Every year NFL teams bring in a few dozen tryout players to share the field during rookie minicamp with their draft picks and undrafted free agents. The Seattle Seahawks are no exception to the rule, and they had over 40 rookies participating at last week's minicamp.
The vast majority of these tryout players wind up not making the team - not even the offseason 90-man roster, to say nothing of the initial 53 at the end of the preseason. There's at least one exception to that rule for the Seahawks this year, though. Former Kentucky linebacker D'Eryk Jackson will be joining the squad, according to the Wildcats.
Kentucky announces D'Eryk Jackson joining Seahawks
Jackson (6-foot-1, 245 pounds) had an interesting five-year career at Kentucky, appearing in a total of 46 games. During that time he put up 114 solo tackles (17 for a loss), three sacks, nine pass breakups and five interceptions - an unusually high number for a college linebacker. Here are highlights from his last two seasons.
De'Ryk Jackson 2023 highlights
De'Ryk Jackson 2024 highlights
Jackson has traits the Seahawks like in their linebackers, but there are concerns, including two major injuries in college - an Achilles tear in 2021 that sidelined him most of the season and a shoulder injury that put him out for the final four games of 2024.
The Seahawks seem willing to gamble on that element this year more than usual - a few of their draft pick are also coming off major injuries in 2024 that likely caused them to drop.
To start out Jackson will be at the bottom of Seattle's off-ball linebacker rotation. He will need to outplay guys like Patrick O'Connell, Josh Ross and Drake Thomas to make the cut.
