Hawks bring back TE Luke Willson, a fan fave in Seattle | Sports
RENTON, Wash. – The Seattle Seahawks brought back a familiar face Tuesday and traded for a position that needed some depth.
The Seahawks signed veteran tight end Luke Willson and brought in Houston cornerback John Reid for a late-round conditional draft pick. Willson’s signing was official on Tuesday, while Reid’s deal is expected to close today.
Both steps come with deep concerns and injuries, with expected contributors for Seattle. Willson’s signing comes after Colby Parkinson fell to the ground with a small fracture in his foot earlier at training camp. The move for Reid came after rookie Tre Brown came out of last Saturday’s preseason game against Denver with a sore knee and the Seahawks needed bodies in that position.
A fan favorite, Willson has in some ways been part of the Seahawks for most of his NFL career. Willson was a fifth round selection from Seattle in 2013 and has spent parts of seven seasons with the Seahawks. Willson played eight games for Seattle in 2019 and played three games for Baltimore last season before joining the Seahawks and playing in five more games.
Aside from his contribution on the field, Seattle trainer Pete Carroll said he values the attitude and energy Willson has brought to the table over the years.
“We’re trying to live on the high end of this thing, holding the mind and keeping the energies high. The expectations are very high to do this and it takes leadership and then participation, ”said Carroll. “Certain people just have more juice than others and Luke has always been great. He was a big part of it for us. “
Reid was a Texans pick in the fourth round, appearing in 13 games with a start as a rookie. Seattle was intrigued by Reid’s speed as a possible outside cornerback option and can offer depth depending on how long Brown has been on the sidelines.
Brown was one of three picks Seattle made in the 2021 draft, playing 56 percent of the defensive snaps against the Broncos. Seattle is also unsure how long safety Ryan Neal could be sidelined with a sloping load, which can also result in some cornerbacks with safety experience in secondary school shuffling.
“We want to make sure we have depth and the kind of competitive pace we need out there,” Carroll said of his cornerbacks. “We were good all along. We had numbers all along. We’re on the verge of it, we have to make sure we can keep our boys together. “
While Seattle made the two external moves, it also welcomed a significant number of players who had dropped out with minor injuries, including cornerbacks DJ Reed and Marquise Blair, offensive linemen Cedric Ogbuehi and Ethan Pocic, and running back Travis Homer.