Can UDFA running back George Holani find a role in the Seattle Seahawks offense?

One camp competition to watch this summer is the battle for running back depth behind Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. In 2023, the Seattle Seahawks kept four running backs on the roster: Walker, Charbonnet, Deejay Dallas and Kenny McIntosh (and let’s not forget SaRodorick Thompson, who stuck around for a while, played two snaps, spent two days on the practice squad and was then cut).

With Walker and Charbonnet seeing the most reps, Dallas and McIntosh didn’t spend much time on offense. Dallas served as the primary kick and punt returner, seeing just ten carries for 36 yards on offense. McIntosh has played in just three games in 2023 – all on special teams (he missed the first nine games of the season with a knee sprain).

That brings us to 2024. Big D went to Arizona and Pete Carroll wasn’t in the draft room this year, so we didn’t draft a running back. We were down to three. I was going to write that after the draft, the the grace of God has left us the pride of the state of Boise, but honestly, it wasn’t like that at all. John Schneider worked hard and got his guy – the Seahawks were the only team to bring Holani in for a Top 30 visit, and George Holani hasn’t forgotten that. He wasn’t drafted this year and went to Seattle – and signed with us as a priority free agent.

Who is George Holani? He’s pretty cool. Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Holani grew up playing rugby with his father. “I started him in it so he could get used to the physical conditions,” his father, Saia Holani, told the Idaho Statesman in 2020. “In football, you have blockers. In rugby, you have to find your own way. That forces players to understand angles and read space.”

The Holani family moved to Los Angeles and the Holanis continued to play rugby. His father coached the Los Angeles Rugby Club for 12 years and George played throughout high school. He also played American football. Coming out of the powerful St. John Bosco High School, George was a sought-after four-star recruit. He chose Boise State and went on to rush for 1,014 yards and seven touchdowns as a true freshman, and 206 yards and three touchdowns through the air.

His next two seasons were marked by injuries and a Covid-shortened season, but the world — and he — came back to rush for 1,157 yards and ten TDs in 2022. He redshirted his junior season and played just eight games as a senior due to an undisclosed “lower-body injury,” but he still managed to rush for 748 yards on nearly six yards per carry. His Bronco career ended with 3,596 yards rushing and 26 TDs on 5.2 yards per carry. He also had 88 receptions for 777 yards and eight TDs through the air. At the combine, George ran a 4.52 40-yard dash — ninth among all running backs — and had a vertical jump of 39 inches — third among all running backs. He was listed at 5’10 and 208 lbs.

In terms of injuries, it’s important to note that in addition to his “lower-body injury in 2023,” he also had a hamstring injury in 2021 and tore his MCL in 2020. Without these issues keeping him off the field, it’s hard to believe George Holani wouldn’t have been a mid-round draft pick this year.

According to Pro Football Focus, George averaged 3.5 yards after contact in college (a key stat for Seahawks football), and he caught 83 percent of his targets in five seasons (a key stat for a Ryan Grubb offense?) Oh! He’s also a return man. Oh! And he can punt. Thanks to rugby, Holani sailed through several pretty good punts in college (Seneca Wallace-level secret weapon potential).

That’s a lot of information to take in from an undrafted player. So let’s get back to drafted players. Going back to the 2023 draft, the Seahawks drafted two running backs — Zach Charbonnet in the second round and Georgia Bulldog Kenny McIntosh in the seventh. McIntosh was drafted behind D’Andre Swift and James Cook at Georgia and didn’t see any real playing time until his senior year. In his senior year, McIntosh was a dual threat — rushing for 829 yards and 10 TDs on the ground — with 505 yards receiving and two TDs through the air. He also returned punts in his sophomore and junior years — a total of 14 returns for 375 yards.

We also currently have two other running backs on this list: Kobe Lewis and Ricky Person Jr. The Field Gulls’ own Mookie Alexander has covered the signing of Ricky Person Jr. , but here’s some information on him anyway: The UFL Birmingham Stallion star came out of NC State, where he had a decent college career. The Ravens briefly signed him as an undrafted free agent after college, but he failed to make the team. He then signed with the UFL Birmingham Stallions in 2023, where he led the league with 295 yards rushing and 6 TDs. Person Jr. had plenty of NFL suitors coming into the season, but opted to sign with the Seahawks.

Kobe Lewis is a deep flyer who the Seahawks signed in May. He was a Journeyman in college, playing for Central Michigan, Purdue, and then Florida Atlantic University his senior year. Unfortunately, he hurt his knee and sat out the entire 2021 season. He returned in 2022, but did not play well for Purdue in the Big Ten, averaging just 3.4 yards per carry. He finished his college career at Florida Atlantic with 412 yards and three TDs his senior year, where he also returned four kicks for 91 yards.

It’s a pretty obvious common denominator that all of the new RBs share return experience. Traditionally, the Seahawks keep four RBs on the roster, two of which are supposed to be huge contributors on special teams. I imagine Mike and John will test these guys, and the best returner will likely make the final 53.

But who will be third on the depth chart? And why is that important? It’s important because he’ll get more opportunities to make plays — to break out, show who he is, help us and, most importantly, be a good story. Names like Baldwin and Bobo and players like Priest Holmes and Arian Foster certainly serve as inspiration.

“It’s really a team sport and chemistry is important,” Holani told the Idaho Statesman about rugby in 2020. “It’s exciting to see everyone get the ball and I can attack or defend. I can kick the ball and do whatever I want.”

My personal – and extremely amateurish – scouting report on Holani is that I hope he doesn’t try whatever he wants. Trying to do too much seems to be the reason he keeps getting injured. Who am I to tell someone to limit his play – especially an undrafted rookie trying to make the team? But that’s how strong a prospect Holani is. He’s a Swiss Army knife of a running back. Let’s hope Grubb can keep him sheathed until it’s time to pull out his little toothpick and corkscrew tool and dig them into a defense.