 70 targets leading to 593 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns. Tight end AJ Barner<\/a> had a career year but still only had 52 receptions on 68 targets with 519 yards and 6 touchdowns. Second round pick tight end Elijah Arroyo<\/a> had a disappointing rookie season as he only caught 15 receptions on 26 targets for 179 yards with a touchdown.<\/p>\n

Now that Kubiak has left for Vegas, the Seahawks hired<\/a> Brian Fleury from the San Francisco 49ers<\/a> to be their new offensive coordinator. The hire indicates some form of continuity as both Kubiak and Fleury come from the Shanahan tree. Although, an increase in pass rate could occur if the Seahawks are unable to recreate their rushing attack from 2025.<\/p>\n

Seattle Seahawks May Need to Rely on Sam Darnold\"Sam<\/p>\n

GettySam Darnold may be the x-factor for the Seahawks in 2026.<\/p>\n

The departure of Walker to the Kansas City Chiefs<\/a> has created plenty of question marks<\/a> for the Seahawks running game. Yet, with Smith-Njigba, Shaheed, Horton, and Kupp at receiver plus Barner and Arroyo at tight end, quarterback Sam Darnold<\/a> has a plethora of receiving weapons to use next season.<\/p>\n

Darnold will have more time this offseason to build his chemistry with his pass catchers, so expectations could be high for the ninth year quarterback. He had a fantastic season last year, throwing for<\/a> 4048 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions. His best play came in the playoffs as he helped lead the Seahawks to their second Lombardi trophy.<\/p>\n

A major reason the Seahawks offense succeeded so much in 2025 was because of their running back room. Having a pass heavy offense with Darnold could be a risk as the Seahawks ranked second overall<\/a> in giveaways for 2025. That being said, the Seahawks have plenty of talent at receiver to be successful.<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tChris Lewis<\/a> is a freelance sports writer based in Gig Harbor, Washington. He focuses on NFL, MLB (with an emphasis on the Mariners), and professional golf. More about Chris Lewis<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Seahawks\n\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Tory Horton is expected to return to practice by training camp according to Seahawks general manager John…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":854245,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2081],"tags":[7,6,238,237,261,2635],"class_list":{"0":"post-854244","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-seattle-seahawks","8":"tag-football","9":"tag-nfl","10":"tag-seahawks","11":"tag-seattle","12":"tag-seattle-seahawks","13":"tag-seattleseahawks"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116349285559064034","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/854244","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=854244"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/854244\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/854245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=854244"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=854244"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=854244"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}