The Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers held a joint scrimmage in Green Bay on Thursday, two days out from their preseason finale on Saturday. I say it was a joint scrimmage, but it sounds like it was WWE Royal Rumble in Green Bay with some practice reps occasionally mixed in. Or maybe it’s just easier to pay attention to the fights since they draw better than the limited reporting you can do on 11-on-11 scrimmaging.
Let’s recap what happened in Wisconsin!
Thursday Afternoon Fights
According to ESPN’s Brady Henderson, the
number of skirmishes was close to or at double digits. Media were heavily restricted in terms of practice filming, but we did get a glimpse of some of the fracas courtesy of Packers fans. Devon Witherspoon and Ernest Jones IV got into it with Packers right tackle Zach Tom, with Tom and Jones exchanging blows. Witherspoon is obviously so feisty that weight classes don’t matter to him.
And here’s some more from later on in practice.
But wait, there was one more even after practice!
This was Big Cat’s side of the story following that confrontation:
Williams also said the defense was a bit “sluggish” to start the day. Certainly a better day for the Seahawks offense based on reports and highlights, but it wasn’t a wholly sluggish outing for the defense.
Oh wait, still not done!
And just who was that bald Seahawk Keisean Nixon was referring to? Cody White appears to be the baldest Seahawks player on the roster, so if it’s not him it might be Ken Walker, who’s much younger than Cody and is also bold.
The Seahawks don’t play the Packers in the regular season, by the way.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s big day
If Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s rookie year was promising, his second year was a big leap, his third year could establish him as one of the best receivers in the game. When Packers beat reporters have got something to say about JSN, you know he had a starring role.
Keeping it local, of course, here’s a little more on JSN’s day.
Sam Darnold picked off in the face of pressure
If you’re expecting Seahawks highlights when Packers fans are filming this, you’re going to be disappointed. We’ve been reporting almost nothing but rosy things about the Seahawks offense in practice, so we might as well get some footage of when it goes wrong. Grey Zabel loses out to fellow rookie Warren Brinson, who gets to Darnold in a flash. Darnold has an open Jaxon Smith-Njigba deep but he can’t put enough on it and Evan Williams gets the pick.
Jalen Sundell, Olu Oluwatimi rotate at center
This competition is coming down to the wire. Sundell started the 11-on-11 session but did split snaps with Oluwatimi, who’s only just returning from a back issue that kept him out of both preseason games and several practices. Even when Oluwatimi returned earlier this week, Sundell was still getting reps as a starting center.
It’s possible that if Sundell wins the competition, it’s less about Oluwatimi losing it and more of Sundell seizing his opportunity while Oluwatimi was out.
Mike Morris leaves with an injury
One unfortunate and potentially significant development is an injury to defensive end Mike Morris, who left the practice early. We’ll await any updates on his health given he’s been competing for a roster spot.
Mike Macdonald press conference
The Seahawks will have most (if not all) of their starters on offense and defense sit out Saturday, with rookie quarterback Jalen Milroe confirmed to be playing the whole game.
