Stock Watch: Who’s Hot, Who’s Not After Seahawks’ 17-7 Preseason Loss to Cowboys
As coach Mike Macdonald loves to say, the Seattle Seahawks value the process over the result, particularly in the preseason, but Saturday’s exhibition opener certainly didn’t live up to usual expectations in a sloppy 17-7 loss to the Dallas Cowboys at Lumen Field.
“Any time you line up in anything competitively, we’re trying to win, but right now our process needs to improve,” Macdonald said in his opening statement after the defeat. “That’s really the biggest takeaway really in both phases, on offense and defense. Our operation is not up to par, and how we’re finishing plays is not up to par. That will be a focus moving forward, but it’s good to know.”
Looking back at Saturday’s loss, which players improved their stock the most? And which ones failed to make the most of the first dress rehearsal gearing up for the regular season?
STOCK UP
Montorie Foster Jr.
Continuing a fantastic summer thus far, Foster capped off Seattle’s lone scoring drive on the opening possession reeling in a screamer from Drew Lock on a dig route for a five-yard touchdown, turning out of his break with the fastball already halfway to him as it rocketed just over the outstretched hand of a linebacker dropping in coverage. While he did have a bad drop in the fourth quarter, he quickly amended for that mistake two plays later on third down, snatching a first down reception coming back to the football on a curl route to move the chains and showing his mettle overcoming in-game adversity. He finished the night with a team-high five catches for 36 yards and those numbers could have been dramatically better if Lock would not have overthrown a potential 65-yard touchdown where the second-year wideout had come wide open down the left sideline.
Mason Richman
Turning into one of Seattle’s most versatile blockers in his second season, Richman started Saturday’s game at left guard and stood out as a positive with the second-team offensive line on the opening series, picking up a couple of blitzes and helping keep Lock clean during a long, methodical drive. He also had a couple of stellar efforts in the blocking game while showcasing improved lateral movement skills compared to his rookie film, helping create quick creases for George Holani and Velus Jones Jr. to work with for effective five-plus yard runs. He continued to play well even when other players started rotating out of the lineup, allowing just a single pressure on 37 offensive snaps. After being a healthy scratch quite a bit in 2025, he appears to have passed teammate Bryce Cabeldue on the depth chart and after the opener, he has created separation there.
Jared Ivey
Sporting a massive black cast on his right hand, Ivey came out clubbing the opposition, teaming up with Brady Russell to dish out a massive blow on the kick returner after Seattle quickly went up 7-0. He then proceeded to make tackles on the first two plays defensively on the ensuing drive, stuffing Jayden Blue twice to help set up a three-and-out. He wasn’t overly effective as a pass rusher while seeing significant snaps off the edge as well as at the 3-tech defensive tackle spot, generating just a single pressure and no quarterback hits. However, Dallas couldn’t move him in the run game, as he inflicted punishment setting a firm edge with heavy hands and also held up quite well in the interior in that regard as well, demonstrating the versatility that could put him on the right side of the roster bubble once again.
Tyrice Knight
Unlike the first three players mentioned on this list, Knight isn’t battling for a roster spot. But the third-year linebacker played with his hair on fire on Saturday night, racking up nine tackles on the Cowboys first two drives alone, performing as if there were three of him on the field at the same time. Not all tackles are created equal, but in this case, the former UTEP star made his count, finishing with five tackles that netted three or fewer yards gained, including three one-yard rushes. He also excelled in coverage, producing a pass breakup on third down on the opening defensive series to force a punt and later adding a second pass deflection, standing out as the best player on the field for either team. With Ernest Jones and Drake Thomas ahead of him, a starting spot isn’t within reach for Knight, but he may force Mike Macdonald’s hand looking for ways to get him onto the field, potentially as a situational EDGE on passing downs.
Noah Igbinoghene
In a nip-and-tuck competition against Nehemiah Pritchett for the third cornerback spot, a battle that now may be even more intriguing with the recent signing of Terrion Arnold, Igbinoghene did nothing but help his cause on Saturday night. Quarterback Sam Howell tested him with a deep ball down the left sideline in the first quarter, but the veteran defensive back stayed stride for stride with the receiver as the pass sailed out of bounds. Playing most of his snaps in the slot, he also produced a pressure that forced an incompletion on his lone blitz attempt, finishing the night without any receptions allowed in coverage and no missed tackles, putting his best foot forward as he vies for a significant role with his new team.
STOCK DOWN
Emmanuel Henderson
To an extent, receivers are dependent on the quarterback actually targeting them in game action, and in Henderson’s defense, he only played seven snaps on offense on Saturday, which played heavily into him not getting any passes thrown his direction. But that by itself may not be a good omen for the sixth round pick, as he rarely saw the field while the Seahawks handed Cody White, Ricky White III, and Foster all at least 24 offensive snaps. He also failed to make an impact on special teams, finishing the game without any statistics on a quiet night. Though he didn’t have any noteworthy mistakes, with Foster seizing his opportunity, it wasn’t a successful evening for the rookie in a crowded receiving room from a 53-man roster standpoint.
Third-String Offensive Line
Nothing should be termed as “alarming” in the preseason when backups play the entirety of games, but the drop off from the starting second-string line to the next group of reserves may fit that bill, at least at the bookend spots. Tackles Amari Kight and Logan Brown combined for four penalties between the two of them and each gave up a quarterback pressure, while veteran Bobby Hart - who actually started opposite of Josh Jones and played for a huge chunk of the game - gave up two sacks on Jalen Milroe while playing 41 snaps. Inside, rookie Beau Stephens allowed a hit on Milroe and also got nailed for a holding penalty, turning in an up-and-down debut at best. Cabeldue played fine, not allowing any pressures on 19 snaps as he rotated in with Richman. Not scoring any points after the first series fell largely on the shoulders of the line, which struggled to open up holes in the run game and received a downpour of yellow flags from the officiating crew in a sloppy performance.
UDFA Defensive Linemen
Compared to most years, expectations for Seattle’s incoming undrafted class were quite low with only a handful of players being signed after the 2026 NFL Draft in April. But from that small group, pass rushers Aidan Hubbard and Marvin Jones Jr. offered the most intrigue coming from Power 4 programs, and nose tackle Uso Seumalo also jumped out as a possible dark horse to push Brandon Pili. But none of those three players have stood out in camp and that trend continued on Saturday, as they combined for three tackles and a single pressure with each player seeing at least 19 defensive snaps. Hubbard had a clear sack opportunity after Jalan Gaines forced Joe Milton up in the pocket, but he failed to capitalize and the quarterback ran away from him with ease. Jones didn’t have any noteworthy pass rush reps and Seumalo got pushed around and appeared to be overwhelmed by NFL strength in the trenches. At this point, it’s hard to envision any undrafted players making this roster.
Shemar Jean-Charles
At the time of this writing, Jean-Charles still had a spot on the 90-man roster, but a rough preseason performance will be his last snaps in 2026, as the team placed him on injured reserve on Monday morning. The veteran cornerback endured a brutal evening, starting with a pass breakup in the first quarter that was nullified by him grabbing the receiver’s shoulder pad and drawing a defensive pass interference penalty. Inside a minute to play in the half, he then failed to track a 39-yard floater from Howell into the end zone as Camden Brown caught the prayer for a touchdown. On top of the coverage lapses, he had a couple bad missed tackles on defense, finishing with just one tackle and four receptions allowed on five targets for 78 yards and a 153.8 passer rating. If he was playing with an injury, the performance is more understandable, but he played his way out of any last sliver of hope making the team or practice squad regardless.
