Seahawks sign four more rookie draft choices, now have eight of their 11 signed
Less than three weeks after the draft, the Seahawks have almost signed all 11 of their choices.
The NFL’s official transactions for Tuesday showed Seattle signed four more rookie picks: wide receivers Gary Jennings (fourth round) and John Ursua (seventh round), plus running back Travis Homer (sixth round) and defensive tackle Demarcus Christmas (sixth round).
Seattle has eight of its rookie draft picks signed. The remaining ones to do so are first-round pick L.J. Collier, second-round choice DK Metcalf and third-round pick Cody Barton.
It’s not a matter of if but the formality of when these picks sign. The drama of years past with top rookie draft choices holding out in contract impasses are mostly gone under the current NFL collective bargaining agreement. It has slotted rookie draft-choice contracts for each place a player is selected.
Last week the Seahawks announced they had signed safety Marquise Blair (second round), guard Phil Haynes (fourth round), safety Ugo Amadi (fourth round) and linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven (fifth round).
Jennings and Ursua were two of three wide receivers the Seahawks drafted last month, their most in 38 years.
That was as top receiver Doug Baldwin was preparing to get released by the Seahawks so he can retire. That happened last week.
Jennings, whom the Seahawks see as a downfield threat, and Ursua, a prolific slot receiver for the University of Hawaii, did not participate in Seattle’s rookie minicamp a week after the draft. They were sidelined by hamstring injuries.
Veterans will be on the field next week for the Seahawks’ first organized team activities (OTAs). Those practices begin Monday at team headquarters in Renton.
This story was originally published May 14, 2019 at 2:27 PM with the headline "Seahawks sign four more rookie draft choices, now have eight of their 11 signed."
