RENTON -- During training camp this summer, Seahawks fans are going to witness something that hasn't happened in five years: a wide-open, no-favorite competition for a starting spot on the team's defense.
Sure, Pete Carroll's Seahawks teams have played under his "always compete" mantra since he arrived in 2010. But the draft classes from that offseason through 2012 provided a neat succession plan whereby veterans who weren't perfect fits for Carroll's system (like linebacker Aaron Curry) were pushed out by young players who developed into foundational players for the franchise (like K.J. Wright).
Not since 2011, when Walter Thurmond and Kelly Jennings battled with rookies Richard Sherman and Byron Maxwell for a starting cornerback job eventually won by Brandon Browner, has a starting job been so completely up for grabs.