Seattle Seahawks 53-man roster: Updated cuts tracker and reaction

The Seahawks have to trim their roster to 53 players by Tuesday afternoon. There will be some tough cuts going from 80 players in preseason game three to 53. That means 27 players that Pete Carroll and company have kept an eye on are gone. The remaining players will be expected to help the team make the playoffs once again.

Seattle’s starters are pretty much set but depth can make the difference between a team making the playoffs or not. In the Seahawks case, no matter what national pundits tell you, the team should make the postseason and hopefully make a deep run towards the Super Bowl.

Hopefully, the players cut by Seattle will not come back to haunt them in the regular season. But anything is possible and keeping one player over another can get a coach judged harshly.

Seahawks roster cut tracker for the 2021 season

Tight end Ian Bunting

Bunting didn’t stick around too long with the Seahawks signing after Luke Willson was re-signed and then almost immediately retired. Bunting, like all the cuts, could be a candidate for the Seattle practice squad.

Tight end Cam Sutton

I guess Bunting and Sutton (and Sutton did not look terrible in preseason) being cut is a good sign for Colby Parkinson’s return. Keeping an extra tight end or two around might have meant Parkinson was going to miss a lot more time.

Receiver Darece Roberson

Roberson had little chance of making the roster as he wasn’t really a special teamer and there are so many receivers ahead of him on the depth chart. But man, he was fun to watch sometimes in the second halves of preseason games. He definitely brought a joy for playing.

Tackle Tommy Champion

I am a bit surprised by Champion. He wasn’t going to start by any means but the team seemed to like him. Look for him to land on the practice squad again, just like in 2020.

Defensive tackle Jarrod Hewitt

Hewitt went undrafted this year but did some decent things in preseason when trying to stop the run. He isn’t a pass rusher so won’t garner a lot of looks from other teams and will likely end up back on the Seahawks practice squad.

Receiver Travis Toivonen

Toivonen had little chance to show what he could do in the preseason. He might be signed to the practice squad but may have a difficult time even doing that. He doesn’t appear to be able to create any kind of separation against even backup cornerbacks.

Cornerback John Reid

Seattle traded for John Reid recently but they didn’t give up much to get him from the Texans – a conditional 7th round pick that required Reid to be on the roster for 6 games. Clearly, that isn’t happening. The trade for Sidney Jones on Monday made Reid expendable. Maybe Seattle just wanted to kick the tires on what Reid could bring but he clearly did not impress.

Receiver Connor Wedington

Wedington had a decent chance of making the team as a special teamer but not as a receiver. In the end, the Seahawks might simply have too many guys versatile enough to play on special teams and also within the scheme of the offense and defense.

Guard Jordan Simmons

Simmons might be the most surprising cut so far as he played in 14 games for Seattle last year and started 6 times. He played 56 percent of offensive snaps in 2020. Simmons will likely get picked up by another team if Seattle doesn’t find a way to re-sign him.

Tight end Tyler Mabry

I actually thought Mabry had a decent shot at making the team. But like with Cam Sutton, Mabry not making the active roster might mean good things for Parkinson being ready week one.

Defensive lineman Robert Nkemdiche

Nkemdiche came into training camp seemingly motivated. Then he missed all the preseason games. For a player who has struggled with injuries his entire career, this was not a good sign heading into the 2021 season.

Cornerback/safety Damarious Randall

Randall just didn’t show enough in training camp and preseason to separate himself from his fellow competitors.

Center Brad Lundblade

Seattle’s starting center spot will be between Ethan Pocic and Kyle Fuller. The Seahawks like versatility among their offensive linemen so any player, like Lundblade, have little chance of making the team unless they are an absolutely perfect fit at a certain position.

Receiver Cody Thompson

Thompson was among the group of several guys with a real chance of making the team. Seattle cutting Thompson, who will likely make the practice squad for the third straight season, makes it more and more likely that Penny Hart and Freddie Swain both make the active roster.

Linebacker Lakiem Williams

No surprise here even though Williams is a local product and it would have been awesome to see if make the team. Seattle simply has too many other linebackers ahead of him for him to make the active roster.

Safety Joshua Moon

Moon did some nice things in preseason against backups of other teams but Seattle’s safety group is too deep for Moon to have a chance to make the team.

Receiver Penny Hart

Hart never exactly exceeded expectations. He is likely to be signed to the Seahawks practice squad and is a good guy in the locker room but he disappointed versus the Chargers in the final preseason game.

Receiver Aaron Fuller

Fuller just doesn’t seem to be able to catch on in the NFL. He’s got quickness and can return punts but I guess he doesn’t return punts well enough or have enough quickness. Being just below what it takes to make a team means you don’t make a team. And I like Fuller.

Running back Josh Johnson

One of the biggest questions about the 2021 roster is which players complete the Seattle running back group but Johnson was never a real favorite to make the team.

Cornerback Gavin Heslop

Heslop might be better than some other players who make the active 53-man roster at CB. But that doesn’t mean Heslop is good which means a lot of CBs who make the team might not be that good either.

Tackle Greg Eiland

I am surprised Eiland wasn’t among the earlier announced roster cuts which makes me worried there’s a very small chance that Duane Brown doesn’t play week one.

Linebacker Jon Rhattigan

Rhattigan was good at times against backups and no one is going to play with more heart. The biggest question is does he go back into military service or find an NFL team to play for.

Guard Jared Hocker

Hocker is also a practice squad candidate and needs quite a few reps to get anywhere near playing.