Seahawks Working to Activate Dormant Part of Jadarian Price’s Game

We’ve heard a lot about the first two days of training camp for the Seattle Seahawks so far, but one recurring theme has caught my attention the most.

Seattle Seahawks running back Jadarian Price (8) catches a pass during the first training camp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Three months ago, the Seattle Seahawks elected to spend their first round pick on a player who was perhaps best defined by how little he had done at the collegiate level. That’s not to say he was bad, but the volume of accomplishments is not what you’d typically expect from a first rounder. He never even started a game, or had more than fifteen carries in a game.

Not A Receiving Back

That lack of usage persisted into the passing game, where Price was only occasionally on the field and almost never targeted. Notre Dame quarterbacks threw the ball his way a total of eighteen times across forty-one games. He caught fifteen of those balls, for a fairly impressive 162 yards and three touchdowns, but it was clearly not a big piece of his game.

Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price (RB15) during the NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There are a few different possible reasons why this was the case. Occam’s razor would suggest that the coaches at Notre Dame believed him to not be particularly good at it. Perhaps he was just a bad blocker and they wanted him off the field on third downs. Sharing a backfield with Jeremiyah Love (63 catches across his final two seasons) surely contributed.

Nevertheless, when discussing Price before and after the draft, I’ve seen it fit to assume that he didn’t bring much to the table as a receiving back. An outside zone runner with some explosion, excellent kick returner, someone with a lot of tread on his tires, sure. But ultimately, George Holani and Zach Charbonnet would be the go-to guys on passing downs.

Training Camp Trial

Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Jadarian Price (24) runs with the football against Stanford Cardinal safety Darrius Davis (29) during the first quarter at Stanford Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

So far, however, it seems like the Seahawks believe there could be something to tap into here. Per assorted reports, Price has been getting a lot of reps on passing plays, and been getting opportunities to show what he can do when targeted. The results have been mixed, with some really impressive grabs mixed in with some drops, but there will be time for consistency later.

For now, the takeaway is that the Seahawks seem to believe this is a part of his game that can help this team. There were reports of him showing good receiving back skills in earlier phases of the offseason as well, so we’re getting a fairly clear picture of the plan here. The team thinks he can do it, and he’ll be a part of the plan in ways that weren’t immediately obvious.

The Seahawks have been here recently, actually. Ken Walker was hardly used as a receiver at all in college, with nineteen catches in thirty-three college games, and then corralled 133 in 58 as a Seahawk. Sometimes, you just need the opportunity, and so far, it looks like Jadarian Price will be getting that opportunity as a rookie here in Seattle.

Seattle Seahawks running back Jadarian Price (8) during minicamp at Virginia Mason Athletic Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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