The Seattle Seahawks are really excited about rookie TE John Carlson and he should have a big role in the passing game for them this season.  Carlson played in 12 games (all starts) last season at Notre Dame and he caught 40 passes for 372 yards (9.3 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Look for him to catch a lot more passes this season in Mike Holmgren’s offense.  Plus, the Seahawks need help in the passing game due to the injuries to Deion Branch and Bobby Engram.  Carlson finished up his NFL career playing in 47 games (31 starts) in which he caught 100 passes for 1,093 yards (10.9 avg) with 8 TD grabs.

29-year old Jeb Putzier was brought in as a free agent and he will likely play often on running downs.  Putzier played in 8 games for the Texans last season and he caught 6 passes for 39 yards (6.5 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Look for Putzier to catch more passes than that this season in Seattle.  Putzier has now played in 61 games in his NFL career and he has caught 96 passes for 1,251 yards (13.0 avg) with 3 TD grabs. 

27-year old Will Heller is the red zone TE for the Seahawks as he is 6′6″, 270 pounds.  Heller played in all 16 games for the Seahawks last season and he caught 13 passes for 82 yards (6.3 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  The Seahawks will only use Heller in short yardage situations in 2008.  Heller has now played in 58 games in his NFL career and he has caught 32 passes for 228 yards (7.1 avg) with 7 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  C