LIVE BLOG — NFL Combine (DB’s)

Live blog to begin at 6AM PST.

Northern Illinois safety Jimmie Ward will not work out at the combine, according to Tony Pauline: “Routine Combine medical evaluations revealed a foot issue. Ward is still awaiting more to the exact nature of the injury, and initial reports are the injury is considered relatively minor.”

DB FORTY YARD DASH GROUP 1

Maurice Alexander (Utah State) — 4.44 & 4.57
Ricardo Allen (Purdue) — 4.53 & 4.53
Dion Bailey (USC) — 4.69 & 4.68
Bene Benwikere (San Jose State) — 4.63 & 4.60
Deon Belue (Alabama) — DNP
Nat Berhe (San Diego State) –4.59 & 4.70
Tre Boston (North Carolina) — 4.62 & 4.53
Bashaud Breeland (Clemson) — 4.59 & 4.53
Terrence Brooks (Florida State) — 4.41 & 4.43
Deone Bucannon (Washington State) — 4.50 & 4.50
Travis Carrie (Ohio) — DNP
Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (Alabama) — 4.52 & 4.50
Ross Cockrell (Duke) — 4.43 & 4.50
Aaron Colvin (Oklahoma) — DNP
Chris Davis (Auburn) — DNP
Darqueze Dennard (Michigan State) — 4.42 & 4.46
Pierre Desir (Lindenwood) — 4.52 & 4.53
Ahmad Dixon (Baylor) — 4.56 & 4.54
Brandon Dixon (Northwest Missouri State) — 4.41
Jonathan Dowling (Western Kentucky) — 4.50
Antone Exum (Virginia Tech) — 4.51 & 4.50
Kyle Fuller (Virginia Tech) — 4.40 & 4.40
E.J. Gaines (Missouri) — DNP
Phillip Gaines (Rice) — 4.34 & 4.34
Justin Gilbert (Oklahoma State) — 4.35 & 4.38
Demetri Goodson (Baylor) — 4.44
Andre Hal (Vanderbilt) — 4.40 & 4.50
Victor Hampton (South Carolina) — 4.62 & 4.50
Marqueston Huff (Wyoming) — 4.47 & 4.47
Bennett Jackson (Notre Dame) — 4.46 & 4.47

The Seahawks box watching the defensive backs run…

DEFENSIVE BACK DRILLS — GROUP ONE

The first drill is a back pedal, transition and sprint.

Kris Richard is helping with the work out, along with a Giants coach.

During the pre-drill huddle, The NYG coach says, “Have you ever heard a DB group this quiet Kris? Are your guys in Seattle this quiet?”

Justin Gilbert looked mightily impressive. Nice long arms, smooth running style. He ran in the 4.3’s.

There’s no denying he’s a playmaker, but this quote over the weekend was pretty scary…

He was asked what he thought about Aqib Talib…

“Who? I don’t know who that is.”

“I don’t watch a lot of football. I mean, we have practice on Sundays, and I didn’t get a chance to watch a lot of games.”

Oh dear.

Dion Bailey looks like a linebacker convert out there. Stiff hips, not a smooth runner.

Bashaud Breeland showed a nice back pedal and transition. He didn’t run a fast time but looked good in the first drill.

Deone Bucannon is an intriguing looking guy. Nice safety prospect out of Wazzu.

Darqueze Dennard exploded out of his turn after the back pedal. He also looked incredibly smooth running the forty. Dennard putting on a really impressive display here.

Phillip Gaines had a really nice 2013 for Rice with five picks. He ran the fastest forty, but didn’t look as polished in his transition after the back pedal.

Jonathan Dowling looked good in the first drill. Former Florida guy who got kicked off the team by Urban Meyer. Perhaps the smoothest runner on the field, nice change of direction. Worth looking at as a project for Seattle.

The next session is an interception drill.

Purdue’s Ricardo Allen just made a spectacular diving catch. Great ball skills.

Bashaud Breeland has really nice length. He also looked good on this drill — nice hips, tracked the ball effortlessly and caught it.

Deone Bucannon got into position so quickly for his throw he had to stop and wait for it to get there.

Ha Ha Clinton-Dix fumbled his catch. Darqueze Dennard again impresses on this drill. So smooth.

Jonathan Dowling didn’t do a good job adjusting and locating the ball on his turn. It ended up flying over his head because he was in the wrong position.

I’m not sure what Justin Gilbert was doing on his attempt. Got out of the transition and into the open field. Never tracked the ball and made a has of his catch.

Really though the main thing on these drills are hip movement and recovery speed. Dennard looked the best.

We’re now onto another catching drill. This is a back pedal, sprint and catch on the right sideline — locating the ball and catching it at the highest point.

Ricardo Allen flipped his hips nicely but could’ve done a better job high pointing the ball.

Bene Benwikere just made a spectacular grab. Superb.

Bashaud Breeland looked silky smooth in his transition — and he tried to high point the ball better than anyone else. But he struggled to track the ball in the air and failed to make the catch.

Jonathan Dowling is really long. Just looks like a Seattle prospect.

Justin Gilbert looked good in this drill. High pointed the ball, much smoother transition this time. He and Dennard are separating themselves a little here — but the ball skills overall within this group were poor.

The next session is a double move drill.

Breeland again looked good here. Had a really sharp change of direction and recovery.

Matt Millen poking fun at himself on the feed, while discussing Detroit’s need for another receiver. Guffaw.

Dowling high pointed the ball nicely in this drill. He’s impressive.

Kyle Fuller — superb change of direction, closing speed and a high pointed catch here.

Seahawks coach Kris Richard is running the next drill. It’s two drops, a catch and finish.

Good job Deone Bucannon. Finished on a high note.

Not really sure what to make of Clinton-Dix’s work out. He isn’t Earl Thomas in terms of range and speed.

Darqueze Dennard dropped his final catch, as did Bashaud Breeland.

Kyle Fuller was a little high on his final attempt, could’ve done with bending his knees a little more.

The next drill is an drop and catch. They want to see low bend, smooth hips and ball skills.

Gilbert looked a little high. Phillip Gaines looked pretty good here — very polished.

Clinton-Dix looked really good in this test.

They’ll end with the competition drill. I think this is new. They’ve split the group into two and have a drop counter. The losing team has to do push-ups.

The session ends with a NYG coach telling the DB group Seattle won the Super Bowl fielding a 1st, a 4th, two 5th’s and a 6th in their secondary.

He also turns to Kris Richard to ask where Malcolm Smith was drafted, and whether he even attended the combine.

So much Seattle focus here.

Group two forty’s on the way shortly.

Pete’s ready…

DB FORTY YARD DASH GROUP 2

Kenall James (Maine) — 4.42 & 4.65
Stanley Jean-Baptiste (Nebraska) — 4.53 & 4.58
Dontae Johnson (NC State) — 4.45 & 4.43
Lamarcus Joyner (Florida State) — 4.53 & 4.52
Kenny Ladler (Vanderbilt) — 4.75 & 4.72
Nevin Lawson (Utah State) — 4.52 & 4.53
Isaiah Lewis (Michigan State) — 4.56 & 4.57
Craig Loston (LSU) — 4.62 & 4.59
Dexter McDougle (Maryland) — DNP
Keith McGill (Utah) — 4.47 & 4.44
Terrance Mitchell (Oregon) — 4.60 & 4.61
Jabari Price (North Carolina) — 4.49 & 4.47
Calvin Pryor (Louisville) — 4.62 & 4.60
Loucheiz Purifoy (Florida) — 4.55 & 4.56
Keith Reaser (Florida Atlantic) — DNP
Ed Reynolds (Stanford) — 4.64 & 4.59
Rashaad Reynolds (Oregon State) — 4.57 & 4.55
Marcus Roberson (Florida) — 4.66 & 4.59
Bradley Roby (Ohio State) — 4.40 & 4.41
Daniel Sorenson (BYU) — 4.72 & 4.69
Vinnie Sunseri (Alabama) — DNP
Jemea Thomas (Georgia Tech) — 4.52 & 4.55
Brock Vereen (Minnesota) — 4.42 & 4.43
Jason Verrett (TCU) –4.41 & 4.41
Jimmie Ward (Northern Illinois) — DNP
Todd Washington (SE Louisiana) — DNP
Jaylen Watkins (Florida) — 4.50 & 4.44
Lavelle Westbrooks (Georgia Southern) — 4.65 & 4.66

If you ever wondered how they determine the unofficial times, this is it:

Charlie Casserly with a stop watch.

Bradley Roby had a 1.47 10 yard split on his first attempt.

Sammy Watkins’ brother, Jaylen Watkins, ran in this group.

Keith McGill ran an unofficial 4.44 at 6-3 and 214lbs. Wow.

A quick note on the safety times (with Calvin Pryor running an unofficial 4.6) — Kenny Vaccaro had an official 4.62 last year and was the #15 overall pick.

DEFENSIVE BACK DRILLS — GROUP TWO

The first drill is the turn and go. They want to see the back pedal and hips. Can you stay low?

The first few players didn’t finish the drill properly. These are timed tests. Not sure the coaches made that clear.

Keith McGill’s transition was fine, but he needs to get lower. That’s difficult at 6-3, but he can bend a little more. Stll, very interesting prospect with 4.4 speed and incredible size.

They’ve finally told the guys they’re timing the drills, after Calvin Pryor rounded off the end of his run.

Stanford safety Ed Reynolds looked pretty stiff in his transition.

Bradley Roby looked really polished — nice and low, great snap in his transition. Finished the run.

Jason Verrett the latest prospect not to finish the drill properly. The message is starting to get across though — they’re really finishing the drill in the second go around.

McGill nice and low on his second attempt. He’s looking good out there. Another tape review is in order here.

The feed’s back upstairs for a second interview with Joe Haden, so we can’t see practises right now.

The NFL.com feed is already starting to wind down despite work outs ongoing. We’re now getting adverts for the Rich Eisen podcast.

Now we get a trailer for the film ‘Draft Day’ — which couldn’t look any more cheesy.

Does the film end with a sweaty press conference in the war room?

Now we’re getting Buck Brooks’ review of the last four days. This might be as far as we go for the work outs. Shame.

The official times are coming in…

OFFICIAL FORTY YARD DASH TIMES — DB’s

Ha Ha Clinton-Dix — 4.58
Calvin Pryor — 4.58
Justin Gilbert — 4.37
Jason Verrett — 4.38
Brock Vereen — 4.47
Terrence Brooks — 4.42
Darqueze Dennard — 4.51
Brandon Dixon — 4.41
Phillip Gaines — 4.37
Kendall James — 4.44
Bradley Roby — 4.39
Jaylen Watkins — 4.41
Keith McGill — 4.51
Deone Buchanan — 4.49
Marqueston Huff — 4.49
Kyle Fuller — 4.49
Jonathan Dowling — 4.51
Lamarcus Joyner — 4.51
Ed Reynolds — 4.57
Pierre Desir — 4.59
Stanley Jean-Baptiste — 4.61
Bashaud Breeland — 4.62
Victor Hampton — 4.69

At last, NFL.com goes back to the drills. Just in time for Seattle’s Kris Richard to get back in the action.

One thing I’ve noticed today — Richard is no-nonsense with instructions. Very to the point. He’s leading the ‘W’ drill, back and forth then catch a pass.

I love McGill’s length, but to me he looks more suited to a Kam Chancellor type role at safety. A little stiff in the back pedal here. I’ll be interested to see on tape whether he plays with the same intensity.

Bradley Roby looks smooth here — he’s having a really good work out. Richard screaming “speed” at Florida’s Marcus Roberson, who jogged through his drill.

The feed cuts out AGAIN for more Matt Smith and Bucky Brooks face time, just as Jason Verrett was due to run.

We’re now with the NFL Network, who are showing the drills with Mayock. About time.

Mayock unhappy that the St. Louis Rams Twitter account photo-shopped a picture of him with Les Snead’s hair. Belly laugh.

Onto a deep catching drill.

Calvin Pryor a little leggy in his deep transition. Took too many steps.

Ed Reynolds moving better here. Keith McGill stutter steps on his run — unnecessary steps like Pryor.

Roby continuing to excel, just looks like a natural.

Brock Vereen, Shane’s brother, has had a nice work out with 4.4 speed.

Tony Pauline seeing the same thing…


Jason Verrett has fantastic footwork. He just exploded through his run and made a difficult low grab to get the coaches barking.

McGill’s official forty listed at a 4.51. A little slower than the official times. Someone’s going to try and turn him into another big, rangy safety.

Having said that, he had a 39 inch vertical and a 12-9 broad jump. Crazy.

Marcus Roberson looks like he could play in Seattle. Decent size.

Man, I really like Jason Verrett. One of the winners today.

We end with the catching competition, with the group split into two again.

And for the second time we get a speech relating to Seattle’s success in the secondary.

This is where I’ll end the live blog for today. Again, I’ll have another post up later to review the work outs so stay tuned.

Thanks for joining in over the last few days and don’t forget tomorrow’s post-combine mock draft.

89 Comments

  1. Makal

    These VT corners look pretty good and from the tape I have watched they are pretty physical, both a hair under 6 foot.

    • Rob Staton

      The younger Fuller brother who’s currently at VT is a future top-20 pick.

      • Makal

        I will have to check him out this next year. I love good corner play. Was impressed with that Justin Gilbert clip they just played. I wonder if the Talib statement will actually change is stock.

  2. Josh

    Philip Gaines 6’0 193, 4.34. Seahawky.

    • Curt

      Now that looks like a bad man!

    • dave crockett

      I really liked him in what little I saw of Rice this year. He was their only player that looked like he could play for Miss. State in the bowl game.

  3. Curt

    Rob, hard to reflect how good the 40 time is just looking at the time. Is there a site that shows 40 times along with height and weight? Someone running a 4.62 might be considered slow until you see he is like 6′ 4″ and weighs 225? Just an example but hope you see what I mean. Are there a lot of taller db’s out there? These times seem a little slow for db’s. Of course the 4.34/4.35 are fast but there quite a few in the 4.5/4.6 range. Anyone jump out at you?

    • Rob Staton

      Check out Walter Football.

      But then come back here…

      • Curt

        Always come back here 🙂 I just open another tab.

  4. KyleT

    This is sort of off-topic, but it goes with some of the discussion of the last few days about improving red zone efficiency by who we draft at wide receiver.

    http://www.rotoworld.com/articles/nfl/46279/311/wr-size–and–red-zone-efficiency

    There is a significantly stronger correlation between red zone efficiency and receiver weight as compared to height, which implies that strength and the ability to shield defenders with a large frame (think 6’1 Boldin) is more critical than being very tall.

    I want the Seahawks to draft a receiver who becomes a dominant red zone target, which as I’ve been saying for weeks on this blog whenever it comes up has to be someone with that ability to shield defenders and catch a contested pass, since most red zone targets are not wide open ( if they were it would not matter how big a receiver is, and clearly it matters)

    I would love for them to end up with OBJ, I would even be happy with Coleman. simply because we have no receivers on our roster signed into 2015 and the need of a dominant red zone target is not the only receiver need on this team. With that being said, we should stop saying that Coleman is that big red zone target. It’s not that he couldn’t develop into it because he obviously has the physical gifts, it’s just not in his game today and we can’t assume it ever will be. his game looks a lot like Stephen Williams who was a great potential home run threat, but deemed expendable when compared to more physical and aggressive albeit much shorter receivers who could run good routes and high point a ball.

    I know lots of people love Coleman on this blog and probably disagree with me, and that’s fine. I love this blog, and it’s the only place I actually weigh in with my opinion because there are rational debates possible and informed content and opinions continually available to be consumed and to be entertained by. Keep up the great work Rob!

    • AlaskaHawk

      I want the Seahawks to convert a 300 pound defensive tackle into a tight end. The linebacker wouldn’t be able to reach around that big body to bat the ball away.

      • KyleT

        lol, yeah I don’t know if the weight correlation to red zone efficiency just goes up and to the right, but if it does you might be onto something!

      • Rock

        Your example points out very well that one attribute alone does not spell success. There seems to be a sweet spot where size, weight and agility all come together. While our WR’s are effective in the open field, having three primary WR’s that are all 5-10″ or 5-11″ and <= 200 pounds leads to red zone failure. That sweet spot seems to be about 6-3". The defenders tend to be under 6'0". The extra three or four inches and a few pounds is all we need. At some point the extra size by the receiver ( 300 lb DT ) becomes counter productive do to the loss of ability.

      • Rock

        One other thought … The defense does not switch out their DB’s to gain size in the red zone. Their best guys are on the field, already. The offense often has specialist groups and will bring in taller, bigger WR’s in the red zone to create match-up problems. When a team has a pair of 6-3″ and 6-4″ CB’s with the agility to play, this really improves their red zone defense. The size the offense attempts to deploy on the field fails to overwhelm the taller, stronger DB’s. It shows up in the defensive numbers. This seems pretty obvious, but is confirmed by the WR efficiency examples above. So, it works both ways.

    • Nate

      I think the Stephen Williams comp is very accurate. I was thinking this very same thing earlier. He doesn’t seem to run anything but go routes well is a little stiff and quite frankly doesn’t high point that well. I would be dissapointed picking him before the third(yes I know we don’t have one). I think he is a third fourth round value. Kinda like Jeff Janis.

  5. dtrain

    Dowling looks/runs the part. Drop down kid, 6-2.5, longest arms of the group, unofficial 4.50s.

  6. The Ancient Mariner

    A little confused on one thing:

    “Ricardo Allen flipped his hips nicely but couldn’t done a better job high pointing the ball.”

    Are you saying he did a great job high-pointing the ball (in which case, why the “but”?), or that he could have done better?

    • Rob Staton

      It was meant to say ‘could’ve’. I’m typing a little too quickly here.

  7. Tony

    I like verrett’s highlights and his Baldwin like interview with Deion. He looks focused. Could be a nice nickelback if Thurmond leaves. Any thoughts on him rob? I really like his play against OBJ. Where he made up ground and turned to locate the ball to knock it away.

    • Rob Staton

      Like him, sparky as you say. Not a first rounder but has value beyond that.

    • bigDhawk

      /rec

      • bigDhawk

        woops…reply fail. meant for a post below.

  8. Nate

    Rob I was wondering about Aaron Colvin. How far do you think he drops with his injury. I’m thinking along the lines of a Thurmond value pick here. Have you watched him and what do you think?

    • Rob Staton

      I think you nailed it. Drops with the injury, potential value pick later on.

  9. Drew

    All of your live blogging during the combine has been awesome. No where else have I scene anything this in depth covering practically every participant and analysis on not just the top prospects, but any that stand out and also those who would fit well with the Hawks.

    It doesn’t get any better than this….great work Rob.

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks Drew, it’s been fun.

  10. Morgan

    Kyle Fuller is amazing and I think would be a perfect slot corner, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario where he’d be a Seahawk, unfortunately.

  11. Morgan

    This end-of-drill speech about Seattle’s D is freakin’ cool.

    • bigDhawk

      Think the Giants coach got it wrong:

      ET3 – 1st
      Kam – 5th
      Sherm – 5th
      Mawell – 6th

      Right?

      He said 1, 4, 5, 6. Point taken though. Even late round picks can become the LoB and win a SB if you make the right choices.

      • Makal

        Walter Thurmond was the 4th rounder.

  12. EdC

    Rob, I posted this on an earlier story, not sure if you saw it. We are close to maxing out our cap (lucky it may go to 132). With so many key players needing money in the next year, would you consider this:

    Sherman to Detroit for #10 and either another first next year or 2nd this year?

    Saves us at least 12 mil per year for 4 years

    At 10 we take Donald and later 2 picks go OL at 32

    I think Maxwell is a top 10 CB and Lane has shown he can play.

    • Jon

      It will all depend on a few things.

      1) How are Sherm’s contract talks going? Is he going to hold out this year if not extended? Does he want 10-11 m a year or 15 m a year?
      2) How does the FO think of Maxwell? Is he good enough to take over for Sherm and do they believe anyone is a replacement long term for the other CB spot that is currently on the roster?
      3) Does Detroit even want to make that trade?

      I don’t have all the answers, but I could find it possible. I certainly would not go so far as to say that it would be plausible. I also would guess that they will not make that trade unless it is on draft day and they are certain who they are picking with the first pick of that trade.

      • bigDhawk

        To point #3, Detroit would likely require Sherman sign a long term extension to consummate the trade that would send us multiple high draft picks, much like our trade to acquire Percy. That would makes the process more complicated, as Sherm has more leverage than Percy did who had the injury history and couldn’t really afford to say no to a big deal and take a chance on being healthy when he hit FA.

        Attempting to trade Sherm has the potential to turn into a highly traumatic PR meltdown for a team that is looking for ways to retain their core players that won them a SB, not get rid of them.

        • Jon

          The detroit point is simply an expansion of my thought. There is a lot involved in a trade and just to say a team would trade that amount of draft capital because they have a need is crazy. Sherm may net a lot in a trade, but that team would also have to have the cap space.
          I agree that it could turn into a pr problem. But if you look at my point #1 above, the hawks would first be looking into what the cost is going to be. Are they comfortable with the money, I dont know, but these are the questions and I think you follow in the order I listed above. If you are not comfortable with #1 then you still likely need to be comfortable with #2 as a team before you even give #3 an consideration.

    • Rob Staton

      First of all — a report in the last few moments via PFT suggests the cap could exceed $132m in 2014, which is huge. That would be a rise of around $8-9m as a minimum, but it could be a few million more. Presuming Sidney Rice and Red Bryant are indeed cut, even if you keep Zach Miller and Chris Clemons you’re looking at cap room upwards of $23-25m. If you release Clemons, it’ll be above $30m.

      And I now expect the cap to exceed $150m for 2015.

      The league needed to adapt. Players under the new CBA were getting screwed. The system is supposed to reward proven veterans while capping the pay of the unproven rookies. What teams are doing instead is simply not paying the veterans, looking for bargains in FA and then drafting starters on major cheap deals, knowing they can’t re-negotiate contracts for at least three seasons.

      And with QB’s getting paid so much these days, and taking up the cap room, it was killing the market for veterans.

      This is a huge move by the NFL, and a much needed move. And what it means is — Seattle should have no problem keeping their elite players.

      Even if the cap was only $130m, I wouldn’t trade Sherman.

      • Robert

        How does the Compensation Pick formula work? What could we expect to get for Sherman if we lose him after next year, assuming hypothetically that we do not give him the Franchise Tag?

        • Rob Staton

          It would depend on what free agents we signed in that same off-season. Assuming we didn’t add another elite player on a massive contract, we’d probably get a 3rd rounder. But I see no scenario with Sherman leaving in the next 1-2 years. He’ll get paid.

          • Robert

            And many thanks for the awesome website and thought provoking articles!!!

    • KingRajesh

      Trading Sherman is idiotic. You don’t trade away a young, All-Pro player. That’s idiotic. There are tons of overpaid “good but not great” players on this team that should be cut to pay Sherman.

      Miller and Clemons are getting older, and I would much rather be starting a rookie TE in Miller’s place and somebody like Mayowa or Scruggs in Clemons spot.

      • bigDhawk

        Exactly. Not that we want to kick the Miller’s and Clem’s of our team to the curb, but if a gun is put to our head and we are forced to choose, players like that can be sacrificed to retain what may very well be a HOF player when his career is done.

      • EdC

        Agreed. But the idiototic part would be giving two guys $35 million without options. That’s what gets teams into trouble.

      • Robert

        Dialogue much? Or do you prefer everyone just fall in line with your opinions and stop with their idiotic meanderings? I brought up the possible blockbuster trade of Richard Sherman in a previous post. Not because I’m an idiot or even that I think we should consummate such a trade. I just thought it would be a good discussion topic for the community. Let’s look at the pros and cons together. PCJS have a history of making decisions way outside of the box. Managing the CAP and obtaining Draft capital are priorities for maintaining an annually competitive football team. And it’s pretty amazing that we keep churning out the leagues best CB’s out of clay we find in the middle to later rounds. We have a lot of young talent currently simmering on the roster. So what would the dropoff in CB play actually be? And would PCJS trade THAT for a package that includes 10-12 million in CAP savings AND a goldmine of Draft capital? Who would we draft and how would they impact our team going forward? Certainly PCJS discuss and evaluate every scenario. Why shouldn’t we, especially here, on this site?

        • AlaskaHawk

          I agree with you Robert. Why pay 12 million + for Sherman when we keep churning out excellent corners? If you do pay him 12 million then every other corner will expect to at least make Chancellor and Thomas money. Then we will have 50 million/year sunk into our secondary. Better to offer a reasonable salary around 8 million and a chance at the superbowl.

        • DavidinBellingham

          If you look back at the responses you will find that most people were polite even if they disagreed, with one person using the term idiotic. I agree idiotic is an uncharitable term.
          I have also wondered if trading one of our CBs is a possibility. The front office hasn’t traded anyone away for high picks, one reason that makes less likely. Another is that we get another cheap year of Sherman and Maxwell. If they leave after we comp picks. With more teams looking to replicate the Seahawks formula it will get more difficult to find our type of guys. I think we keep our talent.

          • EdC

            Robert and had this discussion a few articles back. I think we are looking at staying competitive. It’s great that we won a Superbowl, but now is when teams can stay there or turn into one hit wonders (GB/BAL/NO/IND).

            If we continue to draft well in later rounds, this becomes irrelevant. But we can assume we are going to continue to find the Wrights/Shermans/Maxwells of the world.

            • KingRajesh

              You can’t just keep banking on finding All-Pro talent in late rounds. You already hit the lottery once with Richard Sherman, he’s the best in the league, with potential to be the best CB ever. Are we REALLY going to let one of the best players to ever be a Seahawk walk away? Or trade him away?

              It would be like trading WALTER JONES. You pay your all-pro players. You draft and replace the rest. It’s much easier to replace a Byron Maxwell or a Jeremy Lane than a Richard Sherman. Without Sherman’s skill set and abilities to tip the ball, Kaepernick throws that pass to Crabtree and we don’t win the NFC Championship game, and we don’t win the Super Bowl.

              • Robert

                I see what you’re saying, but the Seahawks have consistently hit the lottery with mid-late round Draft picks. Their process for evaluating and targeting talent is phenomenal. They defy conventional thinking and often choose players lacking ideal measurables according to consensus opinion. But then their system for developing those prospects into great players is the other piece of the puzzle. And we are exceptional there, as well. Richard Sherman was a mundane CB at Stanford. But the Seahawks saw a potential that RS probably wasn’t completely aware of. We saw the potential for greatness despite the facts: he is too tall, too slow and too stiff according to other scouts and pundits. Then PC and company enrolled the new prospect into their vision and indoctrinated him into our powerful system for maximizing prospect’s potential. Then they laid out the road map of daily activities. All that empowered Richard Sherman, who decided to believe the vision and commit to the extraordinary workload required to actualize it. For me that is why the Seahawks are so inspiring. PC is a master at generating and creating through very powerful language constructs. Listen to his pressers. And the players parrot the same language patterns. We have a very detailed and efficient system for maximizing the football playing potential of our carefully chosen prospects. Small sample size, but Byron Maxwells PFF numbers are right up there with RS and he was a 6th rounder. And where did we find Kam and Wright and Smith and Lane etc?

                • KingRajesh

                  That’s just straight gamblers fallacy. Just because you keep hitting and hitting and hitting doesn’t mean that the next time you go back to the well to develop a CB you could bust.

                  Look, I love these guys, and I love the Seahawks – but Pete and John are not gods, they are mortal men, and have drafted busts before (Carp/Moffitt/Chris Harper all come to mind). We hit the lottery big time with Sherman, and we HAVE to keep him.

                  Sure Maxwell might have decent PFF numbers, but he didn’t start the whole season, so he could be a flash in the pan. We will see this year when he starts all 16 games. I would rather be drafting D-lineman after D-lineman and filling the rest with cheap vets and keep our All-Pros secondary together. Sure, it means that we’ll be losing guys like Mebane, Clem, and Big Red… but all three of those players COMBINED don’t have as much talent as a Richard Sherman. Or an Earl Thomas. Or a Kam Chancellor.

                  • AlaskaHawk

                    It isn’t that they are hitting on all their picks. They have made lots of whiffs. They will release many more now that the roster is full. What separates the Seahawks from the rest of the league is not the quality of the players. If it was, San Francisco or St Louis would have been in the Superbowl. Well argueably St Louis won’t ever be there until they find a quarterback – but San Francisco is loaded with high round draft picks.

                    What separates the Seahawks from the rest of the league is the coaching and practice environment. They coach players to their full potential. Sherman is great. So is Maxwell. So is Chancellor and Thomas. So is Walter THurmond III and others I am not remembering. There is something special about their secondary training. The league should be paying the Seahawks for training their cast offs.

          • Robert

            I have contemplated the thought that our FO has not yet traded a great player for Draft picks. I think the reason is probably that we have been in rebuild mode and are just now transitioning into maintenance mode. In the past, we had to pay a premium to attract quality FA’s to our losing team way up in southern Alaska. Not anymore! We are now a desirable destination for FA’s who want to play for a 1st class organization that has a great chance to win a Superbowl. Additionally, FA’s can position themselves for big $ after their run with the Seahawks. Since these are uncharted waters, we have no references for how PCJS will navigate the treacherous CAP reef that causes most teams to run aground after a successful run. But PCJS have consistently demonstrated that they think and act way outside of the box of convention. I have no doubts that they will successfully manage the CAP while infusing the roster with cheap, young talent to replace older, expensive players. The only questions are: Who, When and How within the context of: How can we put the best possible team on the field this fall without destroying our ability to sustain a winning program in subsequent years? Win Forever, baby!

            • Kyle N

              Actually the Patriots of the past decade could prove to be a point of comparison. Obviously the FO’s are different, but looking at how they were (are) able to sustain a high level of play for so many years in a row and win multiple championships can help us look at a rough blueprint.

              • Robert

                Totally agree. For the last decade it seems, I have admired how the Patriots manage the CAP and developed players. EVERY year they field a great team. No other team has accomplished that with near the consistency. I remember when we bet the ranch on Shawn Alexander. My thoughts were that the Patriots would never pull such a foolish move. Then they coerced a 1st round pick out of us for Superbowl MVP Deion Branch. Then got him back for a 4th round pick. As a kid, I bet Ruskell was terrible at trading marbles…LOL!

              • EdC

                The bad thing about the Patriots comparison is the division they are in has been one of the worst in the last decade. Dolphins/Bills have been horrible and the Jets had two good years. We are in the best division in the best conference. And BB/TB haven’t won since the whole spygate came out. Coincidental?

                I just don’t want us to go through what we went through after 05′ season. We didn’t sell high on any players and didn’t draft very well either.

                If we say Wilson/Sherman/Thomas/Wagner are the only untouchables, that is fine. That means Okung/Unger/Mebane/Harvin probably won’t be on this roster in 2015 so we better continue to draft well.

                • Kyle N

                  That us true about the Pats. They haven’t won a Super Bowl since spy gate but they’ve sure been close and I think this league is always about consistently giving yourself a shot to get there each year. They obviously are to the perfect example, but they are the closest thing to a dynasty in the salary cap era and this give a rough blueprint.

                  I think it’s an interesting topic to discuss about trading Sherman (hell, same could be said for Wilson as he’ll probably take near double the cap space of Sherman). However. I think it’s all just for fun unless we start using real cap numbers and looking at team cap projections to see what’s possible. I think with the big increase in cap room and some other cap cuts, we realistically could be keeping all of our best players assuming we are able to keep drafting well to fill in the gaps. Maybe later tonight I’ll go through some what if projections just to see what the numbers look like.

                  It’s also worth mentioning this about what Win Forever means. Sometimes I feel people get too focused on the ‘Win in the Future” aspect of Win Forever and lose site of the fact that Win Forever also means to “Win Now”. Will we be willing Now if we trade Sherman for draft picks? The answer to that is up to you.

                  • Robert

                    I agree. If I had to guess, I would say they do not trade RS now because they have a stellar opportunity to win it all next year and become legendary! But if they do not trade RS now, 2015 might be a slight regression. Lots of critical AND key players will be paid here or elsewhere. Our LB’s are gonna get paid. So are Richard Sherman and Russell Wilson. So maybe we just go for it this year and next year we pay the Piper and the defense regresses a little. But RW can pick up 4-6 points per game if the Beast goes over to Pete Carroll to remind him that we need to keep scoring…LOL!

    • CD

      With Suh, C. Johnson, and Stafford, Detroit can’t afford another $10+ million per year player. The #10 overall pick is roughly a 3-4 million per year player.

      • CD

        What would be more interesting is this;

        1) Sign Sherman for 10+ million
        2) Trade Sherman for Suh

        Any takers? I think I stick with Sherm, he will be in the Hall some day, might as well watch it/him for another 10 years. This doesn’t come around too often.

        • Rob Staton

          Trading Sherman, Thomas or Wilson would be equal for me. The three cornerstones of the franchise. And therefore the three you keep at all costs.

  13. Nate

    Very impressed by Deone Buccannons’ 40 time(4.49). Big time hitter at strong safety. I like him a lot.

    • bigDhawk

      Love that guy. He will be a Pro-Bowler for someone. It will likely take a high second round pick to get him – maybe even a low first. But drafting him as depth behind Kam would be a little like drafting Manziel as depth behind Russell. A wildly luxurious pick for us, but one heck of a player.

      • Nate

        I predict he goes to Kansas City in the first. They need safety help and I doubt the top two safeties will be around when they pick. Its a steep drop off in talent after the top three.

        • Kyle N

          That would be a pretty steep rise for him.

          • Nate

            Not really, he was a projected second rounder that just did very well in the combine. I have already heard some predicting him as a late first round guy.

  14. CC

    Dontae Johnson, Jaylen Watkins are guys I like at DB and Mo Alexander from Utah State and interesting prospect at S.

    Lots of little guys out there running fast. I just wonder what the scouts are seeing from all the guys not at the combine because you know we’ll find some guys there.

  15. red

    Stanley Jean-Baptiste 41.5 vertical jumps looks like a project give him a year or two in the program I am thinking 4th round.

    • Nate

      I have watched him play and man is he terrible. Avoids contact, seemed stiff and doesn’t even seem aware of were the ball is. Sherman is good because of his ball skills but Baptiste doesn’t seem to have that same ability/instinct.
      Very unimpressed with him.

      • John

        I like him in Seattles system, anywhere else and I think he is DRC at best.

  16. EdC

    Good points about the cap Rob.

    On that topic, it kind of happened with DL last year, which of course greatly helped us win the superbowl. Do you think teams (smart teams) will start drawing a line the sand with QB? Yes you need one, but paying one playing 1/6th of your salary cap doesn’t seem to work.

    Giants/Steelers/Ravens/Patriots now can’t put a team together because so much money goes to the QB

    The Packers, Saints and Colts are the only teams in recent history that have one with a lot of money going to the QB and the reason they all won the Superbowl those given years was more because their defense played lights out that given year.

    I hope RW is all that he seems and would rather stay and win than leave and get payed $15+ per year

    • bigDhawk

      It works to our advantage to have an owner who can write a signing bonus check that guarantees 65 of a 85 mil, 7 year contract (12 and change AAV). That would make taking a lower AAV contract much more appealing to a player. Of course that involves risk for the cap on the back end of the deal. But if we are confident a player like Russell will play out the contract, then it is a risk worth taking. Waving a check well north of what Aaron Rogers gets guaranteed under the nose of a player and agent will be hard to resist.

      • Kyle N

        I think it actually makes sense to get Russell signed up long term with a big contract right at the end of this year. I’d expect the salary cap number to spike again for 2015. Like Rob wonderfully stated earlier in the comments, the NFL is being reactionary to how front offices are using their salary cap space. Loading up on good players on cheap rookie deals, and using the massive remainder of the cap to give the QB a huge contract and a few other star players, thus leaving veterans out on the street (the very thing the NFL didn’t want). They will be raising the cap the next few years to fight against this and give teams extra space under the cap to actually make some FA deals. However, eventually what this will mean is that instead of using that money for FA veterans, it’ll just start going to QB contracts and those numbers will balloon again. Lock up Russell now if you can I say. Also, I wonder if the NFL will ever put in max contract sizes for players (based on position) to fight against QBs making all the roster money.

        • bigDhawk

          The CBA forbids teams from negotiating extensions with rookies until after their third season. Russell just finished his second season. We can not even talk contract with him till the end of nest season – 2014/2015

          • Kyle N

            I said “at the end of this year” meaning after the completion of this upcoming to season. I should have been more clear.

  17. bigDhawk

    Rob – you’re on record as being tepid about Khalil Mack going as a high first rounder in various blog posts over the past few months. There are now some stories out there gaining traction about Mack possibly being the FOA pick. After seeing his combine have you significantly upgraded your opinion of him and do you think there is any chance he is at least the first defensive player off the board above Clowney, if not FOA?

    • Kenny Sloth

      Man. That’s just a media fueled buzz thing. They just want a story.

  18. Cameron

    Rob, I’m not sure Pete or John are going to get hung up on backpedaling ability. Our outside DB’s usually use the bail technique anyway (especially Maxwell). Length and awareness they appear to place a premium on. I haven’t watched McGill tape at all, but based on measurements alone he screams Seahawks outside cornerback.

    • Rob Staton

      Physically he’s very impressive and I haven’t lingered too much on back pedal. He could stand to be more physical, though, especially for his size.

  19. Dan

    Where do you think Ebron is gonna go in the first?

    • Rob Staton

      Could be mid first, I suspect it might be later.

  20. Jon

    I think it will be fun watching teams draft DBs like seattle does and then come a year later they will release them because they don’t know how to coach those players. How many of the 6’1″ CBs that get drafted to early could the hawks pick up on waivers for free. This would be great.

    • Robert

      Totally agree! There is a lot more to Seattle’s passing defense than just drafting a tall CB prospect and hoping for the best…LOL!

  21. Hawkspur

    Great job over the past few days, Rob. Thanks.

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks Hawkspur.

  22. Jrockrichards

    Excellent work Rob!

    Looking forward to the write up later.

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks Jrock — and the write ups live now.

  23. Mattk

    I’d be interested to hear what other people think.

    Maybe it is just me, but Justin Gilbert not knowing who Aqib Talib is doesn’t bother me.

    Lot’s of players are more focused on improving themselves through drills and studying football as opposed to watching it as a fan. I was a passionate 365-day sports player all through high school, but I didn’t watch pro sports much. I was so busy in other areas of my life (school, training, work) that I didn’t have time for it.

    • bigDhawk

      Couldn’t care less. As long as the kid is giving full effort at practice – which he said was on Sundays during NFL games – and in class, I’ll cut him slack for not spending $40 on NFL Rewind.

  24. red

    Apparently Jordan Matthews met with Seattle per walter football.

  25. Jake

    Some of these safeties would be awesome CBs in our scheme…

    Clinton-Dix in particular (I realize he will be gone by #32) was recruited to Bama as a CB. CB is generally regarded as a more valuable position than S anyway so I wonder if he’d consider the move back to CB if he went to a team that likes to press. The one I’d love to get in Seattle and convert is Mo Alexander, two years from now he could be special as a press corner.

  26. Belgaron

    It would make an interesting addition if you added who you would see Seattle draft if they dropped #32 by 5 picks, 12 picks, or 20 picks to your mocks. Nice work, I always enjoy contrasting your picks against the knuckleheads at the other sites.

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