Seahawks QB Holton Ahlers Oozing With Intangibles: ‘He’s Exciting!’
RENTON, Wash. - When the Seattle Seahawks took the practice field at the VMAC for rookie minicamp on Friday, they did so without a quarterback being among their 10 incoming draft picks.
But while a top prospect such as Anthony Richardson didn't fall into the Seahawks lap with the fifth overall pick and they bypassed on choosing a signal caller, that didn't stop the franchise from landing an intriguing gunslinger from the undrafted ranks to develop behind Geno Smith and Drew Lock. Coming off an outstanding senior season at East Carolina, Holton Ahlers entered minicamp as the only player sporting a red jersey with a contract in hand, giving him an early leg up for the third quarterback spot.
When asked what stood out about Ahlers after the conclusion of Seattle's first minicamp session, coach Pete Carroll immediately pointed to the playmaking lefty's decorated resume from his prep days at D.H. Conley High School.
“In his senior year in high school, he threw 61 touchdown passes. Come on," Carroll said. "You never heard of anybody throw 61 touchdowns. And I think he ran for 14 or 15 too, and he's been throwing touchdowns ever since."
One of the best quarterbacks to ever come out of North Carolina, the 6'3, 227-pound Ahlers finished his high school career ranked third all-time in state history in passing yards, second all-time in total offense, and third all-time for total touchdowns (201), including 75 combined scores as a senior. Named a team captain as a freshman, he led the school to four playoff appearances and three conference titles, eventually committing to East Carolina as a three-star recruit.
Wasting little time finding his way on the field with the Pirates, Ahlers started five games as a true freshman, making his greatest impact as a runner with 592 rushing yards and six touchdowns. Steadily progressing as a passer in four seasons as a starter, he saw his completion percentage improve each year and turnovers decline, finishing off his college career connecting on 67.2 percent of his passes with 28 touchdowns and only five interceptions.
Departing Greenville as the most distinguished quarterback in program history, Ahlers wrapped up his tenure at East Carolina as the school's all-time leader in passing yards (13,927), total offensive yards (15,373), passing touchdowns (97), and total touchdowns (122). He also established new American Athletic Conference records for passing yardage, completions, and total touchdowns.
Despite that immense success and winning MVP honors at the NFLPA Bowl, Ahlers didn't hear his name called as one of 14 quarterbacks selected in the 2023 NFL Draft. Some of that had to do with Ahlers' inconsistent mechanics as a passer, while a slow 4.93 40-yard dash at an underwhelming pro day workout certainly didn't help his cause in the pre-draft process.
But the Seahawks circled the dual-threat weapon as a prioritized target in undrafted free agency, quickly reaching an agreement with the esteemed signal caller as well as one of his top receivers in C.J. Johnson, who caught 10 touchdowns in 2022.
"He's a player," Carroll said of Ahlers. "He seems really confident in himself and he's got some transitions to make because our style is different than what they played [at East Carolina]. They were coming up with plays off the sidelines all the time. No huddle and all that. But he'll be fine with it. He's making transitions. He's exciting because it's kind of like the intangibles that you know are there because you've been successful for a long time at the position.”
Like any undrafted quarterback, Ahlers has a long road ahead of him trying to earn a roster spot with the Seahawks, who re-signed Smith on a three-year deal worth up to $105 million and also brought back Lock on a one-year deal. The team has typically only carried two quarterbacks on the active roster, making the practice squad his likely ceiling in the short-term.
As Carroll referenced, Ahlers' first challenge will be adapting to a pro style offense after starring in a no-huddle Air Raid system working almost exclusively out of the shotgun at East Carolina. A herky-jerky, circular throwing motion also remains a major work in progress, as his overall mechanics and release have to be refined to get the ball out quicker for him to make it in the NFL.
But with Lock set to be a free agent again next March, Ahlers has an opportunity in front of him to potentially play his way into Seattle's plans with a strong offseason program and training camp in August. Possessing plenty of arm talent, dynamic running ability at close to 230 pounds, and proven leadership skills, he has produced at every level he has played in and has enough traits and moxie to keep an eye on as a future backup in waiting.
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