Presented by

A Spectacular Interception & Observations From Day 4 Of 2021 Seahawks Training Camp

Notes & observations from Monday’s training camp action at the VMAC.

Aug 02, 2021 at 06:48 PM

John Boyle

Seahawks.com Senior Reporter

Following a day off on Sunday, the Seahawks were back in action Monday, their first practice of a week that will culminate in a mock game at Lumen Field. The intensity will increase a bit starting Tuesday when pads go on, but there was still plenty of spirited action on Monday, and with that in mind, here are five observations from the fourth practice of camp:

1. Tre Flowers & Quandre Diggs teamed up for one of the best plays of camp.

Enjoying a bit of family time after practice, Quandre Diggs playfully tossed his daughter, Ariya, into the air and caught the giggling 2-year-old above his head. Given that a small child was involved, that was the most important catch made by the Pro-Bowl safety on Monday, but it wasn't the most impressive.

Late in the practice with the No. 1 offense and No. 1 defense going head to head, Russell Wilson launched a deep ball to DK Metcalf, but cornerback Tre Flowers had good coverage and jumped in front of Metcalf to bat the ball away in the end zone, then, just before the ball hit the ground, a diving Diggs was able to get his hands under the ball to secure the interception.

"That was a fantastic play by everybody that was going for the ball down there, but Quandre made a great catch," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said.

2. Damarious Randall got in on the interception action as well.

While the degree of difficulty might not have been as high, cornerback Damarious Randall also had a big play for the defense, jumping the route on a quick pass and taking it the distance for a pick-six. It was the kind of play that requires a cornerback to take a calculated risk—and based off of Russell Wilson's reaction to the play, there may have been some confusion between him and his intended receiver—but it was also the kind of play that shows why Randall had 14 interceptions in his first four seasons, including 10 in his first three as a cornerback before he moved to safety.

Carroll said he asked Randall what he saw on the play and said, "His explanation was perfect. He took a shot and made a great play."

3. Colby Parkinson had a nice afternoon.

Colby Parkinson missed most of his rookie season with a foot injury and didn't get many chances to show what he could do in his limited playing time last year, but the 2020 fourth-round pick did do enough in practices to impress his coaches, and he has looked even better to start camp this season. And on Monday Parkinson might have had his best practice yet, a day that included two touchdown catches, one of which was the perfect example of how his 6-foot-7 height can be a weapon. During a red-zone drill, Geno Smith threw a perfectly-placed ball in the back of the end zone that Parkinson was able to go up and get despite good coverage from cornerback Gavin Heslop, who did everything right on the play, but who also gives up seven inches to Parkinson.

"Colby has worked extremely hard," Carroll said. "If you remember, we talked to you about him last year, he really spent a lot of time in the weight room while he was out, but didn't get much time to show anything for it. He has worked on a ton of time with Russ in California this year to make sure that they're comfortable. He's a very, very good target, obviously, because he's so tall, he's got great hands too, a really confident catcher, and again today he made another play. So at this time, as a receiver, we have really had no problem with what he can do; we need to develop his blocking and make him a better blocker than he was, and he's determined to do it. He's stronger and thicker and all that. Everything's positive right now."

4. Wilson to Lockett? Yup, still works.

Ever since Tyler Lockett joined the Seahawks in 2015, one constant for Seattle has been that good things tend to happen when Russell Wilson throws the ball Lockett's way, and to the surprise of nobody, that connection still looks very strong as Lockett begins his seventh season.

Lockett has been getting open frequently as is always the case, and on Monday that resulted in one of the biggest plays of the day, with Wilson evading the pass rush, stepping up in the pocket and throwing a strike deep to Lockett for one of the offense's longest gains of the day.

5. Personnel updates.

All-Pro middle linebacker Bobby Wagner was absent from Monday's practice, and Carroll said Wagner had "a family issue he had to take care of."

Guard Gabe Jackson was held out, but it was not injury related Carroll said. Jamarco Jones left with a knee injury though Carroll said it was not serious: "He got kind of rolled up, we just want to make sure he's OK. It wasn't bad, it's not a bad injury, but he did feel a little something so we just want to make sure he's OK."

Center Ethan Pocic, who returned to practice Saturday on a limited basis after missing the first two days with a hamstring injury, was able to do more work Monday, taking part in team activities. Left tackle Duane Brown and safety Jamal Adams continue to watch from the sideline.