More than 20% of Seahawks rookies are injured at start of training camp

The Seattle Seahawks' rookie class arrived at the VMAC in Renton on Tuesday, beginning training camp early before the veterans start on Wednesday, July 23. However, the start of camp also brought unfortunate news, as six of the team's 28 first-year players were placed on the non-football injury list, the team announced.

Luckily for Seattle, only one of those players was selected in the draft (fifth-round defensive end Rylie Mills) and the rest were undrafted free agent signings. It's not uncommon for many players to be put on the NFI list at the start of camp, and they can return at any time. The undrafted players, however, need as much time on the field as they can get if they want to shake up the depth chart.

Linebacker D'Eryk Jackson, wide receivers Tyrone Broden and Montorie Foster, and cornerbacks Zy Alexander and Isas Waxter made up the five UDFAs that landed on the NFI list to start training camp.

Mills being there isn't a surprise, as he isn't expected to be game-ready for a while after suffering an ACL injury last season in his final campaign at Notre Dame. The Seahawks are fortunate that wide receiver Tory Horton (knee) and tight end Elijah Arroyo (knee) aren't on the list, as both had health questions soon after being drafted. At this point, it isn't clear if Arroyo — the No. 50 overall pick — has even arrived to camp amid his contract holdout with No. 35 pick Nick Emmanwori.

The team did not disclose the nature of the injuries, but players are eligible for the NFI list if their injury is a "result of conditions unrelated to football, or injuries that did not occur during NFL games or practices." If any are lingering issues from college competition, like Mills, they are still eligible.

Last season, the Seahawks had four rookies begin camp on the NFI list before returning within a week. Most of them will likely be on the field by July 23.

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