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The Seattle Seahawks are an intriguing team as the 2025 season approaches, as head coach Mike Macdonald gets ready for his second season as the lead man in the Pacific Northwest. The Seahawks nearly snuck into the postseason in 2024 thanks to a defense that improved dramatically as the season went along, but a disastrous offensive line and overall inconsistency on offense doomed them in the end.
Now, the Seahawks look a lot different for Macdonald's second season. Geno Smith is out at quarterback, and Sam Darnold is in as the new signal caller on a fresh three-year contract. DK Metcalf is also out as the team's top wide receiver, and Cooper Kupp has come in to complement Jaxon Smith-Njigba on the outside.
Defensively, the Seahawks look similar to last year but have also added former Dallas Cowboys pass rusher DeMarcus Lawrence on the edge to give Macdonald's defense even more pop. Around their stars, however, position battles are raging throughout training camp as everyone fights for their spot on the field when the regular season kicks off.
On Monday, the Seahawks released their first unofficial depth chart of training camp ahead of Thursday's preseason opener against the Las Vegas Raiders. Here are three first-stringers on that depth chart who are in danger of losing those spots as the season gets closer.
WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling
The Seahawks brought Valdes-Scantling in as a veteran wide receiver who was familiar with new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, but there is a chance that he may not even make it to the regular season as a starter on the depth chart. Valdes-Scantling is currently listed behind both Cooper Kupp and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but he will still likely be on the field in a lot of 11 personnel formations as a much-needed deep threat.
However, an unsung rookie may be right on Valdes-Scantling's heels as camp heats up. Former Colorado State standout Tory Horton is showing out in training camp and has been very impressive so far. Horton is listed behind the veteran speedster on the initial depth chart, but that could certainly change with a strong preseason showing.
Horton is a well-rounded receiver who is a great route runner and was very productive during his college career, even on a Colorado State offense that didn't have a lot of talent around him. In his three years in Fort Collins, Horton racked up 2,620 yards on 193 catches in just 30 games and scored 17 touchdowns. He dealt with an injury during his final season in college in 2024, but now he is healthy and appears to be coming for a starting wide receiver spot.
TE AJ Barner
AJ Barner was one of the pleasant surprises on the Seattle offense last season, as the Michigan product gave Macdonald and company a reliable option at tight end. Barner's strength is his blocking, which should be unlocked even more this season in Klint Kubiak's wide zone schemes that should help free up Kenneth Walker III for a big year.
While Barner was fairly productive for his smaller role last season in the passing game, catching 30 balls for 245 yards and four touchdowns, the Seahawks could look to get some more explosiveness from the tight end spot this season. That is why they drafted Elijah Arroyo in the second round out of Miami, and the 22-year old could find a bigger role on the team with a good showing in the preseason.
Arroyo struggled with injuries during his time in college, but he showed off his explosiveness in 2024 with Cam Ward throwing him the ball. In 13 games as a senior, he caught 35 balls for 590 yards and seven touchdowns.
Barner will certainly still have a role as a blocking tight end this season, but Arroyo can give the Seattle offense an element of juice at the position that it just doesn't have otherwise.
G Anthony Bradford
Anthony Bradford has made 21 starts at guard for the Seahawks over his first two seasons, but his job could be on the line this preseason. the group up front for Seattle was a major problem in 2024 and was a big reason there was no consistency in the running game and very little pass protection for Geno Smith.
Now Smith, who was excellent at managing pressure and avoiding negative plays in the face of it, is no longer in the Pacific Northwest. Sam Darnold's biggest weakness is the way that he handles pressure, both with sacks and turnovers showing up far too often in his game.
Therefore, there will be a lot of pressure on the Seahawks' offensive line to be much better this season. Bradford struggled last year, finishing 118th out of 136 guards in the NFL with a PFF grade of 48.3, and Mike Macdonald could opt to turn in a different direction this fall.
Christian Haynes didn't make any starts last year as a rookie after the Seahawks took him in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, but the UConn product has looked very good in training camp and could be on his way to winning the starting spot from Bradford.
