Jake Bobo ranks among the statistical leaders throughout the preseason

Jake Bobo has made a serious name for himself during the preseason. No, that is not a dig at his deceptively inviting moniker which conjures images of wholesome cartoon characters from our childhood (I’m not alone in that one right?). Bobo has been a revelation as a receiver over the last two weeks, which says a lot considering that the Seattle Seahawks also have Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who has been looking phenomenal as well. Between these two pass catchers, the Seahawks are quickly looking like a team that has more depth at the receiver position than they have had in years. It is still maybe a bit too early to predict if Bobo is a first ballot guy or not, but with only one game remaining before the real season kicks off, he is starting to look like a lock for the final roster. Following Saturday night’s game against the Dallas Cowboys, the former UCLA Bruin ranks in the top 10 in both receiving yards and yards per reception.

Sure, you could look at this as simply accumulating numbers against players who are unlikely to crack their respective final rosters, but Bobo has clearly demonstrated a knack for route running that looks more like a seasoned veteran than an undrafted rookie. We’ve all heard the concerns about his speed (or reported lack thereof), but he has been able to consistently gain separation and use his big body to threaten anywhere on the field. These aren’t just fluky moments of greatness — he has been displaying this ability throughout camp, a well.

At this point in the preseason, I feel like the growing consensus is that Bobo has to make the final roster. He has quickly proven to be one of the most exciting rookies on the field, which says a lot in a draft class that features some seriously big name guys, who themselves have been performing at a high level. Take this quote from Adam Schultz of Sports Illustrated (bold added by me for emphasis):

Preseason is the time for rookies to either announce themselves as roster-worthy or to fade into the distance, and for Seattle’s three in Bobo, Smith-Njigba, and Charbonnet, the trio could add another level of spice to an already scorching Seahawks offense.

The fact that he is getting his name mentioned in the same breath as the team’s top two picks on offense is undeniably impressive. I imagine that Pete and John are already aware of the fact that getting Bobo on the practice squad would likely be a fool’s errand following the show he has put on in August. We know that Carroll loves a player with guts and something to prove, and that chip on his shoulder should carry right over into the regular season, where opposing defensive coordinators are going to have weekly nightmares over how to cover this receiving corps. Bring on those Green Bay Packers and that crowd at Lambeau!