4 Seattle Seahawks players that can lock up 2023 roster spot in Preseason Week 2
By Lee Vowell
Seattle Seahawks safety (?) Coby Bryant
Coby Bryant is going to make the team, so he isn't on this list because I think he might not make the roster. But the question about Coby Bryant is where he makes the team. He started at slot corner in 2022 and wasn't terrible. But he also wasn't great, and that is one reason that the Seahawks have given rookie Devon Witherspoon a lot of looks at nickel with an eye on placing him there and, therefore, displacing Bryant.
Bryant was then moved to safety a few weeks ago. He played that spot in preseason Week 1 against the Minnesota Vikings. Bryant had never played safety before so he has a bit of a learning curve. Pro Football Focus wasn't exactly sure how to grade Bryant either. While he had the fifth-worst grade among Seattle defenders against Minnesota, he graded well with his tackling and run defense. Where he struggled, per PFF, was in pass coverage.
That is to be expected as well. Bryant likely is still learning the coverage schemes from safety and getting the right communication down. He's not ready to start Week 1 as a safety but that also is not the expectation, either. But he definitely could become a quality backup for either Julian Love or Quandre Diggs if one of those guys gets hurt.
But currently, Witherspoon is hurt. Witherspoon has dealt with some kind of hamstring injury since college, so there should be a worry this is going to affect him long-term. But Witherspoon is missing a ton of meaningful reps in practice so Bryant might have to be moved back to nickel to begin 2023. So while Bryant will make the team, he may not know his spot yet and he could go from starter at nickel to backup at safety.