Jalen Milroe Set to Play Seahawks Entire Preseason Finale, Trevon Diggs to ‘Get a Look’ vs. Chiefs

RENTON, Wash. - Preparing to hit the road for their final dress rehearsal for the 2026 season in Kansas City, the Seattle Seahawks will hand the keys to the offense to Jalen Milroe for all four quarters, while a veteran newcomer should get his first opportunity to show what he can do in the secondary.

Speaking with reporters following Thursday’s walkthrough practice, Macdonald confirmed that while backup Drew Lock “will be ready” to go if needed, the Seahawks plan for Milroe to play the entire game against the Chiefs on Friday. Now with a handful of practices under his belt since signing with the team on August 19, cornerback Trevon Diggs also is expected to suit up and see some snaps as he aims to land a spot on the 53-man roster.

In his second season after being drafted in the third round by Seattle out Alabama, Milroe has endured a mostly rocky preseason to this point. Checking in for Lock to start the second half in Nashville last Sunday, he completed six out of 11 passes for 54 yards and threw two costly interceptions, telegraphing a throw that was picked by linebacker Anthony Hill in the third quarter and misfiring behind rookie receiver Emmanuel Henderson Jr. late in the fourth quarter. He also took a pair of sacks, including on a decisive fourth down to close out the game.

There have been a few highlights sprinkled in there for Milroe, however, who has showcased his physical and athletic talents as a runner in both preseason games while connecting on a few longer passes. Macdonald hopes that being able to stay in the game from start to finish without having to come in cold midway through on Friday will allow the young signal caller to get into a better rhythm and play with improved decisiveness and consistency as a result.

“I think it’s really great that he has the opportunity, just like in Green Bay last year, where you’re not subbing in and you’re not coming in at halftime,” Macdonald said. “You’re going through the whole process of starting a game and getting in rhythm, managing the situations, all those things that we want from our quarterback. So I think it’s exciting to see him play and a great opportunity for him.”

As expected, Milroe won’t be playing with any starters, as the Seahawks will go throughout the entire preseason without any of their top 22 players on offense or defense seeing any snaps before rolling into the regular season opener against the Patriots.

As for Diggs, Seattle has quickly been ramping up the veteran defender’s activity since he signed right before the team hit the road for a joint practice in Nashville. His first practice came in that Friday session and he added three more practices under his belt this week, making enough progress for Macdonald and the staff to be comfortable with him seeing the field on Friday night, though it remains to be seen how many snaps or how long he will play in Kansas City.

After not participating in most of camp or the offseason program, Macdonald acknowledged the difficulty of asking a player to come in off the streets and pick up a complex playbook in a matter of days, but he feels Diggs has handled the challenge and looks forward to seeing him play in game action for the first time.

“He’s gonna get a look tomorrow, which is exciting,” Macdonald stated. “He’s done a good job having attention to detail, doing all the things we’re asking him to do. It’s not an easy ask coming from training [and] not with a club, coming in and trying to play high level football. But given the opportunity, he’s definitely made the most of it and we’ll see where it goes.”

Full steam ahead for Friday’s exhibition finale, here are three other takeaways from Macdonald’s Thursday media availability:

1. Leonard Williams’ massive extension with the Seahawks presents a “great deal for everybody” within the organization.

For the second time in as many weeks, the Seahawks locked up one of their premier defenders, following up an extension for cornerback Devon Witherspoon on August 17 by securing Williams with a new three-year, $90 million deal. Set to make $56 million in guaranteed money, the contract ties him to the Pacific Northwest through 2029.

Macdonald has seen first-hand Williams’ influence on and off the field since taking the reins as head coach in 2024. The former top-10 pick out of USC has been an utterly dominant all-around performer for Seattle over the past two seasons since signing a three-year extension in March 2024, producing 18 sacks and 50 quarterback hits, the most in both categories for defensive tackles during that span. He’s also been an integral part of the team’s leadership in the building, something that the team will continue to benefit from for years to come.

“It was a little funky this morning in terms of timing and everything, but I'll tell you what, we couldn't be more excited to get the deal done,” Macdonald said of Williams. “He's a foundational player to our club from when we got here. I feel like I'm kind of a broken record with this thing, but like all the, all the things, the obviously a tremendous All-Pro caliber player. The type of person he is, just absolute A-plus person, teammate, the day-to-day, really just how much he's invested into our team and really our team, his teammates. And really, really excited to have it happen.”

Now 32 years old, even considering Williams earned All-Pro honors for the first time in his career last season, some teams may have been hesitant to hand out a contract worth $30 million per year to an aging player. But Macdonald sees a player who still is among the “best in the world,” providing an impact between the lines that goes far beyond his impressive individual production. Coupling in his influence in the locker room and mentoring younger players, he couldn’t be happier to see “Big Cat” staying put long-term for a much-deserved contract.

“His production is high, but it's also a synergistic thing where I feel like the way he plays sets up other players as well,” Macdonald added. “Both in the run and pass and let alone like how he interacts, just how he builds up the whole team on a day-to-day basis too. So again, I think it's a great deal for both sides and he's earned it and we're excited to make it happen.”

2. Injuries have opened the gate for roster hopefuls at receiver, but Tory Horton could be on the mend soon

As part of an unfortunate barrage of injuries that happened in Nashville last weekend, the Seahawks lost popular veteran receiver Jake Bobo for the entire 2026 season with a torn ACL. By itself, such an injury could be withstood, but the team has been without Horton for the past few weeks as well due to an undisclosed injury, with Macdonald only saying he would be out a “period of time,” creating unexpected depth question marks heading towards the regular season.

With Bobo done for the season, Macdonald recognizes that a great chance has been created for players such as Ricky White III, Cody White, and Emmanuel Henderson Jr., who may not have been on the 53-man roster if the veteran didn’t go down to injury, A strong performance in Kansas City could help any of those players land on the right side of the roster bubble, but at the same time, the coach cautioned that just because a receiver goes down doesn’t mean that the team will automatically replace them on the 53 with another wideout either.

“We are down a couple of guys right now, but the whole room has done a really good job. So as much as you hate saying it, there's opportunity for guys now that those guys aren't available right now, but it'll be interesting,” Macdonald explained. “Again, you're always in like team competition. It's never a one-for-one. It's never '“this guy doesn't go, so this guy goes,” or we're swapping. It's always the whole team, it's even like between sides of the ball.”

As Macdonald noted, when it comes to filling out the remainder of the roster away from the starters on offense and defense, teams don’t simply come up with a pre-destined number of players to retain at each position and special teams decisions play a critical role in finalizing tough decisions on cutdown day. Though White, White III, and Henderson all have reputations as quality special teams players in their own right, they could be competing for a final spot on the 53 against a linebacker or a defensive back rather than just other receivers, turning up the pressure a bit going into the exhibition finale.

While Macdonald kept to status quo by offering as minimal of information on injuries as possible on Thursday, he did offer up a positive sliver of news on Horton, confirming that the Seahawks don’t believe his injury is of the long-term variety. That information could also impact who ultimately earns a final roster spot, as his impending return for Week 1 or early in the regular season would make it less urgent for the team to keep another wideout over a position with more pressing depth concerns.

3. Standing out amongst players on the bubble, J.R. Singleton has caught Macdonald and the coaching staff’s attention.

Going into the final audition before the real bullets start flying in September, Macdonald usually stays guarded when it comes to providing too much praise or information on players who may be on the roster bubble. But in the case of J.R. Singleton, the second-year defensive tackle out of Iowa State has built off a quality rookie season where he spent the entire year on the practice squad and built momentum towards potentially fighting his way onto the roster this time around.

One of the clear standouts from Sunday’s loss in Tennessee, Singleton led the team with 10 combined tackles, including a three-yard tackle for loss where he teamed up with safety Maxen Hook after running down the line of scrimmage and hustling to the sideline to finish the play. Such efforts haven’t gone unnoticed for Macdonald, who has seen the 300-pound nose tackle take advantage of all the opportunities presented to him in a crowded interior defensive line group.

“Being in a room with veteran leaders is actually a great opportunity because those guys don't need as many reps as the rest of the team. And so you're going to take a ton of reps,” Macdonald said. “And so if you can take advantage of those opportunities, and then like the rookie dynamic and the rookie aspect of like being in with vets, you take care of the vets in the room, they're taking care of you. There's a lot of knowledge that's getting poured into you with the guys that we have and the way that JR goes about his business, he's definitely taken advantage of it. He’s played good football and he should be proud of himself.”

With Williams, Jarran Reed, and Byron Murphy atop the depth chart and Rylie Mills poised to make a big leap in year two, Singleton may not have a spot waiting for him to open the season on Seattle’s 53, especially with nose tackle Brandon Pili in front of him on the depth chart. But if he can continue to play well on Friday, a return to the practice squad could yield a chance to receive a gameday elevation and make his regular season debut in the near future, something he didn’t get to do a year ago.