Notes, video from Seahawks’ final OTA: Kam Chancellor practices, Earl Thomas sits and more

RENTON – The Seahawks wrapped up Organized Team Activities on Friday, holding their seventh and final practice. These were voluntary whereas attendance in next week’s three-day minicamp is mandatory. Here are some notes plus observations and video of what I saw on Friday:

Chancellor gets back to work. Seattle’s defense in general and its secondary in particular didn’t practice at anything close to full strength for much of OTAs, at least during the first two sessions that were open to the media (this was the third). But that took a bit of a turn for the better on Friday. Strong safety Kam Chancellor, who had surgery on both ankles earlier this offseason, was a full-go after being limited in the two previous open practices. Why’s that potentially significant even though it’s only June? Chancellor is entering the final year of his contract, which means he’s eligible for an extension. If the Seahawks are strongly considering giving him one as opposed to having him play out his deal, they’d surely want to see him resume practicing without limitation first. Now they have. Meanwhile in Seattle’s defense, Bradley McDougald worked at free safety with Earl Thomas not practicing Friday. Thomas took most of the reps during an early OTA but didn’t do much during the the three open practices. Cornerback Richard Sherman took part in more team work than I saw from him in earlier OTAs. Defensive end Frank Clark practiced Friday after missing the first two open practices (coach Pete Carroll said following the first one that Clark has been dealing with mumps as well as a family matter). Michael Wilhoite, one of the three linebackers Seattle signed in free agency and seemingly the favorite to replace Mike Morgan as the strong-side starter, didn’t practice in any of the three open sessions. I also didn’t see defensive end Dion Jordan practicing Friday. Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril remained absent, but remember, attendance isn’t mandatory until next week.

Here’s a video of Clark and others taking part in a defensive-line drill that reinforces staying low while firing off the ball. I’d imagine this is an important one for top pick Malik McDowell, who’s 6 foot 6. Bennett has said McDowell has to work on not playing as upright as he sometimes did in college. McDowell is first up in the video. The massive man running the drill is new defensive-line coach Clint Hurtt.

This D-line drill is all about staying low. I imagine this is an important one for Malik McDowell, whose 6-6. He’s first up in the video. pic.twitter.com/pa6YYMelKG

— Brady Henderson (@BradyHenderson) June 9, 2017

Boykin vs Davis. Brock Huard shared his observation earlier this week that new quarterback Austin Davis looks, in his words, fundamentally sound but “pretty average physically.” I noticed the second part on Friday while watching Davis during the team portions of practice. His passes didn’t have nearly as much zip as Russell Wilson’s or even Trevone Boykin’s. Of course, arm strength and physical tools in general are only one part of the evaluation puzzle for a quarterback. One thing Davis has working in his favor as he competes with Boykin for the backup job is that he has much more experience as a sixth-year player with 10 career starts. But at least physically, Boykin seems to have a clear edge, not just with his arm strength but also with his mobility, which is something Seattle prefers in its quarterbacks.

Pocic signs. Offensive lineman Ethan Pocic, Seattle’s second-round pick, has signed his rookie deal. That means that only two of the Seahawks’ 11 draft picks remained unsigned: cornerback Shaquill Griffin and safety Delano Hill, both third-rounders. They’ve been participating in OTAs despite being unsigned.

Aboushi’s role. We heard for the first time Friday from Oday Aboushi, the offensive linemen Seattle signed in free agency to a one-year deal. His signing added some experience to Seattle’s young offensive line. Aboushi has made 18 starts since entering the league as a fifth-round pick in 2013 and has played both guard spots. Sounds like Tom Cable likes the example Aboushi sets for the younger offensive linemen. “Veteran, good brain, mature, he keeps the room right,” Cable said. “It’s nice to have a guy who demands others to be right and to be pros. He is a pro and he acts like it and knows what it takes in terms of his body, his preparation and his study time and all that. So he demands that from those guys. I think it’s fantastic to have him in there.” A fun fact about Aboushi: he’s one of 10 siblings, the second youngest. “I was kind of born into my own team, if you will,” he said.

Here’s video of Aboushi talking about coming to Seattle in free agency.

Cable talked about Oday Aboushi as a good example for Seahawks’ younger OL to follow. Aboushi, entering his 5th season, signed a 1-year deal pic.twitter.com/qUgHwf0q74

— Brady Henderson (@BradyHenderson) June 9, 2017