Carlos Hyde Wants To Prove That He Belongs With The Seahawks

After a great season with the Houston Texans last season, Carlos Hyde was picked up by the Seattle Seahawks during free agency.

Hyde will be battling for mainly the back up running back position with Rashaad Penny and Nick Bellore because Chris Carson has already locked up the starting position when healthy. Hyde wants the Seahawks to know that he is a good fit and he is ready to compete. "There's definitely going to be competition with Carson and (Rashaad) Penny, guys who have already been there, who are already established. So, you definitely got to come in and compete," said Hyde.

"You're coming in trying to take a guy's job who's already been there. Carson has been putting up a thousand yards like it's nothing each year. So, it's definitely tough coming in trying to replace a guy like that, but I'm definitely open to the competition. It's not my first year in the league, I'm going on year seven, so I'm used to competing. It brings out the best in me, so I'm looking forward to it."Whatever it boils down to, whatever coach tells me, this is what we need you to do, I'm all for it. I'm coming in right now with the right mindset."

If Hyde can do well in training camp, he could give the Seahawks another power running back that can run between the tackles, as well as create mitch-match problem for defenders that will cover him. Hyde is a great blocking running back and that could help out Russell Wilson if Carson gets injured or just needs a break. Last season Hyde had a career year racking up 1,070 yards on the ground while scoring six touchdowns. He has already proven that he can be the guy that a team leans on to produce down the stretch.

This could be a break or make year for Rashaad Penny because he has not produced much on the field. Penny has had a couple of bright spots last year, but he needs to stay healthy. If he does not do well in training camp, he may be a third-string running back or eventually cut. Last season, he had only 370 yards on the ground. His time was cut short, because of a knee injury that he suffered late into the season. With Hyde trying to get that back-up position, Penny needs to stay healthy, improve his blocking down the field, and just be ready to go when his number is called.

This is going to be a great running back battle during training camp and Hyde is letting the Seahawks know that he means business. It will be very interesting to see who will take the back-up running back position.