Seahawks training camp battle: Wide receivers beyond Lockett and Metcalf

Seahawks could find a true threat among the new arrivals

The Seahawks doubled down in the 2022 draft several times. They drafted a matched pair of tackles to anchor the offensive line for the next decade in Charles Cross and Abe Lucas. In the second and fifth rounds, the Hawks added a pair of edge rushers, Boye Mafe and Tyreke Smith. On day three they added a pair of corners, Coby Bryant and Tariq Woolen, who could be patrolling the secondary for that same decade.

The Seahawks continued their obsession with twin position players when they selected a pair of wide receivers in the seventh round. I have to agree with our own Carson Schroer, the Hawks pulled off a heist picking up Bo Melton that late. Rutgers isn’t exactly the football factory of the Big 10, which makes Melton’s ability all the more impressive.

He led the Scarlet Knights in receiving in his last three seasons, and as Carson wrote, was a solid contributor on special teams as a gunner. If he makes the squad, it will certainly be through his efforts to put opposing returners on the turf as quickly as possible.

The final pick of the Hawks draft was Melton’s twin – at least by position – Dareke Young. As you might expect for a player taken from Lenoir-Rhyne, he hasn’t exactly faced competition at the level of the NFL. All you really need to know about the Lenoir-Rhyne offense is that they ran the Wing-T. For those of you not well-versed in ancient football history, the last time an NFL team consistently ran that offense was in 1978, and the Chiefs were a major aberration then.

Young is big, 6’2″ and 224 pounds, and had twice as many touches in the backfield than as a receiver as a junior. Like Melton, he has a lot of experience on special teams. Unlike most NFL players, Young earned a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Physics.

You don’t exactly see that every day, do you, 12s? I’m pretty sure he’ll be able to handle an NFL playbook. As Lee Vowell wrote in his draft profile, Young was an explosive playmaker in college. As a junior, Young scored four times on 49 carries and tallied eight more scores on just 25 catches. The man can put the rock in the end zone. He probably plots every route out on a slide rule. slide rule; google it, kids. Regardless, he certainly has an uphill battle to make the 53-man roster.

The last addition to the Hawks roster is veteran Marquise Goodwin. His calling card is speed and a lot of it. At least it was when he was drafted by the Bills in 2013. Goodwin’s best season was with the Niners in 2017, when he hauled in 56 catches for 962 yards. He only scored twice but did manage to move the chains 46 times, a remarkable rate of 82 percent.

Lockett’s best rate was 65 percent, which he reached in both 2018 and 2019. Metcalf’s best was 76 percent in 2020. Goodwin could definitely be a valuable and viable third target for the Seahawks if he’s retained his blazing 4.27 speed. If he’s slowed significantly, he’ll face an uphill battle from younger, more versatile players.

That’s it, 12s. As you can see, the Hawks will see some furious competition to make the squad at wide receiver. Scanning the interwebs, virtually everyone has a different opinion on who the fifth and sixth receivers will be – and for that matter if there will even be a sixth. USA Today’s seahawkswire.com shows Goodwin, Young, and Melton fourth, fifth, and sixth, with Freddie Swain seventh.

Frankly, I’d be shocked if Seattle carried seven WRs. SI.com predicts the seventh-round twins Melton and Young will be the fifth and sixth wideouts after the consensus quartet. Writing for theathletic.com, Michael-Shawn Dugar sees Goodwin and Thompson making those last two spots. Lee Vowell – yes, that’s his real name – sees Melton as taking the fifth spot, albeit mainly for his special teams skill. As for me, I’m holding out for the return of Doug Baldwin.