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Rookie Defensive Backs Bring 'Contagious Spirit' to Seahawks Rookie Minicamp

Rookie defensive backs Bud Clark and Julian Neal brought energy to Seattle’s two-day rookie minicamp.

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After the Seahawks selected safety Bud Clark and cornerback Julian Neal on Day 2 of last week's draft, general manager and president of football operations John Schneider noted the big personalities and confidence both brought to the team.

"They're both really confident guys," Schneider said. "Bud is going to be fun too. He's a blast. Mike and I were talking about the personalities. Throughout the process, if we put Bud and (Devon Witherspoon) in the same room, what's going to happen?"

Neal and Clark brought big personality and humor to their conference calls with media shortly after being drafted, then again on Friday following Day 1 of rookie minicamp, but more importantly, they're bringing that juice on the field as well. As much as a player can stand out in a rookie minicamp setting, Clark and Neal were both easy to notice, at times because of their play but also because of the energy and volume they brought to the practice.

And it was only fitting that after the second and final practice of rookie camp, Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald had Clark breakdown the final team huddle.

"I think John said he's the opposite of an energy vampire," Macdonald said. "He just broke down the last huddle, and the team went nuts. You can just tell he's got a contagious spirit about him, which we obviously love… If we had a third practice it would have been Julian."

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The Seahawks selected Clark, who had 15 interceptions over the past four seasons at TCU, in the second round, then added Neal, the self-described "most physical corner in this draft class" in round three. Both have a chance to compete for significant roles in the secondary, which lost safety Coby Bryant and cornerback Riq Woolen in free agency. And while it will take until August, at the earliest, to know what role those two will have on defense, what is showing up already is the juice they bring to practice, and the bond that is already forming between the four defensive backs—Neal, Clark and cornerbacks Andre Fuller and Michael Dansby—who were selected in last week's draft.

"I'm already locked in with them," Fuller said of the bond forming between the rookie defensive backs. "They're my dogs."

Clark and Neal got to know each other a bit in the pre-draft process as both trained in the same area in Texas. When they crossed paths for some workouts, Clark's initial takeaway was that Neal was "a big dog" at corner.

"I was like, 'Who is this big old corner, bruh?'" Clark said. "I'm a safety he's bigger than me. I was like, 'You're sure a big dog.' But getting to know him has been amazing. I feel like we've grown our friendship, grown our teammateship. We're going to be great together.

"Honestly, I feel like it's going to be a great duo between me and Julian for sure."

Neal, like everyone else new to Clark, has been impressed by the spirit the safety brings to the team.

"That dude, he's different man—in a good way," Neal said. "He's lively, he's a great teammate. I'm sitting right next to him at my locker. He's a different type of guy, I'm excited to play with him and be able to play with him this season."

The Seahawks 2026 rookie class hit the field for a practice on day one of rookie minicamp on May 1, 2026 at the Virginia Mason Athletic Center.

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