How Seahawks rookie LB Tyrice Knight is impressing Wyman
Dec 13, 2024, 3:01 PM
Rookie linebacker Tyrice Knight has been one of the most surprising success stories for the Seattle Seahawks this season.
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Knight, a fourth-round draft pick out of UTEP, began the season as the No. 3 linebacker on Seattle’s depth chart. But after a midseason shakeup at the position that saw the Seahawks move on from season-opening starters Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dodson, Knight has thrived alongside trade acquisition Ernest Jones IV.
Knight has started each of the past four games since Dodson was released. During that span, he grades as Pro Football Focus’ 12-best linebacker and has totaled 35 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack and two pass breakups. And Seattle’s defense has excelled as a whole, allowing an NFL-low 13.8 points per game over the past four weeks.
Knight’s best performance came on Sunday, when he racked up a team-high 12 tackles, one tackle for loss and two pass breakups in the Seahawks’ 30-18 win over the Arizona Cardinals. On Thursday, he was named the NFL’s Rookie of the Week.
“Tyrice Knight is slowly becoming a very, very good player,” former NFL linebacker Dave Wyman said earlier this week on Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob. “And a lot of the things that he does, you don’t really notice, …. but he’s always in the right spot. He’s always able to find the ball.”
As an example, Wyman pointed to a play early in Sunday’s game.
Prior to the snap, the 6-foot, 233-pound Knight shifted down to the right side of the Seahawks’ defensive front. Arizona’s Trey McBride, who has emerged as one of the league’s top tight ends, tried to block Knight at the line of scrimmage before getting in position to receive a screen pass.
But Knight fought through the contact and then got his hand on Kyler Murray’s pass, deflecting it into the air for a pass breakup.
It was a stark contrast from the previous week, when Wyman remembers watching the 6-foot-4, 246-pound McBride manhandle a Minnesota Vikings linebacker on a similar play.
“I saw (McBride) do this to a Minnesota linebacker in the game prior – he went to block him and he threw the guy down and got open,” Wyman said. “Well, he tried to do that to Tyrice Knight. He grabbed him, tried to throw him down. He couldn’t do it. … And then Tyrice Knight runs toward the quarterback (and) knocks the ball down,
“With Tyrice Knight, (McBride) didn’t even affect him. It was the same move, same play, and (McBride) wasn’t able to get that done with (Knight). … So there’s little things like that that are starting to really stand out to me.”
Listen to the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune in to Wyman and Bob weekdays from 2 to 6 p.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
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