Seattle Seahawks WR Jake Bobo Proving Himself All Over Again in Ryan Grubb's Offense (2024)

RENTON, Wash. - The Washington Huskies and UCLA Bruins may no longer be in the defunct Pac 12, but the bad blood still runs deep as the two rivals head to the Big Ten, including at the team facility for the Seattle Seahawks.

Though Jake Bobo never played for new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, the savvy receiver had the pleasure of torching the latter's Huskies in his lone season with the Bruins, grabbing six passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns in a 40-32 victory. Now in his second season with the Seahawks, as he recalled prior to the team's fourth training camp practice last Saturday, he made sure to remind the new play caller when they met for the first time this spring.

"I had to ask him if he burned all that ugly purple, that was the first thing I said," Bobo laughed. "But he's a great guy. He's a player's coach. He's coming to us asking what we see, what we do here. But obviously, we know and he knows that he's confident in his systems, his scheme. You can see it out there, the offense has had a great first couple of days camp, we're bought in."

The architect of the #MoreBobo movement last season, Bobo sprung onto the scene as an unheralded undrafted rookie, capturing the hearts of 12s everywhere as he snagged passes left and right throughout the offseason program into training camp. Proving his play in August wasn't a fluke, after earning a spot on the 53-man roster, he caught 19 passes for 196 yards and a pair of touchdowns, emerging as a reliable fourth target for quarterback Geno Smith.

In addition, Bobo pitched in a rushing touchdown on a jet sweep and made a substantial impact as a blocker, grading out as Pro Football Focus' second-best run blocking receiver (77.6) with at least 88 run blocking snaps. He also played 137 special teams snaps, contributing more than anticipated in the third phase of the game.

Through it all, Bobo acknowledged he didn't have time to truly reflect on his ascent to a roster spot with the Seahawks until the season ended following a Week 18 road win over the Cardinals, calling the support from fans a "really cool experience" that he couldn't put into words. Finally granted a little time to soak things in, he celebrated what he had accomplished with an eye towards the future, ready to get back to work and write another chapter in his Cinderella story in Seattle.

Not looking to reinvent the wheel and sticking mostly to status quo this offseason, Bobo admitted he feels a bit more at home than he did this time a year ago due to his chemistry with teammates and familiarity with the building. But his mentality hasn't been altered by success, as he isn't going to let his guard down understanding a roster spot can be lost in quick fashion in the NFL, especially in a deep, talented Seahawks receiving corps.

"Physically, I'm a little more comfortable. But mindset wise, I don't think there is a whole lot of difference," Bobo said. "I've still got to make this 53-man roster. Once I do, I can switch into finding out what I can do to be effective in this offense, whatever way that is."

While Bobo may still be sweating things out like he did last summer, his performance on the practice field suggests he shouldn't have anything to worry about this time around. Continuing to show off arguably the most reliable hands on the entire roster and keeping the #MoreBobo trend alive and well, he's been making plays consistently in Grubb's offense dating back to the start of OTAs, regardless of whether he's catching passes from Smith or backup quarterback Sam Howell.

Turning in the highlight of training camp so far on Monday, Bobo somehow tracked down a throw from Howell that looked destined to land in the cheap seats with reporters, diving and fully extending his arms like a Stretch Armstrong doll to secure the football. Maintaining the catch through the ground, he left jaws dropping along the sideline as teammates came to mob him in the end zone for what Tyler Lockett called one of the five best catches he has seen in 10 career training camps.

"That was a tremendous catch, and like you see it, you got somebody like Bobo going into a second year that can make big time plays whenever you call his name," Lockett gushed. "I think that alone just makes it tough for defenses to figure out what it is that you want to do. We bring our game to the table and the coaches figure out how to utilize everybody."

Two days earlier, Bobo skied for a high throw from Howell in the back of the end zone and dragged both feet in bounds for another score during the red zone period, giving him a total of three touchdowns so far in training camp.

With Lockett, DK Metcalf, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba all ahead of him on the depth chart as well as a capable pass-catching tight end in Noah Fant, conventional wisdom would suggest Bobo may have a difficult time receiving many targets once the regular season arrives. After all, he didn't have a single game with more than one reception after Week 10 last year, fading into a role of obscurity as Seattle's fourth receiver down the stretch, and he has been seeing quite a few snaps with the second-team offense.

But at the same time, the detail-oriented Grubb has a history of maximizing on the talent of the receivers at his disposal and he knows from first-hand experience as a former opponent how effective Bobo can be in an offense that caters to his strengths. Even if he lacks speed or quickness for his position, his 6-4 frame, soft hands, elite football instincts, and precise route running provide a quartet of tools that should set him up for continued success in a scheme that he loves so far, even if the play caller is a former Pac 12 adversary.

"His offense is different from some of the offenses I've played in where you've got to get yourself open at times," Bobo explained. "I've never been in quite an offense that is tailored to the receiving corps to the skill players, backs, whoever to where Grubb's gonna find a way to scheme it up to put guys in a position to get open. So it's moving guys around, scheming up our own defensive in practice, and putting guys in spots to get open."

Thinking big picture, still grateful to be an NFL player and thankful to be embraced by the fan base, Bobo simply wants to do whatever he can to help the Seahawks win games. Just as he did last season, if that means he's spending the majority of his time blocking on the outside on run plays, he's going to block his tail off. If he's covering kickoffs or punts, he's going to fly down the field looking to make tackles or down the ball deep in opposing territory.

But while Bobo will most certainly block and pitch in on special teams, nobody should be sleeping on him to do damage as a receiver at this point. Continuing to silence skeptics one catch at a time on the practice field, he has solidified his standing as one of Smith's most trusted targets, and if he keeps making ridiculous catches like the one he did on Monday, there may be more bones coming his way via Grubb's offense when the regular season arrives in September.