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Seattle‘s three-time Pro Bowl cornerback said far more about his contract negotiations with the only NFL team he’s know than last week in the first episode of NFL Films’ series on the Seahawks training camp than he did Tuesday. That was in a press conference with the people who cover the team locally every day all year.
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The News Tribune asked Witherspoon following the 15th practice of camp how he views his contract situation while he practices fully each day.
“I’m not worried about that right now,” he said. “I’m out here focused on making plays, trying to get better day by day.
“We’ve got other stuff we are focused on. Ultimately, we are trying to win games. That’s what I’m focused on.”
Is it goal of Witherspoon’s to have the new contract finalized before the NFL season begins Sept. 9 with Seattle against New England at Lumen Field, for him to have it done before he and his teammates defend their Super Bowl title this season?
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“Like I said, I’m really not focusing on that right now,” Witherspoon said.
In the first episode of Hard Knocks that aired last week on HBO, Witherspoon spoke to an NFL Films camera that was positioned in the passenger seat of the 25-year-old cornerback’s car on what appeared, judging by the lush green trees passing by in the background, to be a drive to or from another Seahawks training-camp day at team headquarters.
“Outside of quarterbacks, we got the hardest position on the field man,” Witherspoon said in the first Hard Knocks episode. “It’s hard to guard these guys, especially when you can’t touch them past 5 yards.
“So when you got a guy who can really shut down a receiver, can be versatile like I am, you don’t come across those guys often, for real.
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“So, when you got a premier corner like that it’s just–you pay him. Like, please pay him. That’s all we sayin’.
“But it’s not really somethin’ that’s on my mind right now. My mind is to go win football games, bro. We’re trying to be the best team that we can be for this year. And stuff like that just get in the way of doin’ that.”
The second episode of Hard Knocks on this Seahawks training camp was to air Tuesday night on HBO.
Family Day was Fight Day at Seahawks training camp.
The biggest events of camp’s 15th practice Tuesday in front of the players’ and coaches’ family member happened outside the field they were scrimmaging on in full pads.
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Camp’s biggest fight yet happened one play after a sideline official flagged wide receiver Tory Horton for offensive pass interference pushing into cornerback Nathaniel Pritchett with a two-arm shiver. That was with Horton coming out of his break on a deep out route in an 11-on-11 scrimmage. The pass fell to the grass incomplete.
The defensive players yelled at Horton for the penalty. On his way back to his offense’s huddle, Horton went into the defensive huddle and talked smack at all 11 players there.
Horton lined up flanked outside left again for the next snap. He caught a quick pass outside, in front of arriving safety Ty Okada. Okada hit Horton one hard in his back from behind after the play was over. Then he hit him again. Then Okada hit Horton a third time in the back, along the sideline where all the defensive players were massed.
Horton, the team’s fifth-round pick last year from Colorado State in his first weeks back from a cracked shin that ended his rookie season in November, went at Okada following the third late hit. Okada threw Horton to the ground, and into the mass of about three-dozen defensive players.
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With the players’ and coaches’ significant others and kids watching from across the way, a giant pile of defensive players went at the fallen Horton. He was almost the lone offensive player on the sideline opposite his offensive teammates. When an offensive lineman ran over from the middle of the field to try to assist Horton, linebacker Derick Hall stood in front of him and stopped him.
Coaches yelled: “Wasting time! Time to get back to playing ball!”
Finally, after a minute of wrestling, they did.
Okada stayed in scrimmaging.
After the fight, the charged-up defense bulled through the offensive line for two sacks.
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Earlier in the practice, linebacker Chazz Surratt drilled a tight end in the back after a catch as he was going out of bounds. Macdonald threw him out of the scrimmage for that.
Perhaps the most important action of the day related to this Seahawks season happened on the back field during position and group drills early in practice.
Running back Zach Charbonnet hopped and moved laterally with the cable of a resistance machine strapped around his waist. It’s the evolution of his eventual return from reconstructive knee surgery in February. The presumed lead back replacing departed Kenneth Walker remains on the physically-unable-to-perform list.
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Next to him with another trainer, rookie running back and first-round draft choice Jadarian Price ran diagonal, change-of-direction sprints. He also ran 10- and 20-yard straight-line sprints. Price missed his fourth consecutive practice with what coach Mike Macdonald said Saturday is “upper-leg tightness.”
It seems unlikely Price will play Saturday when the Seahawks have their preseason opener against Dallas at Lumen Field.
Next to Price and Charbonnet, rookie cornerback Julian Neal ran in a practice-uniform and pads. He was running change-of-direction sprints. The third-round pick this spring is a couple days back from missing two weeks with a leg injury, though again he did not scrimmage Tuesday.
In the end zone of a side field, Nick Emmanwori worked with an assistant on pass-rush moves. The hybrid safety/linebacker key to all Macdonald does on the front, middle and back of his top-ranked defense passed his team physical earlier Tuesday.
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That’s Emmanwori’s next step to coming off the physically-unable-to-perform list. He had arthroscopic surgery on his right ankle in July. He sprained that in practice in February four days before the Super Bowl. He played 70 of 72 defensive snaps in Super Bowl 60.
Late in the practice, Hall limped off the field into the team facility favoring his left leg. The 11-on-11 scrimmaging continued.
Uchenna Nwosu moved to the edge rusher opposite DeMarcus Lawrence on the starting defense for most of the rest of the practice.
Running back Emmanuel Wilson, who’s been running with the starters with Price out the last four practices, pulled up after a catch and run out of bounds late in practice grabbing his upper leg. He went to the ground and got assistant from a trainer.
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*All-Pro wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba‘s daily, one-on-one battles with Witherspoon continued. The NFL offensive player of the year made an exquisite adjustment to Darnold’s underthrown deep ball on a post route. As Witherspoon sprinted deep to reach Smith-Njigba, the receiver slowed down, turned his back and scooped the ball into his chest before he hit the ground, 3 yards short of the goal line. Witherspoon angrily slapped his hands together for giving up that catch.
Smith-Njigba later out-foxed rookie cornerback Michael Dansby by slowing to catch Darnold’s designed, back-shoulder throw at the goal line for a touchdown.
*As Macdonald said this week, Witherspoon and opposite starting cornerback Josh Jobe alternating flipping on the right and left sides, almost by the play at times. They usually stay on one side. The coach wants to put guys in new spots this week, in case he needs to duing the season.
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*Rookie second-round pick Bud Clark had another day as the Emmanwori-like “big nickel” in extra defensive-back sets on the starting defense. Clark was also on the second-team defense back as a deep safety.
*Backup quarterbackDrew Lock zipped multiple impressive passes through and around tight coverage for completions, including on a wowing deep pass outside right to tight end Elijah Arroyo at the sideline. Cornerback Nehemiah Pritchett couldn’t believe Lock completed it.
*Wide receiver Jake Bobo was scrimmaging for the first time since what was believed to be a hamstring injury two weeks ago.
