The Seattle Seahawks' offense is certainly going to be run differently this season. The team will have a lot more two wide receiver sets, which obviously means fewer reps for that group. Still, having depth (and using that depth) is going to be important.
This is especially true after the group looks like a mess after Jaxon Smith-Njigba. JSN fumbled twice (losing one) in Week 1, and that needs to be cleared up, but he was easily the most productive wideout. He had nine catches for 124 yards, and no other receiver had more than two.
That, of course, includes rookie Tory Horton. Horton was a fifth-round pick in 2025, but seemingly only because he injured his knee in his final year in college. In training camp and the preseason, he played [more like a second-round choice](https://12thmanrising.com/seattle-seahawks-rookie-quietly-earning-bigger-role-entering-week-1).
Tory Horton was the forgotten Seattle Seahawks wide receiver in Week 1
----------------------------------------------------------------------
In fact, he was so good that he was partly the reason that the team released veteran Marquez Valdes-Scantling. MVS couldn't block, but his speed and explosiveness were possibly going to be replaced by Horton. That didn't happen in Week 1 against the San Francisco 49ers.
Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak made it clear that he does not yet trust Tory Horton. How else to explain the rookie getting only 20 snaps, but worse, not seeing a single target in the passing game? Sure, quarterback Sam Darnold was heavily going to JSN, the only receiver able to get open, but nothing at all to Horton?
Perhaps, there was a play call designed for the ball to go to Horton. If so, there must have been only one of those plays. The receiver was trusted with returning punts because he did do that. A Seahawks fan also could be forgiven if they thought, "Oh, I guess Tory Horton is playing in this game."
Any rookie receiver trying to make an immediate impact is likely to have a difficult time, but the rookie at least needs to be given a chance. Horton wasn't, but it is unclear why. While the offense was failing to produce points, at least the rookie should have been given [a chance to be explosive](https://12thmanrising.com/seattle-seahawks-rookie-hype-skyrockets-major-backing-nfl-analyst).
Of course, the flipside to this might be scarier. Maybe the Seattle Seahawks did try to get Horton involved, and he certainly couldn't be. Perhaps he was a fifth-round pick because he doesn't have the game speed it takes to be great. Hopefully, we will get an answer to that in Week 2.