Seahawks players picked team captains for the 2021 season, electing three veteran leaders who all made the Pro Bowl last year—quarterback Russell Wilson on offense, linebacker Bobby Wagner on defense, and linebacker Nick Bellore on special teams.
Wilson and Wagner have been captains for most of their careers, with Wilson earning that honor for the ninth straight year—every season but his rookie year—and with Wagner being elected captain six of the past seven years, sharing that title with Kam Chancellor in 2017.
This is the first time Bellore has been named a Seahawks captain, though he had a big leadership role on special teams last season with three-time special teams captain Neiko Thorpe on injured reserve.
"Really overwhelmingly the guys chose Russell on offense, Bobby on defense and Nick Bellore on special teams," Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said after Monday's practice.
Wilson, an eight-time Pro-Bowler and the winner of the 2020 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, and Wagner, a seven-time Pro-Bowler who has been named first-team All-Pro six times, the most in franchise history, have had a huge role in the Seahawks' success for the better part of a decade while also providing invaluable leadership, so it comes as no surprise that those two again will wear the captain's patch on their jerseys in 2021.
"They've really stood for consistency at the highest level, and not just that, they make a lot of tackles, they throw a lot of touchdown passes, it's everything that they bring and do and what they represent," Carroll said. "They're really the real deal, and they're the leaders chosen for a number of years, but yet the leaders chosen for a lot of great reasons too. These guys believe in them and they look up to them and they count on him, they count on their word, and they trust the heck out of them, and we're very, very fortunate to have them."
Bellore, who signed with Seattle in 2019, made the Pro Bowl as a special teamer last season for the first time in his 11-year career, and was a big reason why the Seahawks were one of the league's best teams on special teams in 2020. This year he has also shown his versatility, moving from fullback, his position since 2017, back to linebacker, his original position in college and the NFL. Bellore started camp as a fullback but injuries left the Seahawks thin at linebacker, and Bellore performed so well in that role that the Seahawks have kept him there, keeping only three other off-ball linebackers on the roster: Wagner, Jordyn Brooks and Cody Barton.
"Nick Bellore has just been a fantastic guy that stepped into this role a year ago, and the guys really looked to him too," Carroll said. "So we've got real wisdom in our leadership, and it's really all you can hope for."
See headshots and action shots of the complete Seattle Seahawks 2021 roster.
1 - Wide Receiver - Dee Eskridge
1 - Wide Receiver - Dee Eskridge
2 - Cornerback - D.J. Reed
29 - Cornerback - D.J. Reed
3 - Quarterback - Russell Wilson
3 - Quarterback - Russell Wilson
4 - Punter - Michael Dickson
4 - Punter - Michael Dickson
5 - Kicker - Jason Meyers
5 - Kicker - Jason Meyers
6 - Free Safety - Quandre Diggs
6 - Free Safety - Quandre Diggs
7 - Quarterback - Geno Smith
7 - Quarterback - Geno Smith
8 - Defensive End - Carlos Dunlap II
8 - Defensive End - Carlos Dunlap II
9 - Quarterback - Jake Luton
11 - Wide Receiver - Cody Thompson
11 - Wide Receiver - Cody Thompson
14 - Wide Receiver - DK Metcalf
14 - Wide Receiver - DK Metcalf
16 - Wide Receiver - Tyler Lockett
16 - Wide Receiver - Tyler Lockett
18 - Wide Receiver - Freddie Swain
18 - Wide Receiver - Freddie Swain
19 - Wide Receiver - Penny Hart
20 - Running Back - Rashaad Penny
20 - Running Back - Rashaad Penny
23 - Cornerback - Sidney Jones
25 - Running Back - Travis Homer
25 - Running Back - Travis Homer
26 - Strong Safety - Ryan Neal
26 - Strong Safety - Ryan Neal
27 - Free Safety - Marquise Blair
27 - Free Safety - Marquise Blair
28 - Free Safety - Ugo Amadi
28 - Cornerback - Ugo Amadi
29 - Cornerback - John Reid
31 - Running Back - DeeJay Dallas
31 - Running Back - DeeJay Dallas
32 - Running Back - Chris Carson
32 - Running Back - Chris Carson
33 - Strong Safety - Jamal Adams
33 - Strong Safety - Jamal Adams
36 - Defensive Back - Bless Austin
41 - Running Back - Alex Collins
41 - Running Back - Alex Collins
44 - Fullback - Nick Bellore
44 - Fullback - Nick Bellore
51 - Defensive End - Kerry Hyder Jr.
51 - Defensive End - Kerry Hyder Jr.
52 - Defensive End - Darrell Taylor
52 - Defensive End - Darrell Taylor
55 - Linebacker - Bobby Wagner
54 - Linebacker - Bobby Wagner
56 - Linebacker - Jordyn Brooks
56 - Linebacker - Jordyn Brooks
57 - Linebacker - Cody Barton
57 - Linebacker - Cody Barton
59 - Jon Rhattigan - Linebacker
61 - Center/Guard - Kyle Fuller
61 - Center/Guard - Kyle Fuller
64 - Center - Dakoda Shepley
66 - Guard - Gabe Jackson
66 - Guard - Gabe Jackson
68 - G - Damien Lewis
68 - Guard - Damien Lewis
69 - Long Snapper - Tyler Ott
69 - Long Snapper - Tyler Ott
72 - Tackle - Brandon Shell
72 - Offensive Tackle - Brandon Shell
73 - Tackle - Jamarco Jones
73 - Offensive Tackle - Jamarco Jones
74 - Tackle - Jake Curhan
74 - Offensive Tackle - Jake Curhan
76 - Tackle - Duane Brown
76 - Offensive Tackle - Duane Brown
78 - Tackle - Stone Forsythe
78 - Offensive Tackle - Stone Forsythe
81 - Tight End - Gerald Everett
81 - Tight End - Gerald Everett
85 - Tight End - Tyler Mabry
89 - Tight End - Will Dissly
89 - Tight End - Will Dissly
90 - Defensive End - L.J. Collier
90 - Defensive End - L.J. Collier
92 - Defensive Tackle - Robert Nkemdiche
92 - Defensive Tackle - Robert Nkemdiche
94 - Defensive Tackle - Rasheem Green
94 - Defensive End - Rasheem Green
97 - Defensive Tackle - Poona Ford
97 - Defensive Tackle - Poona Ford
98 - Defensive End - Alton Robinson
98 - Defensive End - Alton Robinson
99 - Defensive Tackle -Al Woods
99 - Defensive Tackle -Al Woods
