A ‘bigger and better’ Jaron Brown talks Seahawks’ competition at WR

Now in his second year with the Seahawks, former Arizona Cardinal Jaron Brown is facing stiff competition from the rest of the wide receiver room. But despite the addition of several new faces, a spot on the 2019 roster appears to be Brown’s job to lose.

Clayton: ‘Accountability’ a common theme in interviews with Seahawks

It should be assumed that a returning veteran has the leg up in the competition, but Seattle’s decision to draft three wide receivers for the first time since 1981 drew the spotlight instead to this year’s rookie group. Taking up most of that attention is second-round pick D.K. Metcalf, a 6-feet-3, 227-pound Ole Miss standout who put together one of the best performances at this year’s scouting combine and has since dominated headlines from rookie camp and OTAs.

But while he didn’t put up eye-popping numbers in 2018, it would be a mistake to overlook Brown.

“Jaron Brown is a really good player that we look back and we could’ve used him a lot more,” Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said in late May. “He did a lot of things for us. He blocked well, and fit into a lot of stuff, scored five touchdowns on a limited amount of catches. So we know we can go to him, he’s a real pro and so we’re anxious to see him develop more.”

The Seahawks’ run-first offense turned primarily to Tyler Lockett and Doug Baldwin when attacking through the air; the duo finished with 965 yards and 618 yards, respectively. Brown was Seattle’s eighth-most targeted receiver. But Brown also made the most of those 19 targets, with 14 receptions for 166 yards and a career-high five touchdowns.

Brown is working on a few adjustments this offseason, which he detailed in an interview with 710 ESPN Seattle’s John Clayton.

“I would say YAC – yards after catch – and transitioning with the football,” Brown said. “Trying to make better emphasis on that this offseason. I also got a little bit bigger. I’m at 220 right now, so I added some more muscle, wanted to get bigger. Might be playing on the outside, might be playing in the slot a little bit, and blocking those big defensive ends, so I wanted to add a little more weight… It’s a competition. It’s a lot of opportunity, obviously with Doug Baldwin’s absence… so some guys are going to have to step up. But like I said, it’s a competition, so we’re out there competing and trying to get better, and in the end it’s going to make our team better.”

“Bigger, better and faster. That’s kind of a good trio,” Clayton said of Brown. “Don’t count him out. He’s 220 pounds, he is running a little bit faster, I know the coaches have been raving about how they pretty much underused him last year… Moore going against Brown is a pretty good battle for the No. 2 receiver spot.”

Listen to Brown’s full interview in the audio clip embedded above.

Listen to the John Clayton Show weekday mornings from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. on 710 ESPN Seattle. Subscribe to the podcast here.

Follow @stacyrost