After wrapping up their first offseason program under new coach Mike Macdonald last week, the Seattle Seahawks will have a quicker turnaround than usual before reporting to training camp.
As announced by the NFL on Tuesday, the Seahawks will have rookies report for their first training camp on July 17 and veterans will arrive one week later on July 23. The team has yet to announce how many of their training camp practices will be open to the public and dates, but those are expected to be revealed on Tuesday, June 25.
Earlier this month, Seattle did announce it would host its annual Football Fest at Lumen Field on Saturday, August 3 with gates opening at noon and practice beginning at 1 PM PT. Aside from being able to watch players practice at the home stadium, fans will be entertained by Seahawks Dancers, Blue Thunder, and Blitz, along with post-practice interaction with players and coaches such as autographs, giveaways, and more.
As for the rest of the schedule, per NFL rules set by the collective bargaining agreement, rookies can begin practicing 22 days before their team's preseason opener. Veterans are allowed to begin practicing up to 15 days before the exhibition opener and with the Seahawks set to face the Chargers on August 10, Saturday, August 27 would be the earliest they could hold full team practices to officially open camp.
Taking full advantage of these rules, unlike his predecessor Pete Carroll, who typically had vets and rookies report around the same time, Macdonald and his staff will be able to start working with Seattle's first-year players after they report on July 17. This will provide another buffer for the group of draftees and undrafted rookies to get acclimated before the rest of the team reports six days later.
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