The 53 Man Shuffle

In the aftermath of the Seahawks' initial 53-man roster, I thought it might be worth taking a look at some of the other 864 people cut in the last two days to see who might be sniffed at or signed by the Seahawks. Mind you, by the time I finish writing this article the Hawks may have already made thirty roster moves, but I'll just back-date this and really look smart. For the sake of simplicity, I'll break it into three sections:

Names We've Actually Heard Before

Everette Brown (DE) - Brown was just cut by the Panthers this morning, two years after the Panthers traded away a first and fourth round pick to grab him in the second round. Brown has not been good (obviously), but he can provide situational pass rushing and, at 25, could still develop into the guy the Panthers thought he would be. Will he? Probably not. Brown will be subject to waivers, and will likely draw a decent amount of interest, so it's not all too likely that the Seahawks would land him even if we wanted him... but still. 

Igor Olshansky (DL) - Olshansky used to be a total stud and should have some gas left in the tank. He's 29 years old, which isn't exactly young, but he would provide excellent depth behind Red Bryant at the 5-tech DE position. Right now, the Seahawks list Jimmy Wilkerson (IR) and Pierre Allen (Waived/Injured) as Bryant's backups at RDE. Expect someone to be brought in.

Anthony Hargrove (DL) - Hargrove is another possibility as established but generic DL depth that Carroll seems to covet. He would provide similar (but much smaller!) depth at the 3-tech spot behind Branch, but could also slide over and take the IR'd Jimmy Wilkerson's snaps at RDE.

Max Jean-Gilles (OL) - Jean-Gilles is a big ass guard. Like, 6'3" 358 lbs big. That's not enough to make the team, but he is fairly athletic and could provide some depth at guard, where we currently have only Gallery (injured), Moffitt, and Paul McQuistan. 

Tommie Harris (DL) - The Colts signed him, then cut him. Rarely considered a "good" sign. Still, Harris used to be a game changer. I'd expect a few teams will show interest in him for a one-year deal. I see him providing depth at either DT position -- he's a natural 3-technique guy, but is built similarly to Mebane who will be manning the nose this year. The last discarded Colt defensive lineman we signed (Raheem Brock) turned out well, at least. 

Dudes Whose Names Sound Vaguely Familiar

Keiland Williams (RB) - Williams' name briefly flashed through the minds of fantasy football players a couple of years ago when everyone who has ever carried a ball for the Redskins was out injured for a few weeks. He's just another guy, but his size should catch Carroll's eye... almost as much as this next guy:

Tyrell Sutton (RB) - The Panthers just cut him. So what? Well, they shouldn't have. He's good. Sutton is like a bizarre hybrid of Justin Forsett (5'8") and Marshawn Lynch (230 lbs). He has surprisingly good hands out of the backfield, and is a perfect zone running back -- one cut and go, all the way. 

Kris O'Dowd (C) - More likely a practice squad addition (but still not terribly likely). O'Dowd was cut by the Cardinals and played under (and was recruited by) Carroll at USC. As Scott Enyeart described him the other day: "After four years of watching him, I still don't know if I like him." We'll find out if Carroll feels the same way. O'Dowd did start four years at USC, and was the first true freshman in USC history to start at Center.

Ed Wang (T) - Not a very likely signing, but Wang knows the zone blocking system from his college days. He has the height (6'5") but not the girth (301 lbs) that Cable looks for in his tackles. 

Stylez G. White (DE) - We didn't show any interest in Stylez this offseason, so I doubt we do now, but I couldn't resist typing his name. 

Generic Positions of Need / Potential Improvement

Offensive Tackle - I'd imagine the Seahawks will add a veteran tackle at some point in the next week. Currently, Okung, Polumbus, Carpenter and Giacomini make up the team's squad of tackles. Outside of Okung and, in time, we hope Carpenter, that's pretty iffy. They seem to like Giacomini, but if the right guy was cut I imagine we'll try to snatch him up in a hurry.

Offensive Guard - As I mentioned earlier, our guard depth is minimal. In theory, you can shift guys around -- Paul McQuistan is our only backup as of today, but Polumbus, Carpenter, and Jeanpierre can all play guard in a pinch. So, yeah. We'll be adding a guard.

Defensive Line - I've got trouble believing we're perfectly content with the nine guys we kept, specifically with the lack of a young edge rusher. Dexter Davis is a person, which he's got going for him, but after flashing last preseason, he didn't really show up this year. I believe he may have been #53 on this roster, so if there's a chance to upgrade with youth, I believe we take it. Likewise, there are opportunities to improve on depth across the line. 

Running Back / Fullback - I expect that the Seahawks could well add another running back or fullback. Clayton has been banging the Mike Karney drum for awhile, but a guy like Sutton or even Keiland Williams could do the trick. 

Okay, so, that's my read on the situation. Who would you like to see the Seahawks add? Like I said, there are 864 new guys out on the street, so opportunity is knocking.

Which of the current roster members are in the most danger of losing their spot before next Sunday?