As the Seahawks count down to the beginning of training camp July 28 we are counting down the Seahawks roster from 90-1.
Today, a look at players 80-71.
80. Walter Palmore
Position: Defensive tackle.
Potential role in 2021: The 6-3, 317-pounder will try to earn a spot as a rotational player at the defensive tackle spots, where the starters, Poona Ford and Al Woods, appear set.
Why he’s ranked here: Palmore, signed in May, appeared in one game last year for the Cowboys making three solo tackles and a QB hit. Seahawks are sure to keep at least one DT on the practice squad.
79. Alex McGough
Position: Quarterback.
Potential role in 2021: McGough, a seventh-round pick of the Seahawks in 2018 who returned late last season to the practice squad, will most logically battle with Danny Etling for a spot on the practice squad as the team’s de facto third-team QB.
Why he’s ranked here: McGough raised some excitement in the 2018 preseason with Seattle completing 36-62 for 416 yards with three TDs. But he left after that season for Jacksonville, later spent time with Houston and has yet to appear in a regular-season game.
78. Saivion Smith
Position: Cornerback
Potential role in 2021: Will try to find a way during camp to stand out in a crowded cornerback race.
Why he’s ranked here: Smith, signed as a free agent in May, is an intriguing prospect, a former highly-ranked recruit who played at both LSU and Alabama. He saw 74 snaps in six games with Dallas last year including a start late in the season. But there’s a lot of competition at corner.
77. Connor Wedington
Position: Wide receiver.
Potential role in 2021: Seattle has 12 receivers on the roster heading into camp. Probably no more than six will make the initial 53-man roster. But two or three likely will make the practice squad, and that might be the most logical goal this year for the former Sumner High standout.
Why he’s ranked here: It will be interesting to see if Wedington gets much work in the return game in camp. Seattle’s return spots seem open, with Tyler Lockett now pretty much concentrating on receiver, and that could be a way for Wedington — and a few others on the roster — to make a run at a spot.
76. Aashari Croswell
Position: Safety.
Potential role in 2021: Crosswell played mostly free safety in the offseason program and will work for a backup spot behind the starter there, Quandre Diggs.
Why he’s ranked here: The youngest player on the roster at 20 (and the only one born in the 2000s), Crosswell impressed as a big-play maker as a sophomore at Arizona State in 2019, and his youth and status as a former four-star recruit figures to get him a long look.
75. Aaron Fuller
Position: Wide receiver.
Potential role in 2021: Like Wedington, the former UW standout will compete with a half-dozen or so other receivers to try to earn a roster spot, but most likely to be one of the two or three on the practice squad.
Why he’s ranked here: Fuller spent all of last season on the practice which gives him a little bit of a head start on the rookies. Conversely, having no preseason games means Fuller has yet to play in an NFL game of any kind. He made a few big plays in scrimmages last year, though, and will need to repeat that this year in the preseason games to catch the eye of coaches.
74. Greg Eiland
Position: Offensive tackle.
Potential role in 2021: The Seahawks enter camp with eight tackles listed on the roster. The top three seem set — Duane Brown at left tackle and Brandon Shell and Cedric Ogbuehi competing for the starting job on the right — leaving the rest to compete for depth roles/practice squad spots.
Why he’s ranked here: Eiland started 34 games at Mississippi State, mostly at left and right tackle but some at guard under first-year coach Mike Leach in 2020. He’s listed at 6-8, 321, tied for the tallest player on the roster.
73. Myles Adams
Position: Defensive tackle.
Potential role in 2021: Adams appears most suited for the three-technique tackle spot in the base defense, hoping to earn a backup spot there behind Poona Ford, who appears ticketed to play that position more this year after the departure of Jarran Reed.
Why he’s ranked here: Adams was in camp last year with Carolina and then signed to Seattle’s practice squad late in the season. He’ll have to show he can play multiple spots to earn a long look.
72. Tommy Champion
Position: Offensive tackle.
Potential role in 2021: Hoping to forge his way into the competition for a backup spot at right tackle.
Why he’s ranked here: Champion was on the practice squad all last season, so the Seahawks see something they like. He also played guard at Mississippi State, and versatility would be his best way to make the roster.
71. Nate Evans
Position: Linebacker.
Potential role in 2021: Claimed off waivers from Jacksonville in May, Evans seems to project as a backup at the two inside spots.
Why he’s ranked here: Evans was on Jacksonville’s practice squad all last season before being waived. He has an intriguing background as a three-time team captain at Central Florida, where he was a teammate of Shaquill and Shaquem Griffin, and made 112 tackles in 2019.
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