Seahawks players who will make the 53-man roster but don't deserve it

The Seattle Seahawks are set to play their first preseason game of 2024 when the team travels to Los Angeles to play the Chargers. Through three weeks of training camp, the likely roster appears to mostly be taking shape.

The four players that follow don't really deserve to make the roster, but due to the depth at their respective positions or because they might help in one aspect, they might stick on the team. That doesn't mean they will be overly productive.

With a solid start to the preseason, these players might cement their place on the team.

These Seahawks shouldn't make the roster but likely will

1. Laviska Shenault, Jr., wide receiver/kick returner

This is not meant as any offense to Shenault. He has only been with the team for a matter of months. The issue is that he has spent four seasons and his first two years were a bit more productive. After that, his production has decreased dramatically. He only had 10 catches in 2023. While potentially explosive, he has only averaged 9.8 yards per catch over the course of his career.

The hope is that he can be productive as a kick returner, but those chances might still be limited. The NFL changed its kickoff rules this offseason and general manager John Schneider certainly hopes he can find a player that can help the offense by getting great field position on kick returners. At this point, Shenault appears to be the front-runner for that.

The reason the receiver is listed here is that he might not help the offense much. What would be better is if a top receiver could also be the main kick returner so that another roster spot was open at a position of greater need. Shenault might keep a roster spot even though he only might do one thing well.

2. Darrell Taylor, edge rusher

The Seahawks did not choose an edge rusher in the 2024 draft though they did bring in a couple as undrafted free agents. Nelson Ceaser was one of the UDFAs signed and he might make a run at a roster spot, but otherwise Seattle seems set with Uchenna Nwosu, Boye Mafe, Taylor, and Derick Hall. Nwosu and Mafe are fine, Hall has had a good camp, but Taylor can only do one thing inconsistently well.

Taylor has a year left on his current deal as he was tendered to an offer this offseason. He will make around $3 million. He needs to earn his paycheck by becoming a much better run-stopper. In the three years he has played in the league, he has gotten sacks in bunches but has not done much otherwise.

Mike Macdonald likes his players to be positionally flexible. Taylor can only do one thing. If he wants to get a lot of playing time, he will need to show he has developed some versatility.

3. Marquise Blair, safety

Blair has a decent chance of making the initial 53-man roster because of a 2023 injury to Jerrick Reed II. Reed tore his ACL and is still on the PUP list. The guess is that he will not be ready by Week 1 and will begin the season on PUP and miss at least the first four games. Seattle has some decent talent at safety but is not deep at the position which means Blair could hang on as the fifth safety.

Blair likely should not be counted on to do much, however. He missed all of 2023 after no team wanted to sign him. Between 2020 and 2022, Blair only played in a total of 11 games and a total of 183 defensive snaps. Maybe he can help on special teams with the hope he never plays a defensive down.

Blair has a reputation for having a bit of a temper. This has shown up some in camp as well. He also was not the most disciplined of players when he did get snaps. He does have decent size and quickness, so if he can harness his energy in the right way, he might be able to be productive. That does not feel like a safe bet, though.

4. Dee Eskridge, wide receiver/kick returner

Eskridge should not make the team. He's been an astonishingly non-productive receiver in his three-year career. He has flashed some ability to return kicks, but as opposed to Shenault, he has never helped the offense. Also, after any flash of production, Eskridge usually gets quickly injured (again).

This week in camp, Eskridge has been quite bad. On Tuesday, he dropped passes (even when wide open deep) and ran the wrong routes. The only hope he has of making the roster is by beating out Shenault, but based on his injury history, Eskridge is more likely a cut candidate. That said, he has managed to stick around for three seasons so he cannot be counted out of making the team for a fourth season.

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