RENTON, Wash. -- The Seattle Seahawks opened up training camp Saturday. Below is a rundown of observations from the first practice. All times are in PT.
10:12: Defensive end Michael Bennett walks onto the field with three minutes to spare. Bennett is still unhappy with his contract, but he decided against holding out and said all the right things after practice.
10:20: Tight end Jimmy Graham and running back Thomas Rawls work off to the side with trainers. Both players begin camp on the PUP list.
10:24: During special-teams work, Steven Hauschka sails a kickoff way over Tyler Lockett's head. The ball lands near where the defensive linemen are practicing behind the end zone. Several of them duck and cover their heads. There are a couple reasons why this is amusing. One, the linemen are the ones generally inflicting fear, yet for some reason, they look terrified here. And two, they are all wearing helmets. Why are they covering their heads? I will give them a few days to knock off the rust, but if this scene plays out again in late August, it might be time to reconsider expectations for the 2016 Seahawks.
10:48: Sean Paul's "Temperature" blares from the speakers as Bennett breaks out a full dance routine, much to the delight of the fans in attendance. The lyrics in that jam might never be topped.
We give it to you hot like a sauna.
11:00: We get our first hints at what the depth chart looks like. The only surprise on offense is that Bradley Sowell is at left tackle as Garry Gilliam continues to recover after having had a cyst removed from his knee in the spring. Pete Carroll said Gilliam should be back within a week.
The starting offensive line from left to right is: Sowell, Mark Glowinski, Justin Britt, Germain Ifedi and J'Marcus Webb. The second team is: Terry Poole, Will Pericak, Patrick Lewis, Rees Odhiambo and George Fant.
In the backfield, Christine Michael gets the first shot at running back, but there is a clear rotation with Alex Collins and Zac Brooks seeing plenty of opportunities with the starters. C.J. Prosise tweaked his hamstring at the beginning of practice and is not participating in team drills. It will probably take until the beginning of the preseason to figure out which of the backs is inching ahead of the rest.
Defensively, the first-team line is Cliff Avril, Jordan Hill, Ahtyba Rubin and Bennett. Mike Morgan gets the first crack at the SAM linebacker position. Bobby Wagner, K.J. Wright, Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas take their usual spots. DeShawn Shead is most often the right cornerback, with Jeremy Lane playing the slot.
11:10: During a team drill, Bennett bats down a Russell Wilson pass and lets him know about it. Later, Wilson dumps it off to Michael, but the ball goes through his hands and is intercepted by Chancellor, who takes it to the house as the defensive players jump around in celebration.
"Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)" is still in the musical rotation, and one player who's clearly excited about that (at least from judging how he's breaking it down) is wide receiver Paul Richardson. It should be noted that no one did the Dougie later in practice when that song came on.
11:18: During 7-on-7s, Brandon Browner breaks up a pass, and his teammates go nuts. Browner had multiple pass breakups during practice, and Carroll sounds legitimately excited about carving out a role for him. For most of practice, Browner teams up with Kelcie McCray as a second-team safety.
Richardson beats defensive back George Farmer on a go ball down the sideline, and Wilson finds him for a touchdown.
11:34: Browner breaks up a pass intended for Cooper Helfet. This is where I think the Seahawks will try to get the most out of Browner. The defense ranked 26th last season at defending tight ends. It seems like they believe Browner can really help them there. Carroll alluded to him playing a different role than a traditional safety.
"There are other things you can do with him too," Carroll said. "And we are already implementing how to spot him and with matchups and things like that."
Later, strong safety Tyvis Powell breaks up a Wilson pass intended for Lockett. Powell is an undrafted free agent to watch. He has a chance to make the roster with a strong showing.
11:53: On the last play of the day, Jake Heaps finds Antwan Goodley on a go ball past Stanley Jean-Baptiste.
The Seahawks are back on the field Sunday at 10:15 a.m. PT.