'Really Unique' Quinton Dunbar Poised to Capture Seahawks Right Cornerback Spot

Now with nearly three weeks of practice under his belt, Dunbar continues to get more and more comfortable with each passing day for the Seahawks. This isn't good news for Tre Flowers, who may see the competition closing in fast for his job in the rear view mirror.

Reporting late for Seahawks training camp after a turbulent offseason, Quinton Dunbar faced an uphill climb learning a new scheme and trying to fight his way to the top of the depth chart in a competition against Tre Flowers.

But while coach Pete Carroll remained elusive about who will start at the position in Week 1, based on his comments after Sunday's mock game, if Dunbar wants to snag the right cornerback job, it's ripe for the taking.

"This is a really, unique football player in Quinton Dunbar," Carroll told reporters following Sunday's practice. "He's got terrific awareness, he's got size and speed and all that kind of stuff, so he can do the things that we need our corners to do. But he has terrific awareness, very good spatial awareness, and playmaking ability in a really good challenge attitude. I really like the way he plays."

Carroll admitted he and Seattle's coaching staff would need to watch how Dunbar performed in the scrimmage and see more of him in general after arriving late for camp. With Flowers sidelined on Sunday with an ankle sprain, however, the fifth-year veteran seemed to capitalize on his first opportunity to unseat the incumbent starter.

"We don't have a lot of work done with him at this point, so we've got a couple more weeks and then the competition continues," Carroll continued. "But he has made nothing but positive steps towards playtime. I really like his savvy and awareness. So, it just helps us depth-wise, it makes us better."

Back in March, the Seahawks dealt a fifth-round pick to the Washington Football Team in exchange for Dunbar, believing they had acquired an upgrade for Flowers. A converted receiver standing 6-foot-2 and boasting 32 5/8-inch arms, he offered the size, athleticism, and ball skills the team covets at the position.

Though he was limited to 11 games by injury a year ago, Dunbar picked off four passes for Washington and received the second-highest grade for a cornerback from Pro Football Focus behind only 49ers star Richard Sherman.

However, in mid-May, Dunbar and Giants cornerback Deandre Baker were arrested for alleged involvement in an armed robbery at a party in Miramar, Florida. Witnesses told authorities they were involved with stealing $7,000 in cash, several watches, and other valuables before fleeing the house.

While Dunbar participated in most of Seattle's virtual offseason program, the 28-year old cornerback battled depression and wasn't able to eat or work out while sorting through legal issues that put his career in jeopardy.

"When you face an armed robbery [charge], that carries life in Florida," Dunbar said earlier this month. "So that's self-explanatory. It's just a hard pill to swallow. I learned from the situation. Growing up where I come from, it wasn't nice, and I just gotta learn to protect my energy and protect my space. You can't save or be around everybody or try to make everybody happy. You've got to understand who you are and what you work hard for, and you've got to protect that because everybody don't have great intentions."

Placed on the commissioner's exempt list shortly before the start of Seattle's training camp, Dunbar was barred from participating in practices and football-related activities. But in early August, charges were dropped against him due to lack of evidence and he was quickly reinstated, allowing him to resume playing.

Upon his arrival, Dunbar passed three COVID-19 tests in four days and finally made his Seahawks debut on August 16. Slowly working him back into football shape, he started off participating in just warm-ups and one-on-one drills and recently began receiving reps during team periods.

While Carroll believes his delayed report date may have set him back a bit, his prior work with ex-Seahawks player and coach Marquand Manuel has helped ease his transition. As Dunbar has indicated multiple times previously, he had already been exposed to the kick-step and many of the other techniques taught by Carroll to his cornerbacks.

"It's accelerated his sense of comfort with us and understanding what we are doing and all that," Carroll commented. "It just works in our favor."

Though only one week of training camp practices remains, as Carroll alluded to, a decision doesn't need to be made yet and the competition is just heating up between Dunbar and Flowers.

But with the latter nursing an injury and the former becoming more comfortable by the day, the door has been opened for Dunbar to seize control of the right cornerback spot when the Seahawks battle the Falcons in Week 1.