2. Schneider is happy with what he’s seen from Geno Smith and Sam Howell, and a third quarterback is in the works.
The Seahawks currently have two quarterbacks on their 53-man roster, Geno Smith and Sam Howell, but none on their practice squad. That could change at some point, either by bringing PJ Walker back to the practice squad or by looking elsewhere.
“PJ might come back,” Schneider said. “I’m not sure, we’re still working through a lot of that stuff.”
As for the team’s two current quarterbacks, Schneider likes what he’s seen from Smith, a two-time Pro Bowler, and Howell, who Seattle acquired in a trade in the offseason.
“I thought Geno looked great in all the practices and everything,” Schneider said. “He took a few hits this week, but Sam (Howell) did a great job coming in and learning a new offense. You have to remember that for these guys, this is like learning a whole new language. It’s a tough thing. It’s the toughest job in football, period.”
3. Why the Seahawks kept 11 offensive linemen on the original 53-man roster.
Over the years, the Seahawks have typically had nine or 10 offensive linemen on the 53-man roster, but right now they have at least 11, including three rookies, sixth-round picks Sataoa Laumea and Mike Jerrell, and undrafted free agent Jalen Sundell. Schneider said the number of linemen on the team just reflects a trend in the league where good offensive linemen are in high demand.
“We’ve thought about 12, and that’s just the landscape of what the National Football League looks like, not just the National Football League, but college football,” he said. “It’s not a position with a lot of depth, and you need a whole group of guys working together as a unit, so you have to keep trying to figure it out; I think there are several teams that have kept 11, maybe 12. There are a couple teams that have kept 22 on both sides of the ball, inside, and then you figure out how to move forward at the back later on, and you’ll see a lot more roster movement over the next few days as guys get settled in.
4. The Seahawks have had their eye on Connor Williams for some time.
The Seahawks signed Connor Williams earlier this month with the intention of making him their center, and even though they signed him ahead of his seventh season, he’s a player the team has had on their radar for a long time.
Because of his athletic ability, Williams spent his college career as a left tackle at the University of Texas, but then moved to the guard position in the NFL before finally finding a home at center, which is exactly where executive director of player personnel Matt Berry always envisioned Williams succeeding.
“He played all over the line of scrimmage, in college he played outside and we had him envisioned as a center — Matt Berry really liked him as a center. He was like, ‘Man, this guy is going to be a phenomenal center,'” Schneider said. “But with those numbers, it’s tough at offensive tackle. There’s a lack of depth at that position. So he got drafted as a tackle and he played. Matt always said, ‘If we could ever get him to play center, he’d be a great guy.’ Miami ended up doing it with him. I would say his quickness, intelligence, leadership, toughness, his second level, his movements, you see on screens and stuff when he’s running in space, and he just has a really cool spatial awareness when he’s out there, and he’s a really good athlete for his size.”
5. The Seahawks have tried to sign outside linebacker Trevis Gipson in the past.
The Seahawks signed outside linebacker Trevis Gipson to add depth at the position, especially with Uchenna Nwosu dealing with a knee injury. And as Schneider noted, Monday’s trade wasn’t the team’s first attempt to sign Gipson.
“We tried to sign him a couple of times, so I gave them grief,” Schneider said. “I said, ‘Hey, man, you can’t decide to go anywhere else now because we actually traded you this time. We signed papers and stuff, so you’re coming.'”
