The Seahawks held a "Bonus Day" practice on Sunday at Virginia Mason Athletic Center, and afterwards, Pete Carroll met with the media to discuss what he saw out of the offensive line in this past Thursday's preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings, share personnel updates on players like running back Thomas Rawls, as well as offer thoughts on the re-signing of fullback Will Tukuafu.
Here's a few leftover thoughts from the Seahawks head coach following this past weekend's practice:
1. Tony McDaniel "Had A Good Game"
Veteran defensive tackle Tony McDaniel's signing was announced on Tuesday, August 16 following a Leavenworth-vacation turned job opportunity. Two days after inking his new deal, McDaniel, who started for the Seahawks in 2013 and 2014 and spent last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was suited up in a Seattle uniform at CenturyLink Field. Against Minneosta, he collected two tackles, including one for loss, playing 24 percent of the defensive snaps as part of the Seahawks' D-line rotation against Minnesota.
"He had a good game, he did a good job," Carroll said. "He was physical, tough in the last scrimmage, got involved in a couple plays. Like we said earlier, he showed up in really good shape and it carried over. In the first couple instances I think we had 12 plays, it will probably be about the same this week. We'll keep them down, but we're pleased to see him. We know that his style fits us and he takes us to a different kind of defensive end when we put him there. He's a three technique, but when he plays defensive end he plays huge and he has a real style about him, so we immediately click back in that asset that he brings us. We'll see how that works, but everybody's pretty excited about it."
2. What He Saw At Running Back
Carroll has made it clear the Seahawks will not rush Rawls back into action this preseason, maintaining the thought that he'll be ready for the regular-season opener. But in Rawls' place, Christine Michael has been the Seahawks' most consistent runner. He's totaled 99 yards on 17 carries (5.8-yard average) through two exhibition games and could provide what Carroll has called a strong one-two punch once Rawls returns.
"I think what's a really positive thing for us is to have Christine playing the way he's playing for us," Carroll said. "He's been a really positive addition and it allows us to have a really comfortable feeling of let's make sure we take care of Thomas throughout and he's really ready to go."
Behind Michael and Rawls, rookies Alex Collins and Troymaine Pope have seen the most work. Here's what Carroll had to say about what he saw from each player against Minnesota, when Collins carried six times for 13 yards and made one catch for eight yards, and Pope rushed 10 times for 86 yards and a touchdown:
(On Collins...) "It was good to get some carries in there, six or seven carries. The opportunities weren't great, he got some big penetration on the short yardages shots that he had, but he looked better as the game went on. He made some good moves, he had a nice catch and run, so we'll just continue to give him some more."
(On Pope...) "I thought he was pretty exciting, I liked him and he looked pretty good. We need to come back and see what that looks like the next couple of weeks, too."
3. Frank Clark Looks "Explosive"
Bruce Irvin's departure in free agency this offseason means the Seahawks will ask more of second-year defensive end Frank Clark in 2016, with Clark having a good chance at replacing Irvin's pass-rushing role. Clark played 53 percent of the team's defensive snaps against Minnesota, including four snaps on special teams, as he racked up four tackles, one sack, and one pass defensed. On Sunday, Carroll reiterated what he said earlier this offseason in that the Seahawks "just need him on the field more."
"I think he looks really good," Carroll said. "He's exciting, he's explosive, a dynamic football player and like we were saying, we just need him on the field more. We've got different ways to do that and he's been effective and hard to deal with so far. We're hoping we'll just keep adding him in and you'll see him in different spots during the season. We'll have to wait and see what that is but we're preparing him to do that."
Check out some photos from Preseason Week 2: Seattle Seahawks vs. Minnesota Vikings at CenturyLink Field.