The Seattle Seahawks delivered another compelling episode of Hard Knocks on HBO, and Episode 3 gave fans a deeper look at a team hungry to defend its Super Bowl title.

From a legendary cornerback’s visit to training camp, to the front office’s free agency process, to an undrafted receiver making noise, there was plenty to unpack. 

Richard Sherman sees a Seahawks team built to win the Super Bowl, again

Former Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman visited training camp and had a brief but revealing conversation with coach Mike Macdonald. Sherman was comparing the current Seahawks team coming off a championship to his own squad that came off a title in the 2013 season over Denver, and the contrast he drew was telling.

“This is such a hungry team. We were still hungry after the first one, but you still felt like this dude got paid, this dude’s starting to feel himself, this dude is pissed off he’s not getting enough money. You don’t feel f–ing nothing here but f–ing grind and work.”

It’s important to note that even Sherman’s team still made it to the Super Bowl the year after winning the Lombardi Trophy and was a Marshawn Lynch carry away from repeating

That quote says everything about what Macdonald and his staff have built in Seattle. This is a championship culture full of talented individuals focused on team goals over personal ones. And that’s what separates the best teams from the rest. They prioritize winning first and let the individual accolades follow.

It was a really cool moment to see, and the fact that a guy like Sherman who has been involved in football at the highest level recognized it immediately speaks volumes about where this organization is right now.

John Schneider’s deep dive on Terrion Arnold

The second takeaway was another great look at the process behind the Seahawks’ pursuit of free agent cornerback Terrion Arnold. General manager John Schneider ended up going back and rewatching Seattle’s formal combine interview with Arnold from a couple years back, and his reaction said it all.

“This is one of the best interviews we’ve ever had. He was awesome.”

But Schneider didn’t stop there. He did extensive character research on Arnold, reaching out to Coach Nick Saban, Jalen Milroe, and Robbie Ouzts. All of them had great things to say, which you could tell helped Schneider feel better about his desire to land Arnold.

I thought it was fascinating to see the front office go back and pull up old combine interviews and do all of that homework before making a decision because these situations happen in the NFL and we as consumers of the sport never get to really see the behind-the-scenes picture. Given the circumstances around Arnold’s free agency, they clearly wanted to make sure he was the right fit.

In John Schneider’s mind he is, and now we just have to wait and see how that plays out after the latest news regarding Arnold’s eventual placement on the Commissioner’s Exempt List.. 

Montorie Foster Jr. is making his case for a roster spot

My last takeaway circles undrafted wide receiver Montorie Foster Jr., the second-year player out of Michigan State. Everybody was talking about this guy. Coaches, players, offensive and defensive staff were all making note of his play in practice. Even John Schneider went up to him and told him he’d had a great spring and to keep building on it.

Foster backed up the buzz with a strong performance in the preseason opener against Dallas, leading the team in receiving yards (36) and scoring the lone touchdown. He was the biggest bright spot on offense, on a day that was tough for that unit, and that was great to see from a guy fighting for a spot.

I honestly believe he can make this roster. Just watching his film on Hard Knocks, he runs routes with great pace and timing, has exceptional footwork at his break points, and is willing to stick his face in there on run plays and do the dirty work.

Receivers Coach Frisman Jackson did note in a coaches meeting during the episode that Foster has “two or three ‘what the F plays’ in a practice” and we did see that in the preseason opener as he let one ball slip through his hands and had a crucial false start. However, the praise was definitely much louder than the criticism from his teammates and staff. He has the kind of trajectory that earns a spot when a player puts it all together in year two.

No matter the draft position or the odds, you can tell this guy’s got a bright future ahead of him which I hope is in Seattle. 

Overall, this was another excellent episode of Hard Knocks. The insight into Seattle’s culture, front office process, and roster battles reinforces what we’re seeing on the surface — this Seahawks team looks poised to its Super Bowl victory, or at least be in the mix to do so, and they have the hunger and the depth to back it up.