Here’s rule one about interpreting news from the first week of NFL training camps. Don’t overreact to such things as the proceedings between the Seattle Seahawks and Robbie Ouzts. Scenarios can take many forms. Players beginning on the PUP list, hold-outs, or its new fancy cousin, hold-ins. These things do not doom a franchise. If the issue is resolved quickly, they do not matter at all.
One of our favorite overreactions comes from seeing who is lining up with whom, and at what position. Players taking first-team reps in week one don't mean they will be starting when the games count. And players lining up at new positions need to be taken cautiously as well.
Case in point… Last summer, for about five minutes, guard Christian Haynes took some snaps at center. We all jumped on this news, thinking this was a way to solve two potential problems.
Don’t read too much into the Seattle Seahawks playing Robbie Ouzts at tight end
With Olu Oluwatimi injured, the Seahawks did not have an obvious starting center, and Haynes had been a washout at guard during his rookie season. As we all know, the experiment did not last. Jalen Sundell seized the job, with Oluwatimi as his backup. Haynes went back to being a reserve guard.
This brings us to second-year player Robbie Ouzts.
General manager John Schneider surprised a lot of observers when he spent a fifth-round pick on Ouzts in the 2025 draft. The Alabama tight end was viewed by most as a sixth- or seventh-round pick. There was some thought he might not even hear his name called and become a priority undrafted free agent.
But Schneider had several good reasons for taking Ouzts early.
First – and this cannot be stressed enough – Schneider had piled up a lot of draft capital. The GM added eleven new players via the ’25 draft. Having so many picks allowed him to reach at times. He took a chance on Jalen Milroe in the third round as well as diving in early on Ouzts.
Schematically, he also knew that the Alabama tight end was not likely to play that spot for the Seahawks. The new offensive coordinator, Klint Kubiak, intended to use a fullback on anywhere between 25 and 50% of Seattle's offensive snaps. Ouzts had lined up in the backfield or in a wing position quite a bit in college. That was always the intention for him in the pros.
Ouzts’ rookie season was nothing special. He was injured early and missed some time. For the year, he played 12 games – 138 offensive snaps. He did show some prowess as a lead blocker, but at key moments, Kubiak preferred using blocking tight ends AJ Barner and Eric Saubert.
So what does 2026 have in store for Ouzts? That’s impossible to say right now. But some observers have pointed out he has been practicing as an inline tight end early in camp. New offensive coordinator Brian Fleury is a bit of an unknown. Will he want to employ a fullback the way Kubiak did last year?
If he does, can we even be sure it will be Ouzts? Another former tight end, Brady Russell, practiced at fullback last year, ostensibly as a backup to Ouzts. Russell is a virtual lock for the roster given his special teams prowess. If Fleury does not intend to run a lot of fullback sets, perhaps Russell will be the choice, and Ouzts will be the odd man out.
That has some fans wondering if Ouzts needs to win a job as a blocking tight end, similar to the role Nick Kallerup held last season. That is entirely possible. I would only suggest we hold off on reading the tea leaves and assume that it is a done deal.
Robbie Ouzts taking snaps at tight end is nothing special. Not in the first week of camp. If we’ve learned anything about the way Mike Macdonald runs a football team, it’s that he prefers versatile players.
The more things a player can do, the better it is for the club. Giving Ouzts some reps at tight end could come in handy should he have to line up there due to injury at some point this season. At this point, it doesn’t mean anything more than that.
Now, ask me this question again if he is taking snaps on the line during the Seahawks’ preseason games. I might view it differently. In July, it is merely something to file away for future reference.
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