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Seahawks Rookie Minicamp 'An Awesome Start' For Rookies & Coaching Staff

Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald came away from two days of rookie minicamp pleased with the work the team was able to get done.

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After the second and final practice of rookie minicamp, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald gathered the 56 participants, a group made up of draft picks, undrafted free agent signings and tryout players, as well as the coaching staff for a group photo.

It was a moment worth documenting both for the players, as well as for a coaching staff going through this together for the first time.

"Great day, I was really proud of the progress from Day 1 to Day 2," Macdonald said. "The spirit was there, on their assignments—we're obviously going to be chasing all the things, but I thought it was a great rookie camp overall. What an awesome start, and I'm just proud of the jump we made, and we've got some really cool players out there. Great start."

Like any rookie minicamp, execution was far from perfect as a large group of players took the field together for the first time, but there were plenty of positives to take out of the weekend, and for draft picks and UDFAs who will be back on the field with veterans later this month for OTAs, the degree of difficulty will go up as they try to play catchup with experienced players who have been taking part in the offseason workout program for the past month.

"It's not easy," Macdonald said. "The vets have been here, they're going to have a pretty hefty install under their belts by the time these guys get here, so they'll be getting caught up throughout the rest of the spring. That's the way the NFL is, they'll just kind of dive in headfirst. There's a lot rules now that allow you to have extra time with rookies, so they'll have plenty of time to get caught up. We have a pretty cool program ready for them, and it'll be exciting for sure."

As for what Macdonald saw on the field from Day 1 to Day 2, the execution of the offense and by quarterbacks Chevan Cordeiro, Taulia Tagovailoa and Kory Curtis, the latter of who were participating as tryout players, improved on Saturday.

"It was good to see them complete some balls today," Macdonald said before the defensive coach in him came out, saying, "I was a little upset we didn't take the ball away more on defense… I thought they threw the ball well. Being able to operate the offense with the cadences—we weren't just snapping on one every time—so operation was solid, and I thought we handled the ball well for sure."

Of course there was also plenty of attention on first-round pick Byron Murphy II, and while it's always hard for a defensive or offensive lineman to really stand out in a non-padded practice with limited contact, the defensive tackle out of Texas still made a good first impression.

"Tough to really truly evaluate because of the tempo, but overall a good start," Macdonald said. "We're not going to crown him right now like he's the next best defensive tackle of all time, but we're really excited about it. He shows all the bend and the strength at the point of attack and acceleration."

The Seahawks completed their final practice of rookie minicamp on Saturday, May 4, 2024 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center. Check out the 12 best photos from their Saturday practice.

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