The Seattle Seahawks had a busy offseason as they made several major changes offensively. They moved on from quarterback Geno Smith, wide receivers DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett, and offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb.
They brought in Klint Kubiak to serve as the playcaller, Sam Darnold to run the offense, and Cooper Kupp to replace one of the two wide receivers. It was largely expected that Marquez Valdes-Scantling would assume the third wide receiver role alongside Kupp and the incumbent Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Seattle had several players stand out during the preseason as their new-look offense gave fans plenty of reason to trust the process, with many pundits suggesting the team is in line for a big season. The emergence of young talent led to Valdes-Scantling being released before he got the opportunity to make his regular season Seahawks debut.
Seattle Seahawks WR Tory Horton labeled as roster cutdown day winner
One of those young players who showed promise was fifth-round rookie Tory Horton, who figures to have a prominent role in the offense. Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report labeled him as Seattle’s winner from roster cutdown day.
Horton had a strong preseason and was able to climb up the Seahawks’ depth chart. His rising role in Seattle led to him being labeled as a winner of roster cutdown day by Knox:
“The Seattle Seahawks made several moves to shake up their receiving corps this offseason. They released Tyler Lockett and traded DK Metcalf before signing Cooper Kupp and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Rookie fifth-round pick Tory Horton may have been viewed as more of an afterthought, but he’s shaping up to be anything but. The Colorado State product impressed during the preseason, made the active roster and will likely see a substantial early role following the release of Valdes-Scantling.”
Horton played well in his two preseason appearances as he recorded 43 receiving yards and one touchdown on four receptions. Meanwhile, Valdes-Scantling hardly played over the first two preseason games before recording three receptions for 33 yards in the finale.
It was clear that the veteran did not have a role in Seattle, as Horton and Jake Bobo had both seemingly passed him on the depth chart. His release and subsequent deal with the rival San Francisco 49ers, however, opens the door for the young players to completely take the reins as the third and fourth wide receivers on the Seahawks roster behind Smith-Njigba and Kupp.
While fifth-round picks typically don’t receive the opportunity to be a Day 1 contributor, Horton’s strong training camp will give him a chance to make an immediate impact. The wide receiver, who fell in the draft due to a knee injury that prematurely ended his final season in college, could wind up looking like the steal of the draft.
