What a steal that Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Tory Horton appears on the verge of becoming. The fifth-round 2025 draft pick, who even then was talked about as going as high as the third round except for a knee injury in his final season of college, wasn't expected to be full-go by training camp.
He is. And he is making the most of the reps he is getting. The key is that the reps he is getting are growing. This is because Horton simply keeps making highlight-worthy plays and proving he can run routes crisply every day in training camp.
On Friday, with less than one week before Seattle plays its first 2025 preseason game, the rookie got a bunch of work with the first-team offense, pushing veteran Marquez Valdes-Scantling to second-team, at least temporarily. Once running beside Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp, Horton used the attention focused on them to create havoc for the defense.
Seattle Seahawks rookie Tory Horton continues to make plays in training camp
Fellow rookie and second-round choice Nick Emmanwori keeps being impressed by Horton. The safety told the media after practice, "I think he’s one of the best receivers I’ve seen as far as like growing and developing. You seen him today — he was making all types of plays. I think he’s going to be the steal of the draft. Once he gets on the field, he’ll definitely show what he can do for sure."
This says quite a bit because, other than Tory Horton, Nick Emmanwori has been the most impressive rookie at camp. The defensive back is making the kind of plays on his side of the ball that Horton is making on the offensive side. In other words, 12s should get used to Horton and Emmanwori's names being called.
During one 11-on-11 drill, Horton went on a deep post and shielded his defender from the ball to reel in a 38-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Drew Lock. Despite his speed (none of which seems to have been lost when he hurt his knee last year), the nearly 6'3" receiver is proving he can grab balls in traffic, too.
Of course, this is all great, and Horton is creating buzz while going up against a very good group of defensive backs in Seahawks practice, but how well he does in the preseason might cement his status of where he ends up on the depth chart.
Temporarily pushing MVS to the second team is nice, and, to be fair, would be great long-term for the team if Horton produces in real games. But rookie receivers also have notoriously difficult times in their first seasons in the NFL. Maybe Tory Horton will prove to be an outlier.
But without a doubt, Horton has become one of the reasons that Seattle Seahawks preseason games are even more must-watch for 12s in 2025. The same can be said of Nick Emmanwori, too. And, likely, rookie quarterback Jalen Milroe.