When Around The League met with Seahawks general manager John Schneider at the NFL Annual Meeting in March, nothing brought a bigger smile to his face than talking about Christine Michael.
The hard-charging second-year running back barely saw action last season behind workhorse Marshawn Lynch, but Schneider cited Michael as a runner with excess "God-given ability" and the chance to compete for more time in Year 2.
With Lynch skipping this week's OTAs, Michael made the most of that opportunity on Wednesday, grinding out carries with the first team and rattling off "several impressive" dashes in 11-on-11s, per ESPN.com's Terry Blount.
"We have very high expectations for him," coach Pete Carroll said of Michael. "He's going to get a ton of work. He's just a million miles ahead of where he was in terms of understanding what we want scheme-wise, pass protection-wise, route-wise and we know he's a natural runner. He's got explosive talent and we just want to get him to fit in."
Like the young Carlos Hyde nestled behind Frank Gore in San Francisco, Michael might still be a year away from seeing significant work behind Lynch. We'd be surprised, though, if he doesn't hopscotch the lower-ceilinged Robert Turbin to see regular carries this season before potentially taking over the lead role in 2015.
The latest "Around The League Podcast" breaks down the news and discusses players who could be summertime trade targets.