Hawk Talk highlights: Sidney Rice’s prospects

By 710Sports.com staff

Highlights from the latest edition of “Hawk Talk” with Danny O’Neil:

LGKB stated that Sidney Rice won’t be the Seahawks’ No. 1 or 2 wide receiver.

O’Neil: You sure about that? I mean, he’s not going to beat out Doug Baldwin nor Percy Harvin for a roster spot. But I think the real question for Rice’s prospects is whether he projects to be better than Jermaine Kearse. Kearse’s job won’t depend on whether he can beat out Rice, but Rice’s viability may very well depend on showing that he’s more productive outside than Kearse.

Fan from Indiana asked if quarterback Terrelle Pryor has improved as a passer and whether his reads or his accuracy have been a bigger issue.

O’Neil: Great questions. Brock Huard came away from last week’s practice with the impression of how erratic Terrelle Pryor looked. That was Thursday. The week prior to that, I had thought he looked improved. The biggest challenge is going to be accuracy, though. That’s the biggest knock.

Tacodile asked which fullbacks the Seahawks will keep.

O’Neil: I think you’ve got three guys fighting for two spots: Derrick Coleman, Spencer Ware and Kiero Small. Special teams will be a huge consideration, and it’s hard for me to imagine Derrick Coleman not making the team. Not impossible, but hard for me to expect.

Agent guy asked whether the Seahawks will adjust running back Marshawn Lynch’s contract to give him more money.

O’Neil: No clue how those situations pan out. I will say that I think it’s possible Lynch’s contract gets adjusted, but in terms of significant raise (i.e. increasing compensation by multi-millions for 2014) I don’t see it happen.

Tory asked what the “next step” is for Seattle’s No. 1-ranked defense.

O’Neil: For the defense, the “next step” is to be able to sustain the effectiveness of their run defense without Red Bryant, and to continue to rush the passer effectively, both from the starting unit and in nickel.

big john asked about linebacker Heath Farwell’s chances of making the team and if the Seahawks would consider keeping him as a special-teams coach if he’s cut.

O’Neil: Heath Farwell absolutely has a future as a football coach. Not sure if he would be ready to move on to that this year. He has been a vital piece for the one of the league’s top special-teams units. Let’s not write him off yet.

Paco – POA asked if Benson Mayowa, Bruce Irvin and O’Brien Schofield are alternatives to Cliff Avril at the weak-side defensive-end spot in the Seahawks’ nickel package.

O’Neil: Yes. That is an alternative. And I think that we could see Seattle’s base defense change in that the base might include Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril at the defensive ends, which would be a marked change. This season, Seattle’s defense was its de facto heavy unit with Red Bryant at defensive end. That would no longer be the case.