RENTON, Wash. -- Injuries are starting to mount at Seattle Seahawks training camp, but Tory Horton's status has been a positive development on the health front.
The second-year wide receiver avoided the physically unable to perform list after not practicing during the spring following offseason leg surgery, and while it appears that his reps are still being managed, he has shown flashes of his rookie form.
"It's a blessing to be back on the field," Horton said Friday. "Just trying to take in every moment because just like last year, you never know when it could be cut short."
Horton looked like the steal of the 2025 NFL draft when he got off to a scorching start as a rookie. The fifth-round pick from Colorado State beat out free agent addition Marquez Valdes-Scantling for the WR3 job in training camp before catching five touchdown passes over the first eight games. He also scored on a 95-yard punt return, the longest in franchise history.
Exactly why Horton's promising season ended early was something of a mystery, with coach Mike Macdonald providing no details of his injury beyond the fact that it was to his shin. Horton shed light on what happened Friday, saying the issue began when he started to feel "a little something" in Week 3.
Horton -- whose college career was cut short by a serious leg injury -- played through the discomfort for the next month, but the issue worsened. After catching two touchdown passes from Sam Darnold in a win over the Washington Commanders in Week 9, which gave him a team-high five receiving scores on only 13 catches, Horton underwent tests that revealed a crack in his tibia. He said the plan was to return for the playoffs, but his shin never sufficiently healed on its own.
"I just felt like I let the team down a little bit," he said, "just not being able to go back out there. ... There were even times where I still tried to go out there and run some routes and the trainers had to tell me to take it easy. But dealing with a bone thing, you've just got to let that heal. There's no playing through that once you get to a certain point. I did the most I could and made it to however far I got, and when the time came and I couldn't go no more, I didn't want to put the team at a disadvantage of me going out there knowing that something's bothering me.
"I felt like we just made the smart move of just holding out, seeing if it heals on its own, and the time just kind of got away from us."
Horton had surgery in February after the Seahawks' win in Super Bowl LX.
"I got another rod in there," he said, "so the leg ain't going anywhere."
The Seahawks traded for Rashid Shaheed two days after the Commanders game, before they knew that Horton would miss the remainder of the season. With Shaheed returning on a three-year, $51 million deal and Horton back from his injury, Seattle's receiver corps has a pair of deep threats to complement Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp.
"That's a lot of speed on the field," Horton said. "Me and [Shaheed] talk every day. We're both from Cali, so we've got a lot to relate on. We just talk ball, how crazy it is to finally get some of those practice reps together and just see two speed demons side by side going at it. It's fun out there."
Elsewhere in Seattle's receiving corps, Jake Bobo remains sidelined after exiting practice earlier this week. Also sidelined for multiple days this week have been defensive tackle Brandon Pili, cornerback Julian Neal, inside linebacker Jamie Sheriff and outside linebacker Jared Ivey. Macdonald did not give the impression Thursday that any of their injuries are long-term concerns.
On Friday, linebacker Ernest Jones IV, right guard Anthony Bradford and defensive lineman Mike Morris were among the players who did not finish practice.
Safety Nick Emmanwori remains on PUP as he recovers from ankle surgery.
