Will the Seahawks play more or less nickel without Jamar Taylor?

The Seahawks made a somewhat surprising roster move this week, cutting starting nickelback Jamar Taylor.

Coach Pete Carroll indicated the team has a player in mind to start at nickel in Taylor’s place, but he would not say who it was.

However, all signs point to rookie Ugo Amadi, who has impressed this season as a core special teamer, being the guy going forward.

“He’s ready to go,” Carroll said on Friday. “We don’t have any reservations about it. The guys that are going in now, the young guys that are getting shots, they’ve earned it because they’ve worked for it and they’ve shown that they can do it. They’re ready to play if they get the chance.”

Amadi would almost certainly be an upgrade over Taylor, who struggled heavily in pass coverage all season long.

The question remains though; will Seattle run more nickel now that Taylor is gone, or will they continue to stick with their 4-3 base defense at a league-leading rate?

Sunday’s game against the Eagles will be the first look at the team’s plans schematically in the post-Taylor era.