Seahawks could have special season, so don’t fumble at trade deadline
Connor O’Toole celebrates his fumble recovery in the second quarter. The Seattle Seahawks played the Washington Commanders in NFL Football Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, at Northwest Stadium, in Landover, MD. (Dean Rutz / The Seattle Times)
By Mike Vorel Seattle Times columnist
Chad Savage sees what the Seahawks are building.
Savage served as the wide receivers coach at Colorado State from 2022 to 2024, before accepting a role at USC last offseason. In Fort Collins, Colo., he accelerated the ascendance of Tory Horton, whom the Seahawks selected in the fifth round of last spring’s draft.
Horton — a 6-foot-2, 196-pound receiver and returner — shouldn’t have lasted that long. The Fresno, Calif., product was a two-time captain who combined for 167 catches, 2,267 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns in 2022 and 2023. He finished just 34 yards shy of the Mountain West Conference career receiving record.
But a lateral collateral ligament (LCL) injury last October ended his CSU career … and caused questions.
“Every day last year at practice I was meeting with NFL scouts,” Savage told The Times on Oct. 2. “They obviously saw [the talent]. They had some question marks, and I was doing my best to answer those. But I was always standing on a table for Tory, because I knew what he was capable of doing.
“It’s funny, because now I’m at USC and I’ve got a guy that’s got a draft grade, but all these scouts are coming up and bragging about Tory. They wish they would have taken him. They see what he’s doing. I’m like, ‘Yeah, I’m talking to the guys in Seattle. They’re saying he’s a future star.’ Obviously the scouting department and GM has to see it and believe it.”
For Horton, and the Seahawks, the conversation has changed.
Tory Horton scores on a 4-yard pass from Sam Darnold in the first quarter Sunday en route to a win against the Commanders. (Dean Rutz / The Seattle Times)
Tory Horton scores on a 4-yard pass from Sam Darnold in the first quarter Sunday en route to a win against the Commanders. (Dean Rutz / The Seattle Times)
The Seahawks saw it in Horton, a fifth-round pick who torched the Commanders for two touchdowns in Sunday’s 38-14 win. They saw it in fellow rookies Elijah Arroyo, Grey Zabel and Nick Emmanwori, each of whom have made instant impacts. They saw it in Sam Darnold, who completed his first 17 passes Sunday and looks more like an MVP candidate and franchise quarterback each week. They saw it in Jaxon Smith-Njigba, the first player in franchise history with four straight 100-yard receiving games. They saw it in 33-year-old defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence, who signed a three-year deal despite logging just four games in 2024.
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They saw it in Ernest Jones IV, AJ Barner, Byron Murphy II, Ty Okada, Drake Thomas, etc. — draft picks, afterthoughts or journeymen, all doing their jobs.
They saw it in Mike Macdonald, the right man to replace a coaching icon in Pete Carroll. They saw it in plug-and-play offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak.
The Seahawks are 6-2 and ascending in the NFC because general manager John Schneider, Macdonald and Co., saw it, believed it and built it.
But they don’t hang half-season banners.
The Seahawks are building something special. Don’t stop now.
As the trade deadline arrives Tuesday, the Seahawks have an opportunity to solidify themselves. That likely means upgrading the interior of their offensive line, where Anthony Bradford is ranked 104th out of 117 guards by Pro Football Focus. It might mean adding depth in the secondary, where safety Julian Love is on injured reserve and cornerbacks Devon Witherspoon and Josh Jobe have dealt with their own injuries. It could mean looking at linebackers, depending on the severity of the knee injury Jones sustained Sunday.
It definitely means doing everything possible to pulverize their question marks.
The Seahawks need to learn from their neighbor. At their own trade deadline, the Mariners took significant swings, adding the best corner infielders available in Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez. Those additions paid dividends. But they missed on leverage reliever Jhoan Durán, who might have made the difference in October.
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The Seahawks can’t finish this season knowing they were one move away.
As Darnold — who completed 21 of 24 passes and threw for 330 yards with four touchdowns and one interception — said in the locker room Sunday: “We can do whatever we want to do, man. The sky’s the limit for us. But we just got to keep working.”
That applies to Schneider as much as anyone.
Because Darnold’s assessment seems increasingly accurate. Through nine weeks, eight games and six wins, the Seahawks sit fifth in the NFL in scoring offense (28.9 points per game) and scoring defense (18.8 points allowed per game). Their plus-81 point differential ranks third, though three games against the Rams and 49ers remain on their schedule.
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Of equal importance: They’ve modeled the next-man-up mentality. When Witherspoon missed time earlier this season, Derion Kendrick produced a pair of picks. When Love was placed on IR, Okada skied along the sideline for his first career interception Sunday. When wide receiver Cooper Kupp sat out Sunday’s game with a heel issue, Horton responded with four catches, 48 yards and two touchdowns.
Through eight games, Savage’s protégé has produced 13 catches, 161 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns, plus a punt return score.
They’re the third-youngest team in the NFL, weighted by snaps played, according to ESPN’s Bill Barnwell. But forget about the future. Why can’t the Seahawks do something special this season?
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“I’ve seen the Seattle Seahawks organization when they get on a roll,” NBC color commentator Cris Collinsworth said in the final minute of Sunday’s game. “Their fans travel, their fans are loud, and their fans are in the really expensive seats right now behind their team. The ‘Go Hawks!’ chants and cheers have been in full throat.
“It’s going to be an exciting week in Seattle. It really will be. They know good football when they see it, and this team is flashing some really impressive stuff these last few weeks.”
It’ll be an even more exciting week if the Seahawks improve prior to Tuesday’s trade deadline.
As for Savage? USC’s tight ends and inside receivers coach told The Times more than a month ago: “I’m just so happy Tory landed with the Seahawks, because I think that’s the perfect fit for him.”
The Seahawks saw it, believed it and built it. But they better not be done.
Mike Vorel: mvorel@seattletimes .com. Mike Vorel is a sports columnist at The Seattle Times.