Seahawks to watch for Saturday against the Chargers

Saturday will be the last chance for two-dozen or so Seattle Seahawks to make their case for being on the roster. Here are some of the battles you should take the closest look at this weekend when the Seahawks host the Chargers in the final week of the preseason.

Battle for RB3: Rashaad Penny, Alex Collins, Travis Homer

In my opinion, Deejay Dallas has done more than enough to solidify his spot on the roster and probably enough to be Carson’s backup. That leaves Penny, whom NFL.com’s Gregg Rosenthal believes to be a cut/trade candidate, Collins, who has not been in the form he was in Baltimore, and Travis Homer, who I think is actually the biggest lock of these three to make the roster and who has been out with an injury until now. Expect Penny and Collins to get the heaviest workload in this game, as those two could very well be fighting for the final spot on the running back depth chart. I’d be quite surprised if it wasn’t Penny, simply because the staff really has a lot of faith in him, but Collins will definitely have the chance to make his case.

The last battle for the last reserve tackle: Jake Curhan and Jamarco Jones

Curhan was arguably the best offensive lineman on the field for Seattle against Denver, and Jones has been unfortunate enough to spend some time out this preseason with injury. There really is only one spot for one of these two on the roster, as the tackles ahead of them seem to be pretty solidly on the team. Look for Curhan to get a big percentage of snaps again in this game. For me this battle is almost 50/50.

Rookie WRs: Aaron Fuller, Connor Wedington, Travis Toivonen, Cody Thompson, Cade Johnson

I would be pretty surprised if the Seahawks didn’t keep six receivers on the roster this year, but if one of these players fails to stand out Saturday, that is definitely possible. I’m keeping my eyes on Fuller and Thompson, who have also showed their value on special teams so far. I think either of them has a good shot at making it, but then again the Seahawks left Kasen Williams off of the team, so there are no guarantees regardless of performance.

Crowded defensive backfield at the bottom of the depth chart: Gavin Heslop, John Reid, Damarious Randall

The newly-signed Reid will battle with early-camp standout Damarious Randall and in-game standout Gavin Heslop for what will be one or two spots on the roster, depending on how many players Seattle takes in other positions. Something tells me that Reid has a pretty good shot, even though Seattle didn’t give up much for him. Judging by how much Heslop has played in the last two games despite his good performances, something tells me that the Seahawks just don’t like him as much as Randall or some of the other corners. Personally, I hope to see him get more time Saturday, as I would say he’s probably my “preseason crush” this year, but I think his fate may already be sealed.