Getty Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll gave high praise to one of the team's developing wide receivers on October 19.
The Seattle Seahawks have appeared to find plenty of hidden gems in the 2022 NFL draft. But the team is still waiting for a couple of their selections from the 2021 draft to show something more.
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll implied on October 19 that one of those 2021 picks — wide receiver Dee Eskridge — may not be far off.
“He’s blossoming right now,” Carroll said of Eskridge. “He’s really going.”
Carroll also continued to compliment the former second-round pick, comparing him to another receiver the Seahawks drafted during the second round in 2010 — Golden Tate.
Pete Carroll on Dee Eskridge: “He’s blossoming right now. He’s really going.”
Carroll compared Eskridge to Golden Tate in that it took him a while to get his footing too. Said sometimes guys who are such natural athletes aren’t as on the details b/c athleticism had been enough.
Pete Carroll said Dee Eskridge’s development reminds him of Golden Tate in that being such a natural athlete compensated for not being as focused on all the details/intricacies of the position before reaching the NFL.
Eskridge’s Role Expanding
Compared to what the Seahawks rookies are doing this season, Eskridge was a big disappointment in his first year. It was even more discouraging for Seattle fans because the 2021 draft class for the team was very small. Eskridge was one of just three selections the Seahawks made last year, and he was the team’s only pick on the first two days of the draft.
But a concussion derailed any chance Eskridge had of making an impact as a rookie. He posted 28 yards from scrimmage on three touches in his NFL debut, but he left the Week 1 contest last year with a head injury. Eskridge didn’t play in the next three games and then went on injured reserve in early October because of the concussion.
Eskridge returned in Week 10. He finished the season with 10 catches, 64 receiving yards and a touchdown. He also had 59 rushing yards on 4 carries.
The 25-year-old receiver didn’t appear any more part of the offense to begin this season, but he may have experienced a small breakout in Week 6.
Against the Arizona Cardinals, Eskridge received 3 targets, which was his most in a game since Week 15 last year. He caught all 3 of those targets for a career-high 39 yards.
“We want him to be involved, and you can see why,” Carroll told The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar. “He looks good, he’s quick and explosive and all of that, and we can’t wait to include him more as we go.”
Eskridge isn’t going to challenge DK Metcalf or Tyler Lockett for their share of outside targets in the Seattle offense. But in weeks where defenses successfully slow down the Metcalf-Lockett duo, it would be huge for Seattle if Eskridge could provide quarterback Geno Smith a third receiver target.
The 25-year-old only has 6 catches for 55 yards this season, but that’s third among Seattle’s wideouts this season.
Similarities Between Eskridge & Tate
Carroll comparing Eskridge to Tate is interesting for a couple different reasons.
For one, the two featured a similar skillset. Tate stood at 5-foot-10 whereas Eskridge is listed at 5-foot-9. Each receiver was also under 200 pounds.
Both were also big-play threats in college. Tate averaged 17.2 yards per catch while recording two 1,000-yard receiving seasons at Notre Dame. Eskridge hauled in fewer receptions during his college career, which didn’t allow him to reach 1,000 yards in a season. But Eskridge posted 18.5 yards per catch in college.
Like Eskridge, Tate didn’t immediately become an NFL star. He recorded 21 catches and 227 receiving yards as a rookie in 2010. He didn’t reach 50 receptions or 800 receiving yards in a season until his fourth year.
But then in his fifth season, unfortunately with the Detroit Lions, Tate evolved into a Pro Bowl caliber player. He posted 99 catches for 1,331 receiving yards in 2014. From 2014-17, he registered 4,224 receiving yards and averaged 93 catches per season.
Eskridge is starting from an even lower point than Tate, as he had only 64 receiving yards as a rookie. But as Tate displayed in his career, sometimes it takes some players longer to develop into stars.
The Seahawks are hoping Eskridge can become a star before the end of his rookie contract, but the 25-year-old following in Tate’s footsteps wouldn’t be all that bad either.