The Seattle Seahawks will cut their roster to 53 players by 4 p.m. ET Saturday. Here's a projection:

QUARTERBACK (2): Russell Wilson, Geno Smith

Paxton Lynch was gaining ground on Smith before he took a nasty hit to the head/neck in the second preseason game. Smith has the edge in experience, and Lynch has practice-squad eligibility. Remember, the Seahawks could always find someone who's currently on another roster to back up Wilson, like they did last August with Brett Hundley, but Smith has looked competent enough to be the guy.

RUNNING BACK (5): Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny, J.D. McKissic, Travis Homer, Nick Bellore

McKissic has value as a returner, an area of need with David Moore injured and Seattle wanting to take some of those duties off Tyler Lockett's plate. McKissic and Homer get the nod here over C.J. Prosise, who was the star of the third preseason game but has a long injury history that makes it difficult to trust that he'll stay healthy. Bellore adds versatility as a former linebacker and got $600,000 guaranteed in his two-year, $2.23 million deal, so he might be hard to cut, even though he hasn't done much to stand out.

WIDE RECEIVER (7): Tyler Lockett, DK Metcalf, Jaron Brown, David Moore, Gary Jennings Jr., Keenan Reynolds, John Ursua

Metcalf is iffy for Week 1 and Moore is expected to be sidelined for the opener, if not a week or two beyond that, which means the Seahawks likely need to keep at least one extra receiver on their initial 53. Tough call between Reynolds, Ursua and UDFA Jazz Ferguson for the final spots. The Seahawks could go with Ferguson, figuring a big guy like him who can run would be harder to pass through waivers than a smaller slot guy. Seven receivers is a lot, but it wouldn’t be unprecedented. The Seahawks set their initial 53 with that many in 2014.

TIGHT END (3): Will Dissly, Nick Vannett, Jacob Hollister

Veteran Ed Dickson, who has been sidelined following knee surgery, is the odd man out here, though the Seahawks could easily justify his $4.417 million cap charge, assuming he's ready to play. In this projection, they keep three true tight ends knowing offensive tackle George Fant gives them a de facto fourth tight end. Fant's sprained ankle is expected to be better by Week 1.

OFFENSIVE LINE (9): Duane Brown, Mike Iupati, Justin Britt, D.J. Fluker, Germain Ifedi, George Fant, Ethan Pocic, Jamarco Jones, Joey Hunt

Iupati (foot, calf) might not be ready by Week 1. He’s missed enough time, and Pocic has played well enough in his absence at left guard to warrant starting consideration. The versatility of the backups could allow Seattle to keep nine O-linemen instead of 10, though Hunt is dealing with a high-ankle sprain.

DEFENSIVE LINE (10): Ezekiel Ansah, Al Woods, Poona Ford, Quinton Jefferson, Cassius Marsh, Jacob Martin, L.J. Collier, Earl Mitchell, Rasheem Green, Branden Jackson

Ford, who is projected to start while Jarran Reed serves his six-game suspension, looks like a breakout candidate in his second season. The Seahawks are hopeful that Ansah and Collier, their first-round pick, will be ready for the opener, but their iffy statuses could warrant keeping a 10th D-linemen like Jackson. Barkevious Mingo is another option, but his $5.2 million cap charge could be too steep to justify for someone who has not shown a lot of pass-rush potential.

LINEBACKER (5): Bobby Wagner, K.J. Wright, Mychal Kendricks, Cody Barton, Austin Calitro

Shaquem Griffin is back from a knee injury but is squarely on the roster bubble. Griffin and fifth-round pick Ben Burr-Kirven are candidates to be the sixth linebacker if the Seahawks keep that many, but they could get away with keeping only five knowing they could turn to Martin or Bellore in a pinch.

SECONDARY (9): Shaquill Griffin, Tre Flowers, Bradley McDougald, Marquise Blair, Tedric Thompson, Delano Hill, Akeem King, Jamar Taylor, Ugo Amadi

This is the toughest position group to predict and an area where we could see an outside addition. The Seahawks have a surplus of NFL-caliber safeties -- which is why DeShawn Shead doesn't make it in this projection, despite his strong preseason -- and a shortage of cornerbacks with the size to play outside. They also have 10 draft picks next year, so that's a position they could add via a trade, if not the waiver wire. Or they could stick with Shead knowing he has started there before.

SPECIALIST (3): K Jason Myers, P Michael Dickson, LS Tyler Ott

The Seahawks signed Myers to a big contract in free agency after his Pro Bowl season, recently extended Ott and have Dickson coming off an All-Pro rookie season. If all goes as planned, this will be Seattle's specialist trio for several years. Myers has gone 7-of-8 this preseason with three makes of more than 50 yards, including one from 58.