With the home opener just 10 days away, head coach Mike Macdonald will give the players a few days off to refresh and then set their sights on the Denver Broncos.
”Good practice today. We had a great week, and we are going into a few days off here,” said Macdonald after the teams last practice of the wee . “ So, get refreshed and, clear our minds, and get ready to play an NFL football game. So exciting times.”
The Seahawks took care of contractual NFL business this week by finalizing the 53-man roster and signing 15 players to the team’s practice squad. For Macdonald it was the first time he was part of the process.
“Yeah. The first time is your first time with everything. So, we work through it and we’ll move forward from here. We’ll have a little better understanding about how everything goes. So that’s kind of been par for the course, with just about everything we’ve done every day from February 1st until now. So, kind of getting used to doing the first things. But it was smooth. Open communication, thorough, and we’re on the same page the whole way through, so it was a good process.”
MacDonald was asked if his team could play an NFL game this Sunday.
“Yeah, we could go play. We would have a really crappy plan on defense, but we would be able to get some plays off. The guys executed well today but we’ll dial it in over the weekend. It will be really clear coming back with the extra time to work. But yeah, the guys are ready to go but we’re never going to turn down more reps.”
Macdonald’s hesitation stems from his high expectations for the defense, which he has revamped and is very clear about how he wants the unit to perform. That expectation is based on a defense that is fast, energetic, and dominant defense. The key to the defense performing all three phases is clear communication between the players.
“It’s everything. If you go out there and try to go play, where do you stand, where do you look, how do you move, how do you pursue, who are you working with. If you don’t know those things and you don’t do them over and over again you can’t play the right way”
Said Macdonald “ I really believe that (and) I think our guys understand that too. We’re not perfect but we’re making progress. Hopefully we’re here for a long time and you’re asking that question a long time from now and probably the answer will be the same. That’s the mentality.”
INJURY UPDATES
Macdonald gave an injury update on several key players’ availability for the Broncos game.
JEROME BAKER
“If Bake’s (Jerome Baker) cleared to go, he’ll be ready to go mentally. He’s a pro, he’s a great player. If he’s out there we’ll be excited to have him. If not, then T. Knight (Tyrice Knight) will be rolling.”
CONNOR WILLIAMS
“Well. He looks good. We’ll see next week where we’re at.”
ARTIE BURNS
“We’ll see next week.”
TYLER LOCKETT
“I mean, I hope so. I don’t want to be like he took x amount of reps or whatever. We’re looking optimistic but again you’ll be enlightened next week with kind of his practice status and all that”
DREMONT JONES
“The injury ones are tough. It’s like ‘Hey, we’re in game week now.’ We’ll give you as much as we can but right now it’s just we’ll see next week.”
PRACTICE SQUAD ADDITIONS
Before practice, the team added linebacker Tyrek Smith and cornerback Josh Jobe to the practice squad. The team released tackle Raiqwon Oneal, leaving one spot on the squad.
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