Today’s interview is with the Alabama defensive tackle Raekwon Davis. He reveals he’s had a FaceTime meeting with the Seahawks and he discusses his career at Alabama. A big thank you to Raekwon for his time.
If you missed yesterday’s interview with Prince Tega Wanogho, or any of the others over the last two weeks, don’t forget to check out our YouTube channel and subscribe.
I also wanted to share some thoughts on Chase Claypool and acknowledge a report on Jalen Reagor. You’ll find those notes below the interview…
Jalen Reagor is one to watch
We’ve talked a lot about Reagor — throughout the college football and draft season. Aaron Wilson is reporting he’s received steady interest from the Seahawks, among others, over the last few weeks.
He’s so quick and explosive and he does what they want from a receiver — chunk plays and touchdowns. His leaping ability for a player his size is exceptional and he’s an unlikely red zone threat. He can run the go-routes and vertical stuff Seattle likes. He’s tough and competitive. Importantly he can also be a special teams threat — and the Seahawks will probably look to add a returner at some point.
We’ll see if he lasts into a range where the Seahawks can take him but he’s right up their street.
Why Chase Claypool could go in the top-40
I spent a bit of time re-watching the Notre Dame receiver over the last 24 hours and upon reflection I should’ve rated him higher than I initially did.
In a unique draft severely impacted by a pandemic, teams are probably going to identify players with a lot of potential and low risk. Claypool’s physical profile, his willingness to do a lot of different things (run block, special teams) and his mature character will make him one of those players.
His 4.42 speed at 238lbs is the same as Evan Engram — and he ended up being the #23 overall pick. The big difference between the two is Claypool’s quick release. That’s why he can easily stay at receiver. He can be a mismatch kicking inside but his quickness is a plus for the deep ball and he can eat up a cushion quickly.
Engram was clearly fast but he did his best work inside. He didn’t have the acceleration to play outside receiver. He’s always been a dynamic tight end. His three cone of 6.92 is ideal for a playmaking TE. His agility and ability to boss overmatched defenders was his calling card. He can run by linebackers with ease from a traditional tight end position, you could hide him from the coverage in that regard. Then the three cone showed up in his ability to change direction, separate and use the open space and the seam to his advantage. This also worked really well in the red zone.
Claypool is more like Mike Evans — the #7 overall pick in 2014. At Texas A&M and at Tampa Bay he’s shown a god-given ability to stretch teams with speed despite being 231lbs. He was a natural at getting downfield and separating. You don’t see many players who can do that. Evans was also a very natural hands catcher and he just beats defenders up. He uses his size to his advantage. As soon as he emerged at Texas A&M you could tell immediately he was going to be a high pick.
Evans only ran a 4.53 but he was as sudden as a 230lber can be. He also had great body control and he was tough. He also blocked well. There aren’t many 230lbs receivers running a 4.53 who go in the top-10 these days. Evans did, justifiably so, because his talent was obvious. And like Engram he had the three cone speed (7.08) to work openings across the middle too.
Claypool has greater straight line speed but maybe isn’t quite as fluid and smooth as Evans and we’ll need to see if he can boss pro defensive backs in the same way, master the back-shoulder reception and become that rare thing — a high-production possession type who’s equally capable of beating you with 10 catches for 80 yards or 3 catches for 150.
Nevertheless, that’s what Claypool should aim for. That’s what he’s capable of.
He showed an ability to do one thing as well as Evans at the Senior Bowl — create subtle, late separation:
It’s also worth noting that Nolan Narwocki graded Evans as a late first or early second round pick in 2014 in his NFL.com profile. A few people felt that way — even though to others it was obvious he would go a lot earlier. It’s possible Claypool will also go earlier than some are currently projecting.
There’s no doubting he’s an X-factor. Whether it’s winning at the red-line or operating in the slot, he’s incredibly difficult to cover and has to be accounted for. In his first year you can have him excel on special teams and as a complimentary weapon. There won’t be any redshirt here. The receivers who adapt quickly to the league are either the world class, exceptional athletes, the players with strong catching technique and ball-tracking skills or the ones willing to find ways to contribute.
Claypool ticks those boxes.
Where could he land? Don’t be surprised if New England seriously considers him at #23. They love these mismatch difference makers and look how they suffered in 2019 without Gronk. The Ravens are another team at #28 who could show interest. Claypool’s willingness to block in the running game will appeal for their offense — plus he also has the ability to be the perfect compliment to Hollywood Brown.
The Seahawks could also show interest. We know 4.4 speed or faster is the benchmark for early picks. The question is whether they want this type of player. They’ve padded their depth at tight end and the addition of Greg Olsen is surely to max-out the opportunities over the middle and down the seam. With D.K. Metcalf being the big target outside, you’d think they’d be looking for a more diminutive, quicker receiver (perhaps with some kick return qualities). Some teams view Claypool as a tight end project. Again — the Seahawks have already loaded up at that position.
Even so — we know they like speed and touchdown makers. We know they like to take shots downfield and Claypool had the second highest PFF grade in this draft for downfield receiving. We know they value run blocking and a determination to contribute on special teams. They could be pretty creative with Metcalf, Claypool, Lockett and Dorsett/Ursua.
Finally, I was invited onto a UK NFL podcast yesterday to talk about the draft. You can listen below:
Listen to “Episode Six: Draft preview with Rob Staton” on Spreaker.
You can now support Seahawks Draft Blog via Patreon by clicking the tab below.
Such a great response, “I’d do it again if they asked me to” in regards to playing another year at Alabama. Buy in is pretty clear.
Hope he is a seahawk.
Funny, I actually took that response as being a bit sheepish. I would have rather had him say something like “I’m so ready to hit the NFL hard”
Sheepish? I didn’t think that at all. I thought it was convincing and determined. He thought it was best to stay at Alabama so he did and he doesn’t regret a thing. Good answer IMO.
I actually appreciated the fact that he stayed to get his degree because he recognizes the value of having it. I like his answer as well.
Or he is following through on his goals. Sheepish? Smh
Whatever King.
In Mark Schofield’s most recent work at Touchdown Wire he writes:
“To paraphrase an idea from politics, do not tell me what you value at a position. Show me your top prospects at a position and I’ll tell you what you value at the position.”
He then goes on to evaluate Isiah Simmons of Clemson with every superlative except the one that is most obvious. He is a player you build your entire defense around.
This whole “buy in” or “sheepish” dichotomy might be one of the things that separates the good general managers from the bad ones – and oddly enough this might be a weakness for the Seahawks. I just don’t know. But it is worth a larger discussion.
Jalen Raegor drawing heavy interest from the Seahawks is hardly surprising, for the reasons you stated, but it’s still very good news. Easily in my top 5 favourite players in this class, I think he has the best upside of all the receivers.
I’d be overjoyed if we were able to snag Reagor. He’s got the lighting speed, shifty quickness and can jump out of the stratosphere. Pairing him with D.K. and Lockett would almost be unfair. He’d also add some much needed juice to our return game. I’m gonna do my best not to get my hopes up come draft night but man there’s nothing I want more than Reagor in a Seahawks uniform.
Someone else I like day 1-2 is WR Denzel Mims. He might not be there or he might be a little too similar to Metcalf, but the way he plays reminds me soooo much of a sup’d up version of Ricardo Lockette.
Oh yeah, that’s exactly what this team needs to spend a high draft pick on, another Ricardo Lockette.
Lol. He’s much better than Lockette, but the run blocking, mentality, physicality is all a match.
Doesn’t play special teams though… 🤔
that’s not really a terrible comp at all so don’t take offense to my sarcastic comment. My bigger point is I don’t think Mims has the play strength to be an effective pro receiver right now.
I could see some teams not wanting to pass up a DK Metcalf esque situation on day 1 and I can also see him falling a bit too.
I think Rhule might want Mims at CAR. Could even be an excellent trade partner if they wanted to trade up from #38 to #27 and send us #69 for our troubles…
#69. Nice.
You could be right. Him, DJ Moore, and Curtis Samuel would be a real nice trio.
I’ve often heard the term “He also returns kicks”, but that isn’t really a very good description for a player. Kickoff returners are a dime a dozen, good kickoff returners are much less important than good punt returners. Punt returns can effect field position much more than kickoff returns (which may be phased out anyway). Additionally, punt returns are an exciting part of the game, more so than KO returns IMO.
Stats wise, would you rather have a Reagor (20.8-yds average punt return) or Aiyuk, (16.14-yds average punt return) or say K J Hamler, with a 5.48-yd. average (#48 in FBS), or a comparable WR that doesn’t do special teams at all? IMO, having good/great punt returner stats adds significant value to a draft pick, but KO returners, not so much. It’s notable that RB-Penny holds all time NCAA records for KO returns & doesn’t currently return kickoffs for the Seahawks. Lockett’s punt return average has gone down as he’s now WR-1 and I’m sure many worry about his health as a punt returner, so he may be better served to pass that job on to a younger hungry draftee like Reagor (#2 in FBS) or Aiyuk, (#3 in FBS), Note: Aiyuk also is a KO returner with a 31.85-average which is also #3 in FBS and that adds a little bit to his value. I’m hoping the Seahawks select either Reagor or Aiyuk, early in the draft, I really like both of them and I wouldn’t be disappointed with either as a Seahawk.
Notable Punt return stats from 2019; per FBS rankings @ cfbstats.com/National
#1-WR-Jaylen Waddle, Alabama, 24.35-yd avg. 1-TD, A super-soph. & next years top 3 pick.
#2-WR-Jalen Reagor, TCU, 20.80-yd. avg. 2-TD’s.
#3-WR-Brandon Aiyuk, Arizona St., 16.14-yd. avg. 1-TD.
My mock last night Rob w. the PFN Sim:
39. Jalen Reagor (trade back twice for a 3rd and 4th) WR
59. Justin Madubuike DT
73. Malik Harrison OLB (trade back 10 spots for another middle round pick)
75. Matt Hennessy C
101. Robert Hunt OT
133. Alton Robinson Edge
141. Hunter Bryant (don’t think he’ll be here) TE
157. Trevis Gibson Edge
214. Michael Warren II RB
I feel like the Hawks always get a nose tackle w. roster cuts so it’s not needed in the draft. Love Madubuike as an interior rusher. Reagor echoes your sentiments… he’s explosive and the Hawks have been missing a dynamic returner since Lockett broke his leg. Malik Harrison feels like a steal at that pick and allows them to cut KJ to save cash if they feel necessary. Love Hennessy at center, big need for the Hawks… can’t go w. Joey Hunt and need to cut Britt. Hunt at OT feels like the perfect pick at that spot. The two edge rushers Robinson and Gibson are raw but have big potential… this is also predicated on them still signing Clowney (prayers). Hunter Bryant in the 4th feels like a no brainer… he’s active in the run game and is a dynamic pass catcher… just slightly undersized. Michael Warren is the Carson of the draft in late rounds.
I’m in the same boat. Unless they force it and fight the board or a Josh Uche isn’t there, I think they’ll develop some edge rushers on day 2 & 3 while they target more of an interior rusher earlier. Not ideal, but it kinda feels like that’s one of the main the reasons for signing 2 guys familiar with the scheme in Mayowa & Bruce.
This going to be a bit controversial here,
but if we traded down a few spots and then selected Claypool with our first pick… I would be thrilled. Absolutely thrilled. Wilson wanted superstars and while I don’t think he’s necessarily a superstar right now, he’s one of those guys who after working with Wilson for a season or two can absolutely be a top performer in the league. Even as a rookie, he’ll be a nice compliment to DK Metcalf and Lockett. A Metcalf Claypool Dissly Olsen combination of big targets would make Russ very VERY happy.
Russ deserves better than Jaron Brown and Malik Turner.
Vincent Jackson isn’t an unfair comparison in my opinion.
I think that’s a good comp
I’m not sure whether Claypool will ever be a superstar but if you’re willing to be creative and seek mismatch opportunities and scheme around creating those opportunities — you could have one of the hardest offenses to defend in the league.
I think one thing this offense could really use is that big reliable guy over the middle. Really took a hit when Dissly got hurt last year. Obviously we signed Olsen and theoretically have Dissly back this year and maybe Metcalf develops in that direction. But is Claypool a good fit there?
I think so, yes. He plays similar to a move TE from what I saw.
Another gem – glad you were able to track down one of these DL beasts that seem like Seahawks targets. You had to work a little harder here than with some of those loquacious OLers you’ve had on. Great job.
I anticipated that going in… though that said, I think I got more out of him than most (see PFT yesterday).
Way more. Impressed. I thought you were going to have to pull teeth to get answers.
Yeah, he wasn’t exactly playing off your cues.
Thanks for the extra effort especially to dig about the Seahawks meeting.
My favorite question was about Calais. Hearing he also looks at Buckner is good. That’s what he needs to shoot for.
Comp to Buckner was surprising and accurate, showed some self-awareness. Had a laugh, thought, “After what he just got paid, I’m sure you do.”
Buckner: 5.05 40 / 1.77 10 yard split / 32″ vert / 7.51 3 cone
Davis: 5.12 40 / 1.78 10 yard split / 28″ vert / 7.95 3 cone
I like Reagor’s explosiveness, but… I didn’t like that several scouts McGinn talked to weren’t big fans of his as he seemed to take off those plays that went away from him.
You’re killin’ it with the interviews and content Rob, great stuff. Soooo close to draft… wish we could watch the NFL mock draft ha.
Thanks man
Great interview.
Sounds like Saban stresses accountability.
Rob, what are your thoughts on Davis’ combine test results? Big dude, but I thought he would test slightly better in vert., broad, 10 yard split, etc.
Been saying it for awhile now. Buyer beware. I really don’t think drafting this guy is high is a good idea.
Buyer beware? You don’t like guys who beat up opponents at the LOS and play tough?
But you would rather take the very diminutive Hamler 1st and there is no buyer beware with him?
Buyer beware for Kingdomes comments maybe. Smh.
I thought his combine was as expected — very similar to Calais Campbell. He’s not a freak of nature athlete. He’s just a tough BAMF.
Agree: BAMF with disruptive size and strength.
Not sure why Schulze claimed he “hits on the explosive traits.”
Davis numbers are good. Broad was upper compare to DTs and the split was good too. Compare him across the board with other DTs from this class. Raekwon did well for his size.
Would anyone be up for a Google Hangout draft party, the draft is going to be streamed I wonder if we should do the same for the party?
Do I have to get dressed?
Since tp is the new currency and I’m broke, can I show up wearing my adult diapers? It will be on throwback Thursday after all.
Absolutely, esp. if you rock Metcalf’s binky.
Stop rn
(What does that mean?)
Count me in
That’s another great piece, Rob.
Maybe I’m not clear, but where do you think Claypool fits best with the Hawks? WR or TE?
At the end of the day I guess it doesn’t matter if they view him as a weapon they can deploy. The TE depth is set for 2020 but 2021 and on, if they like Claypool and want to play him there, draft him now.
Personally I’d prefer Reagor but Claypool looks very intriguing as a Twin Tower complement to DK.
Receiver
Fantastic interviews. Rob, interested to know which players from your “ insider” point of view would you rank as the highest in character and leadership. So important to team building. Thanks.
I’ve enjoyed all the interviews so far
Rob..are you only doing these interviews because of the quarantine situation or will this be an annual thing?
These interviews gives us so much more insight into the players and how they might fit in the locker room.
I don’t know. We’ll see. Next year is a long way off.
As long as you just love doing what you are doing, great things will come.
Rob- Have absolutely loved this series, thank you!
Raekwon is the guy I want after the trade down(s)… this interview did nothing to change that. Not the loudest, but, confident, committed and insightful. Sign me up.
Thanks Andrew
what do you guys think of m perry rb/slash out of navy?
A guy his size needs to run a heck of a lot faster than 4.63 to get a shot.
Claypool is somewhat local too I believe.
Chase Claypool is from Abbotsford BC so he is just over the Canadian – US border.
Abbotsford, Canada.
Which, funnily enough, is where I lived briefly before moving to downtown Vancouver.
He’s also on the record saying he’s a Seahawks fan.
Hawks fans from British Columbia say yes please on Claypool, I’ve been banging the drum for him!
Rock solid work on all the interviews Rob! Thank you.
Thank you
Oh my! Incidentally, this is what initially made me a Christian Covington fan when he was draft eligible as a Vancouver native who grew up watch the hawks.
Hey Rob, great interview and write ups!
Would you consider doing live video or audio commentary of the draft? I know RD 1 is pretty late for you, but maybe some of the other rounds?
Either way, I’m pumped for the draft and look forward to reading your analysis after the picks.
I’ve done it in the past. Kenny and I did a full first two days live broadcast. Then another year we did day one and I did a solo broadcast for day two.
However — for the last few years I’ve really enjoyed being able to just watch the draft and do podcasts after each day. Not sure if those podcast offers will come this year but hopefully they will. If not, I’ll record some thoughts anyway.
Yeah, I too would rather just enjoy the draft live without distractions.
Sure, but we don’t really know what “live” is gonna look like this year though.
Either way, we’ll be here in the comments live for sure!
Yeah that makes sense! Thanks for the response!
Reakwon Davis is drawing interest from mulitple teams. https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2020/04/16/raekwon-davis-drawing-interest-from-multiple-teams/
I say trade down and then take either Reakwon Davis or CEH.
Personally I wouldn’t take Davis until the late 2nd with one of our late picks. CEH is incredible but undersized, but I would still take him with a trade down like you suggested.
If we traded down to say #34 my first 3 choices would be:
1. Hamler
2. Okwara
3. Cleveland
Ezra Cleveland aint lasting to #64. He’s a round one pick.
Rob. My 3 picks listed were alternates for the 34th pick.
1. Discards CEH as undersized.
2. Proceeds to pick Hamler.
🤔 😉
It really depends how the board falls. If Madabuike and Davis come off you might have to reach in a really thin DL class. I like a lot of the guys, but I think you’re getting a three down player for four years and that’s worth it at the top of the second like we did with Jarran Reed
It makes sense that the 49ers might be interested in Davis he would be a great replacement for Buckner wouldn’t he
Wonder if teams are replacing Kinlaw with Davis on their boards.
Rob, Bob McGinn has been writing a great series for The Athletic on each of the position groups using his extensive network of scout and executive relationships to critique the prospects in the insiders’ own words. Yesterday he covered the offensive line and it was interesting to read how down on this position group the insiders were. The main critique of the tackles is that everyone had warts and that there was no Joe Thomas in the group but where it got outright strange, relative to how we have all been talking about the class on SDB, was when they absolutely slaughtered the interior line class with one executive claiming that he had only 3 guards with draftable grades! I know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder and that smokescreens are part of the leadup to the draft but it was jarring simply because of the credibility of Bob McGinn.
Bob’s pieces are always very interesting but I wouldn’t read too much into one scouts opinions.
I mean, in Bob’s own pieces you’ll have one scout saying a player is outstanding and then in the same paragraph another scout says the guy sucks.
I think there are some good interior O-line options. Not early — but value to be had later.
I’m no pro when it comes to evaluating prospects but from what I’ve read, it has sounded like there will be great value in the mid rounds for the interior line in particular. One prospect I noticed throughout the season was Saadhiq Charles, since LSU was on every week and I knew that Seattle would likely be in the market for a tackle. I’ve read that he is a first round talent with udfa personal tendencies (read multiple failed drug tests). Have you gone through his tape at all?
Yeah he’s really tough to beat. Guard physique so he’ll kick inside. Good player but you mentioned it — the drug tests will scare teams off early.
Rob, thank you for this blog. The work you put in year to year keeps getting better and better. I appreciate the thoughtfulness of the writing and the attempt at understanding the tendencies of PC/JS through logic and reasoning, qualities that appear to be in short supply with much of the media these days. I hope that you and yours are safe and well.
Thank you, those words mean a lot 👍🏻
I hate you Rob. You just completely screwed up my draft because I can see this guy going that high up now. The one thing about the Seahawks they always done was to bring big guys. They finally hit on D.K. last year but I remember Williams, Rice, Graham, and the Durham. I like it because Seattle has done good drafting a WR in the 2nd round. I have a hard time believing they wouldn’t grab a talent like this guy. They don’t move D.K. they can move this guy. I getting the impression I probably can’t get this guy at 64? No hard feelings Rob for me I was hoping he was the guy they would get in this talented WR class.
Which “guy” are you asking about?
What do you mean by ‘move’ DK? Around the formation?
Schotty just said DK got stuck at ‘X’ but they’re gonna move him around and take advantage of his flexibility. His ability to get behind people and all the different route concepts they can use now. Which is why it makes a ton of sense to add a ‘Z’ like a Jalen Reagor. You can begin to see the thought process a little bit if that is the case.
I’m talking about Chase Claypool at pick 64. I asked him yesterday about him. He told me he had an artiticle about him.
Messing around with the PFN draft simulator and a few trades, this is what I ended up with. Tried to focus on both lines in rds 1-2.
Trade 1: Seahawks give up #27 and #214 overall to Panthers for #38, #69 and #152.
Trade 2: Seahawks give up #152 overall to Patriots for #172 and #204
2.38 Isaiah Wilson, OT, Georgia
2.59 Jabari Zuniga, DE, Florida
2.64 Davon Hamilton, DT, Ohio State
3.69 Devin Durvernay, WR, Texas
3.101 Cam Akers, RB, Florida State
4.133 Trevis Gipson, DE, Tulsa
4.144 Justin Strnad, LB, Wake Forest
5.172 Julian Blackmon, CB, Utah
6.204 Cameron Clark, G, Charlotte
I’d flip Akers and Duvernay. Don’t think Akers will be there at 101. Might be gone before 69.
I think this is one of the first times in a while doing the PFN Sim that Cleveland was available in the early 2nd. I wanted to focus on getting two OT and still add talent to the DL, especially inside at DT. I was really bummed when Uche went at like 42 though…had to go for Weaver instead. Still think something like this, with 10 picks total would work very well…
36. Ezra Cleveland, OT Boise State
59. Curtis Weaver, DE Boise State
64. Davon Hamilton, DT Ohio State
101. Devin Asiasi, TE UCLA
112. Robert Hunt, OT Louisiana
144. Antonio Gibson, RB Memphis
160. Julian Blackmon, CB Utah
183. McTelvin Agim, DT Arkansas
214. Steven Montez, QB Colorado
220. Rico Dowdle, RB South Carolina
2021 LAC 5th
2021 IND 5th
Trade #1
NYG Received:
Pick 27 – Cesar Ruiz
SEA Received:
Pick 36 – Ezra Cleveland
Pick 99 – Bryan Edwards
Pick 183 – McTelvin Agim
Trade #2
LAC Received:
Pick 99 – Bryan Edwards
SEA Received:
Pick 112 – Robert Hunt
Pick 220 – Rico Dowdle
2021 LAC 5th
Trade #3
IND Received:
Pick 133 – Shane Lemieux
SEA Received:
Pick 160 – Julian Blackmon
2021 IND 5th
It would be kind of interesting if, after years of PC looking for his big WRs, two drafts in a row were to produce them for the Seahawks.
Thoughts on Mims vs. Claypool?
Just do it! Draft 2 in a row!
Love Mimms and Claypool. I think the Hawks would prefer Claypool for his run blocking and special teams value. I think Mims is a more polished receiver right now and will be an impact rookie.
Was that Metellus covering him in the senior bowl clips?
There is some good players in the middle of the second round. Especially on the defensive line. Unfortunately Seattle picks at 59/64. I could actually see John Schneider trading down a couple of times. And then trade back up. He’s done that before. Just last year he traded up to snag D.K. Metcalf.
I could also see that.
They have traded up for 2 WR in the last 5 years or so… Lockett and Metcalf.
Could see a repeat, with the right guy at WR being available within a few picks of 59.
The trade up for Reed was a perfect example of this. Maybe from 50 to 50 or so if there is a certain player?
I’m off to bed now so I’m going to throw this out there and not respond for a few hours…
But it’s important for the Seahawks to remember what kind of team they want to be. Or, it’s important for us to remember that.
They want to be the bully. They want to connect the offense and defense and special teams.
Drafting a receiver early isn’t doing that. Not with the way the lines played last year. Your pass rush sucked, you couldn’t do anything against the perimeter run and the O-line could be better.
They had three home games — New Orleans, Baltimore & Arizona — where they got their arses kicked in the trenches. They lost all three.
If you want to play the way the Seahawks want to play, you’ve got to commit to both lines and get better.
More on this in an article on Saturday.
Who do you think is the most bully for EDGE, DT, OL, WR, RB?
I think for DT it’s Hamilton for sure
EDGE not sure…maybe Zuniga? But just a feeling, don’t really know
I think for RB maybe Moss. Perine is nothing sexy but he run with determination in the senior bowl.
Duvernay runs after the catch like an RB. Not sure about other WRs who could count as bullies
OL…dunno, I guess Hunt and Dotson based on your writings. I liked Lewis in the bowl too
I think you hit most of those bullies, along with Anae at DE.
Logan Stenberg
I’ve never heard a player be referred to as a bully as often as he was at the senior bowl.
Jauan Jennings is a bully at wide receiver. Really fun player to watch. Shenault too.
Amen.
It just seems like the better players will be on offense if we’re picking in the late 1st/early 2nd (OT, WR). I would hate for them to fight the board so heavily. If we trade down multiple times and get into maybe the mid-2nd that’s where I can see us getting good value at DT, and then the mid-to late 2nd is where these DE’s like Zuniga, Weaver, Okwara, Anae, and that DT Hamilton would provide great value.
If we can trade down and then trade up again I can see us going offense first and then getting two DL in the mid-late 2nd that will be good players/fits at good value, while still being able to draft the superior talent on Offense early.
Also possibly RB early, in addition to OT and WR, better value.
I learned it from you, Rob…
43.Raekwon Davis
50.Davon Hamilton
59.Robert Hunt
64.Prince Tega Wanogho
101.Zack Moss
144.Trevis Gipson
200.Steven Montez
No EDGE?
Early downs: Davis, Hamilton, Reed, Clowney/Griffen
Passing downs: Mayowa, Davis, Clowney, Irvin
Rotation: Ford, Green, Collier, Griffin/Gipson, Mone/Christmas
If we take the NO, BAL, ARI games as the measuring stick for what needs to be done – This is what I saw:
The ARI game was right when the injury avalanche hit us. We lost the last of the RBs early, no Clowney, Brown, woods,Diggs. y take is – try and stay healthier…
The NO and BAL games – The defense held both high powered offenses to well under 20 points a game so that is not a big point of concern.
The offense and special teams allowed more than 2 scores in each game so we should invest in OL, TE, WR/RBs.
Come on Eran.
Both lines had their arses kicked in those three games.
They did. Especially when C. Jones faced the shell shocked J. Jones in the ARI game.
However, In my humble opinion,both the NO and BAL games ended in a loss due to very costly offensive turnovers and ST play. Those are very untypical for RW/PC and and should be the focus of why we lost those games. The defense allowed a million yards but held both teams out of the end zone for most of the game, both QBs did passed for less than 180 yards.
In the ARI game we missed Diggs and Griffin in the secondary, Clowney and Woods on the DL and ended with Pocic at center, hunt at LG and J. Jones at LT plus no RBs. That game is no example for anything.
I have been pointing to the above since the season ended. We can learn more about what this team needs from the tight wins than the losses. If we focus on the losses to see what needs to be done to avoid them – We get a very different picture.
It is not a fluke that the only loses prior to the injuries avalanche (against playoff teams) were decided due to costly mistakes on the offense and ST.
They got their arses handed to them in the trenches Eran.
I haven’t got the time to continue this any further. But it was true.
Yes, special teams gaffes vs New Orleans and one turnover against Baltimore were costly.
But so was Seattle’s complete inability to impose their will on either side of the ball.
There’s a reason they were a paper tiger at home (4-4 and could’ve been much worse), there’s a reason why I wrote two long articles after each game talking about the trenches, there’s a reason why Brock Huard said the same thing for two days after each of those games.
The lines were absolutely battered. And there’s no reason to pretend otherwise.
Have to say, the flush of content over the last two weeks is premium stuff. Your interviews are actually that… and you give the guys space to express themselves, which is so damn rare in sports broadcasts these days.
I also think, you are doing a lot to make these strange, sensible days better, for a whole lot of people.
To you points…
Last November. I wrote I’m sure, they will go trenches early. When you correctly told me, it’s too early to tell, I rewatched the NO game, when we played a second string team and got our arses handed over, conveniently.
People tend to forget how incredibly lucky and onedimensional we were. Luck will not give us a SB (no pun intended).
A lot of the problems we had in the front 7 had to do with being the #27 secondary, too. Kendricks was forced to plug the gap constantly, which was atrocious to watch. The base D was incompetent to assert pressure, because one of the OLBs was not there to help. It got better, when they mixxed in some speed rushes and blitzes, and fell back to crap when adversaries adjusted.
So, signing Dunbar could be the best thing we could do, becaue we play front 7 again, and not front 6.5!
But you’re also right that we need talent, urgently at DL, but also OL in a years time. Signing travellin’ole guys won’t cut it. So, I think you pretty much nailed the guys we could take for DL. A late round guy we should consider because of his 2018 tape could be Alton Robinson, Syracuse.
And if we somehow finish the draft with either Isaiah Wislon, Robert Hunt, Shane Lemieux, Logan Stenberg or Ezra C in our pockets… fine.
I think, even with some guys shooting through the roof there a very good WRs on day 2, even on day 3. Tyler Johnson comes to mind, who seperates, is fluid, has in-gane speed and can jump. Also, Donovan Peoples-Jones or Bryan Edwards could be very good fits.
Chase Claypool will make a team very happy, and I have a hard time see him passing the Eagles. They will touch WR deep and often, so I’ll not be surprised them finishing with a Claypool+Hamler combo.
Thanks for those comments about the blog — they’re much appreciated. Again, I can’t tell you how much it means to hear people are taking some solace from the blog during these times.
Got a few thoughts on the trenches coming later… plus an updated horizontal board.
This time of the draft I start to ask the expert about certain targets I have in the draft. Rob, I’m not just thinking about how to make the defense better but also I like to maintain the defense. The I’m interested in is K.J. Wright. After this year there is no way they bring him back at 11 million dollars. He can come back for less to compete but we just don’t his replacement yet.
Malik Harrison intrigues me as a replacement for him after this year. BBK and Cody Barton I don’t see as his replacement. Willie Gay Jr has the speed , but Harrison has the size, Where do you think he will go? The Sceniro draft always has him going before 101.
I think he’s probably a round three pick.
Damn, I hadn’t looked at Harrison yet, but boy does he check a lot of boxes straight away. Excellent frame for that position (WLB), plus the violent tenacity we so dearly need.
New school speed, old school nasty. Rob says he’s stiff laterally, though.
Pass rush: Joshua Uche, Curtis Weaver, and Jabari Zuniga, Julian Okwara
Defensive tackle: Justin Madubuike, Raekwon Davis, Davon Hamilton.
If the Hawks can snap up one of those pass rushers(First choice would be Weaver). One of those Defensive tackles. Plus add a player maker(WR or RB) with there first three picks. That would be a pretty good start.
Then in the third round I like Leki Fotu and if the Hawks can trade down and get another third rounder, then pluck either Matt Perth or Ben Bartch at OT. That would be a pretty good haul.
Depending on the health situation of Carson/Penny that could defintely change the equation. If the Hawks are forced to go running bqck. I keep thinking about CEH. I know CEH is not the fastest runner in the draft. But in my opinion he more than makes up for it with his elusiveness and his ability to break tackles. CEH is an excellent route runner.Also CEH only has 370 rushing attempts(compared to Johanthan Taylor who has close to 1000 rushing attempts), So CEH has plenty of tread left on his tires. He reminds me of a poor man’s Tyreek Hill. Russell WIlson has been crying for play maker(s). You can’t look any farther than CEH. BTW: One scouting report has rated CEH as the best runner to break tackles in this draft. Like I said earlier. He is not the fastest runner in the draft. But he more than makes up for it with all his other strengths.
A combination of Edge, DT, and offensive skilled player with are first three picks would be ideal. If we could come away with CEH/JT, Uche, and Hamilton or Reagor/Aiyuk, Raekwon, Okwara I would be so pumped. I hope we go in some some of direction similar to what you mentioned.
Great stuff once again with these interviews Rob. You’re killin’ it! Apologies if you answered previously and I missed it, but how have you gone about arranging these interviews with all these players? Is it just as simple as messaging them on facebook or other social media?
A mix of contacting them directly or through agencies.
Rob awesome stuff as always! If the Hawks can get 1-2 guys you have interviewed it will be a good draft.
This might be my favorite write up you have done all year! I have been banging the drum for Claypool all year mostly because of his size, toughness, leadership and natural athletiscm but also because he is another Canadian kid.
Claypool, Raegor and Mimms are my 3 favorite WR in the draft for the Hawks and I would be off the charts happy if we could get either of those guys. Having not adresssed the DL in free agency I just don’t see how the first couple off picks don’t have to be spent on the defensive side of the ball where there are such glaring holes.
You really have taken your draft coverage to a whole other level this year Rob!
My late target pick for another big guy Target Even if I miss on Claypool,
Watching the LSU team I looked at there Tight ends. Moss was nice buy I think I found my Luke Willson guy.
Stephen Sullvan TE LSU
He needs work as a TE. but he has the body. 6’5″, 248ilbs, 35 3/8 arms, 10 1/8 ” hands. 4.66 40, 36.5 VJ, 123 BJ, 7.51 3cone, 4.6 20yd shuttle. He has played the WR and TE position. I think if you take this guy from 160 to 185 it can be a win. Olsen will be gone in a year and Uncle Will, will probably start on the Pup list. We need a TE to at least replace Swopes.
They have Willson.
I’d love to see Seattle take a shot at Javelin Guidry for NCB and return man.
Anyone understand more detail on Becton’s failed combine drug test per Rapoport? Gotta imagine that just cost him a couple bills. Doubt he falls outside Top 20 but probably not as secure as a Top 10 anymore.
Miami might be licking there chops now at 18. They benefited before as Tunsil fell to 13, maybe again with Becton.
I don’t but with the relaxed standards in the new CBA and Laremy Tunsil surviving a draft day scandal to become one of the best LT’s in the NFL it’s hard to say it’ll have a huge impact.
This is the time where I wish Clowney would just get signed so it can open up the draft to other options, mostly because I have been a fan of jalen Reagor for a while. Even though the pass rush is a critical area of need, there is a part of me that wants to believe that the best defense is a good offense (Hawks vs. Manning in the SB. How’d that turn out?lul) and my gut just tells me that Reagor is the kind of WR that can open this offense up even more by allowing Wilson to find an open target a split second faster and avoid those coverage sacks.
Really think they can get a WR3 upgrade on day 3. Hoping to not see one early, though I’d make an exception for Claypool.
No arguments in general. As I said, pass rush is the #1 priority. And there are the Locketts and Baldwins to give evidence to the arguemnt that a great WR can be found in any round. Same with RB. As much as I would love a player like Reagor, probably not going to happen.
I’d rather take an RB early in this particular draft, both because of the depth at WR and the more urgent need at RB. There should still be some strong WR options in day 3.
Would rather have J. Jefferson out of LSU, but I agree with Rob. The trenches need to be addressed. We got pushed around like a bunch of sissies in that NO game. I hated watching that. Teddy “frickin” Bridgewater!!
What do people think of Lynn Bowden (WR/Ath) from Kentucky? Gaudy stats as a primarily running QB in final season, avg over 7 yards a carry against SEC defenses. Better running stats than Lamar Jackson. WR in years prior. Seems like a possible slot receiver/returner type for Hawks.
In your interview with Tony Pauline, he mentioned that one team was eyeing Chase Claypool as a Tight End. I’ll just bet that John Elway is looking at Claypool as a Shannon Sharpe type of weapon for Drew Lock. They have nine picks and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if after we trade down out of the first they trade up to leapfrog us to get him.
Folks. I have to admit that I am dying to see who lands Jalen Hurts or Jordan Love. I actually think that Jalen Hurts could be this years version of Lamar Jackson.
I don’t see him ever being as good as Lamar, but I do think he’s the 3rd best QB in this draft. Could totally see him having the impact that Dak has had.
39.
Raekwon Davis
DT Alabama
59.
Malik Harrison
OLB Ohio State
64.
Jabari Zuniga
DE Florida
70.
Chase Claypool
WR Notre Dame
101.
Davon Hamilton
DT Ohio State
133.
Alton Robinson
DE Syracuse
144.
Antonio Gibson
RB Memphis
154.
Tipa Galea’i
OLB Utah State
197.
Anfernee Jennings
DE Alabama
214.
Tanner Muse
S Clemson
227.
Carter Coughlin
OLB Minnesota
Somebody through this Mock up on another site. I really liked it, but wasn’t entirely sure how realistic it could potentially be. Thoughts?
At 39, I would hope we could add an offensive weapon. That spots seems a little early for Raekwon to come off the board. I don’t know if Jonathan Taylor, Edwards-Helaire, Jalen Reagor, or Brandon Aiyuk would still be available but I hope to see us come away with one of them. For Raekwon maybe he’d be there at 59 or we could trade up from there to the late 40s to get Raekwon or Josh Uche.
Thanks for the feedback. I’m trying not to get my Hope’s up about any one player or position, because I’ve been let down hard in the past, except on Frank Clark and T. Lockett. I do know that Seattle will take an OLineman at some point in this draft, as well as make a trade at some point.
It’s hard to not be excited about my LSU boys possibly getting drafted by Seattle, especially CEH. He was such a “baller” for us this year. The true definition of a “Tiger” in every way. I’m not excited about K. Chaisson however. Give me DL interior early if the board falls that way.
I think a receiver early doesn’t make sense for what Seattle is trying to do. I think they go RB or DT with the first pick.
Alton Robinson was a guy I stumbled upon, when I accidentally watched a 2018 Syracuse game. He was a non-entity in 2019, but somehow I have a good feeling about this guy making it in the NFL, if given a chance.
He has one of the fastest get-offs in the class, but then doesn’t really have a plan if that doesn’t work.
Also only has 32 3/8 arms, so I’ve pretty much written him off for the Seahawks.
Correct observations. And still, there is something in this guy.
A few potential EDGE rushers available on day 3 of the draft: IMO-Any of these guys would be welcome additions tp the Seahawks roster. The Seahawks MAY pick an EDGE with one of their first 3 picks and “double dip” by adding one of the following. Personally, I’d prefer Highsmith or Greenard, (both with >33″-arms).
EDGE/DE-Bradlee Anae, Utah, 6-3/265, 6-33/257, 32-1/8″-arms, 78-1/8″-wing, 4.93/40,
1.68-10yd. 25-reps, 31″-vert, 115″-broad, 7.44-3cone, 4.43-20yd shuttle. 103.4-pSPARQ
Rankings: #112 @ drafttek #91 @ cbssports, #82 @ draftsite, #64 @ fanspeak.com
Expected round = Late Rd. 2 to late Rd. 3. (MAY be available with Seahawks 3rd round pick?)
2019: 14-games, 41-tkls, 30-solo, 14.0-TFL, 13.0-sacks, 1-PBU, 1-FF
Note:- In 2019: #7 in NCAA (13 sacks) & his 30 career sacks is #25 in the NCAA since 2005.
2018: 14-games, 51-tkls, 27-solo, 15.5-TFL, 8.0-sacks, 3-PBU, 2-FF
2017: 13-games, 39-tkls, 25-solo, 10.0-TFL, 7.0-sacks, 3-QBH, 3-FF
2016: 6-games, 4-tkls, 4-solo, 2,0-TFL, 2.0-sacks.
Career: 47-games, 135-tkls, 86-solo, 41.5-TFL, 30-sacks, 4-PBU, 3-QBH, 2-FR, 5-FF
EDGE/DE-Jonathan Greenard, Florida, 6-4/263, 6-33/263, 34-7/8″-arms, 81-1/4″-wing, 4.87/40,
1.71-10yd, 22-reps, 30.5″-vert, 113″-broad, 7.13-3cone, 4.34-20yd shuttle. 108.7-pSPARQ
Rankings: #110 @ drafttek, #74 @ cbssports, #130 @ draftsite.
Expected round = Early Rd. 3 to late Rd 4. (MAY be available with Seahawks 3rd/4th Rd. pick.)
2019: 12-games, 52-tkls, 27-solo, 15.5-TFL, 9.5-sacks, 1-INT, 4-PBU, 8-QBH, 3-FF, 1-FR(for TD)
Note: – In 2019: was #1 in the “difficult” SEC conference in both TFL’s (15.5) & sacks (9.5)
2017: 13-games, 48-tkls, 29-solo, 15.5-TFL, 7.0-sacks, 1-PBU, 6-QBH, 1-FF
2016: 11-games, 22-tkls, 8-solo, 7.5-TFL, 2.5-sacks, 1-INT, 2-PBU, 3-QBH
Career: 36-games, 122-tkls, 64-solo, 38.5-TFL, 19.0-sacks, 2-INT, 7-PBU, 17-QBH,1-FR, 4-FF
EDGE/LB/LEO-Alex Highsmith, Charlotte, 6-31/248, 33-1/8″-arms, 76-7/8″-wing, 4.70/40,
1.68-10yd, 33″-vert, 125″-broad, 7.32-3cone, 4.31-20yd shuttle. 120.5-pSPARQ
Rankings: #120 @ drafttek #131@ cbssports #109 @ draftsite. #242 @ fanspeak
Expected round = mid Rd. 3 to middle Rd. 4. (MAY be available with Seahawks 3rd/4th Rd pick.)
2019: 13-games, 75-tkls, 43-solo, 21.5-TFL, 14.0-sacks, 3-PBU, 8-QBH, 1-FF
Note – In 2019: he was #2 in NCAA with 22-TFL’s & #3 in NCAA with 14 sacks.
2018: 12-games, 60-tkls, 38-solo, 17.5-TFL, 3.0-sacks, 1-PBU, 8-QBH, 2-FF
2017: 11-games, 33-tkls, 23-solo, 5,0-TFL, 2.0-sacks, 7-QBH
2016: 12-games, 17-tkls, 11-solo, 2.0-TFL, 1.0-sack, 1-PBU, 1-QBH
Career: 45-games, 185-tkls, 115-solo, 46.0-TFL, 20.0-sacks, 5-PBU, 24-QBH, 1-FR, 3-FF
EDGE/LB/LEO-Alton Robinson, Syracuse, 6-26/264, 32-3/8″-arms, 79″-wing, 4.69/40,
1.65-10yd, 25-reps, 25.5-vert,119″-broad, 7.32-3cone, 4.32-20yd shuttle. 127.3-pSPARQ
Rankings: #96 @ drafttek, #132 @ cbssports, #123 @ draftsite, #89 @ fanspeak.
Expected round = mid Rd. 3 to late Rd. 4 (MAY be available with Seahawks 3rd/4th round pick.)
2019: 12-games, 46-tkls, 23-solo, 9.5-TFL, 4.5-sacks, 3-PBU, 10-QBH, 1-FF
2018: 12-games, 39-tkls, 31-solo, 17.0-TFL, 10.0-sacks, 2-PBU, 11-QBH, 3-FF
2017: 12-games, 30-tkls, 18-solo, 6.0-TFL, 5.0-sacks, 5-QBH, 1-FF
Career: 35-games, 115-tkls, 72-solo, 32.5-TFL, 19.5-sacks, 5-PD, 26-QBH, 2-FR, 5-FF
In this type of interviews you can see how good of journalist someone is and how prepared for interview he was..when player has so many answers like “yes,of course, I do,etc” and there is zero pause during interview that mean journalist did a great job…
Thank you
Did another PFF mock draft simulator. Let me know what you guys think!
37: Clyde Edwards-Helaire – traded down 10 spots and gained a 3rd rounder. Jonathan Taylor or Jalen Reagor we’re off the board so I went with Clyde the Glide. Would love to see him in our offense. Russell has never had a true receiving threat out of the backfield and a player like Edwards-Helaire could take this offense to another level.
48: Josh Uche – traded up from 59 to get in the range where I see Uche going. Gave up pick 101 to move up. Uche is the pass rusher I would like to see us end up with. Need to add speed at the edge position. Underrated subtraction to the rush last year was Jacob Martin. Hopefully Uche can be productive as a situational pass pusher and grow into an every down player.
64: Laviska Shenault – add other receiver at the end of round 2. Shenault is just a playmaker and it would be interesting to see him mixed into our offense and add yet another weapon for Russ. He can come in an take over return duties. I get nervous seeing Lockett out there on returns thinking he’s gonna get hurt, so it would be nice to have someone else takeover. I hope Shenault can develop as a wideout. He reminds me of Cordarrelle Patterson. I’m not sure if that is a good comp at all, but that’s just what I see. Hopefully he can turn out to be more than just a special teams guy.
71: Davon Hamilton – Rob has raves about this guy and I can see why. He is very quick and an above average pass rusher for a 6’4’’ 340lbs DT. We can only hope he lasts until the beginning of round 3. If not I could see him being selected at 64 instead of Shenault. If that were the case, Bryan Edwards would be a great selection in this spot.
115: Robert Hunt – traded up from 133 for a player that fits the bill for the Seahawks. Once again, I am not sure where his range is for being selected. I’ve seen Rob select him at the end of round 2, so here in round 4 might not be realistic at all.
144: Kindle Vildor – took a flyer on the CB position. Don’t know much about Vildor but he does have 32+ inch arms. Dunbar and Griffen are both entering contract years, so I could see the Hawks wanting to add to the position.
214: Steven Montez – might be a round early for this guy or he could end up being a priority UDFA pickup. Montez has a lot of experience and could develop into be a quality backup for Russ. It would be nice for the Hawks to find a guy to develop and not just rely on journeymen Backup QBs.
I know the sim lets him last especially since they moved him to OT. However, Hunt is unlikely to make it out of mid round Two. He has made a big move up the boards. The funny thing is the sim had him moving up before they switched him to OT. The rest of your picks seem doable to me.
Love all of it except Shenault. He is a poor man’s Cordarrelle Patterson. Just not a fan of his and he can’t stay healthy. Let some other team take a chance on him.
Is it just me or have JS/PC picked players in the first 2 rounds we didn’t really expect over the last 8 years? Maybe Ifedi being the unicorn.
I know Rob has brought up a zillion different players we possibly could draft in this range over the years but did you really expect us to draft the players that we did? Not me.
Maybe I really suck at predicting our early picks but I have made a list of 10 players I would like or even expect to Hawks to draft early the last 6 years and the only one they picked was Ifedi. I really didn’t want them to pick him either…I just kind of expected it.
Anyway I was wondering if this might be a good time to see since the draft is next week if anybody would put up players we want the hawks to pick or even expect them to pick and see what happens.
This post will probably go by the wayside but here are my official 10 hopeful/expected players for the first 2 rounds, and not in any order:
1. KJ Hamler
2. J. Okwara
3. E. Cleveland
4. I. Wilson
5. D. Mims
6. P. Queen
7. A. Winfield jr.
8. J. Uche
9. R. Blacklock
10. J. Zuniga
Well I didn’t bring up players like Collier, Metcalf, Blair, the entire explosive running back class of 2018, Rasheem Green etc because I didn’t think they’d draft them.
The last time I feel like I was really caught out was Ethan Pocic. They didn’t need a center. He was a pure center. I didn’t even study him as a consequence. Then they took him early. It wasn’t a great idea with hindsight.
I was hoping to get Pocic to Seattle in some possible way. I love the idea of drafting him. But not until the late 4th or early 5th. I think they reached tremendously by selecting him in Rd 2. There wasn’t and hasnt been a lot of OLine talent in recent drafts. I think they are trying to prevent that this year with all the signings. I’m not saying that they won’t draft OL, but they seem to be “hedging their bets” so to speak.
Last year there was so much focus on d line that 3 OT’s were available at picks 35, 38 and 41, J. Taylor, C. Ford and D. Risner. This year, with all the hype for OT’s, there might not be much there if the Hawk’s trade down to the mid to late 30s. There isn’t as much defense as compared to offence in this draft. It might be smart to take someone like Okwara with a mid to late 30s pick or whoever might slide thru.
It seems like there is too much emotion and reaching for need going on, but that’s why teams have draft boards to remove those factors from the draft.
Ok then Rob….List your 10 picks and put it on the line. No excuses.
No. I have nothing to prove. We’ve talked about the players in this class. I’ve got 12 years of archives if you want to look through all the players we discussed in previous drafts.
Whats the point of post like this? To list 10 players, and then what? If he missed all of them to call him for that? I disagree with Rob often, I dont agree the way he handles some things (conversation wise) but above everything I have huge respect for what he is doing here and you always need to know this is not draft site where he is editor or writer, this is his personal blog…ha e a respect for what he is doing here (for free)…
The only thing I want to add is… nobody should take anything I say in the comments personally.
I’ve always said —- I will not fanny about. I prefer robust debate and getting to the point. I’m from Yorkshire. That’s how we roll. You will always knows where I stand on things. I prefer it that way.
Taking the internet personally is a weird phenomena. Don’t understand it.
FWIW, I appreciate your style and Yorkshire’s take on pudding and terriers.
*phenomenon
They passed on Alvin Kamara with that pick.
Any first pick, whether in the first round or trading down into the second round, should have learned the position, be trained and physically conditioned, and be a starter by mid-season.
Presumably they made the first pick to fill a need, and if they can’t fill the need by mid-season then that pick is a problem. Often a problem that haunts the Seahawks for years.
M.S. Ditto. Rob’s work speaks for itself. I Check out the blog 4 or 5 times a day this time of the year. TONS of good Information.
Not to change the subject. But I have something interesting. We all know about the injury concerns of former Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa. Tagovailoa because of his hip injury could drop. NFL GMs might be hesitant to select Tagovailoa. Taking the wrong QB can set an organization back years. There is an NFL head coach that has the inside scoop on Tagovailoa? He coaches for the New England Patroits. Bill Belichick and Nick Saban are the best of friends. Rob has all ready mentioned New England moving up to 14 to trade for Jordan Love. How about moving up to snag Tagovailoa? If anyone has inside information on Tagovailoa’s hip injury it would be Saban.
A couple of days ago I posted a draft board based on taking averages of 3 different boards, nfl.com, pfn and pff. I ran the sim and only took the top rated player on the board at the time. I wanted to see what it would look like. I traded the Hawk’s pick #27 to Miami for #39, #70 and #141.
39. Josh Jones
59. Michael Pittman
64. Jordan Elliott
70. Ashtyn Davis
101 Chase Claypool
133 Robert Hunt
141 Antonio Gibson
144 Kenny Willekes
214 Damien Lewis
Rob – when your interviewing players, I would like to hear a little bit about diet and conditioning. I’m curious about what they are getting in college and what they do in the off season. Do they have any goals for running or weight lifting? Or their weight.
General question here: sorry I’m not tagging it to anything but it would make to long to try to find it. I read a post that said something along the lines of “imagine if we got CEH or Claypool and how scary that offense would be to defend against.” Well normally I’d get that in a Shanahan, Reid, Belichick scheme but Carroll doesn’t seem to want to get that creative with his ground and pound and saying that though you’ll know what his gameplan is he’s still going to beat you. So what my question is would a pick like CEH or Raegor or Claypool be an unecessary luxury with our scheme.
IMO? Out of the 3 Reagor fits the most from a scheme standpoint. His strengths are perfectly suited for a team like Seattle. CEH’s physicality fits, but if you don’t involve him enough in the passing game your doing a disservice to his skilk set.
That’s the thing about this draft and I’m glad you touched on it. Scheme and fit is always important on draft day, but magnify it this year. That’s why I’m assuming it’s gonna be such a crazy draft. Teams are gonna draft guys that fit their scheme more than ever.
And I beleive that’s another reason for why we keep hearing about how different teams boards are gonna be. Or how ‘wronger’ (did a source really use that word? Doubt it) draft media are.
I think it’s not only about what someone like Claypool would bring as a WR, but what he could do with his size blocking in the run game (and screens in the passing game). A lot of DBs don’t like tackling anyways, so imagine having to go up against these 6-4, 230 dudes pushing you around all game.
I do think a WR could be considered a luxury pick this year. Not that we should avoid tapping into the talented class if the value presents itself, but whoever we pick would automatically be behind Lockett and DK as WR3, and we have Dorsett as well for that.
RB I don’t think is a luxury at this point. We know Penny isn’t going to be available for a while and Carson always gets banged up and is going into a contract year. The vision CEH shows is special, and he has the explosion and lateral agility to actually take advantage of what he sees.
I’ve been thinking about it lately and I’m going to go out on a limb and just say: this RB class is just as good, if not better, than the WR class and will have a greater impact on the league early on. Honestly, next year’s WR class may be even better IMO.
I don’t think RB is a luxury either. We need one to replace Procise and be ready to fill in for Chris and Penny. The question is do we wait until Rd3 to get Akers or pull the trigger for CEH or Taylor earlier? Right now Rob has Duvernay as a Rd4 ranking and if that holds it would be a good pick.
Someone on Twitter just noted this to me from Field Gulls…
They based an article around a quote from the Tony Pauline interview I did.
Then they wrote this:
“In the Century Links post from Thursday, one of the links included from NJ.com was a piece quoting NFL Insider Tony Pauline on work ethic concerns as a basis for Jadeveon Clowney remaining a free agent.”
Here’s the quote in the NJ.com piece:
Pauline told Seahawks Draft Blog. “He may just get this one contract — with all the guarantees — and that’s it. Which is a concern of a lot of people.”
Field Gulls is run by a bunch of jokers now who really don’t know much. It’s a shame. I used to enjoy visiting that site like 5 years ago.
Same. Once Danny left, so did I. Haven’t been bsck since. No point. Most of it is just ‘snatch & grab’ pieces anyways.
Get more from Sea Mode in these comments
lol. Exactly.
Truth.
😳
Shouts again for all the thankless work you do throughout the season for us. Your presser recaps were really invaluable for me this fall.
Well said. Sea Mode is a huge part of this community.
Definitely agree with Kenny on that! You just need to figure out how to embed the tweets in the comments section so we don’t have to wander over to the twitterverse everytime. 😉
Before that quote Tony did say something like “once he gets the big payday he might just not play as hard”. So maybe they just were quoting the interview and not the article. Idk. Field gulls soes suck now though lol
Literally the sentence before in the piece.
Why didn’t field gulls simply name Seahawks Draft Blog as the source?
They dont want to credit Rob for his work?
There are some Field Gulls contributors like Kenny who see Rob as an excellent source of content and will ask him on their blogs and link his stuff daily. But, the FG “writers” often steal Rob’s topics without giving credit to Rob or fail to mention Seahawks Draft Blog as their source for content that they expound on. They may see SDB as a rival but their actions are unprofessional. The best way to respond to a rival is to up your game FG!
If Kenny = Kenneth Arthur, he has transferred to Turf Show Times, the Rams blog.
While I agree FG has seen better times, they are actually part of a wider problem.
They are trying to make money from their stuff. The attention span of a casual reader to sports media theses days has burned down to a couple of seconds. So, you have to make punchy headlnes to lure into reading, and make your point in the first paragraph. The whole media has been “outfoxxed”. And if you think, they are alone, watch the quality of newspapers trending into an intellectual abyss.
Gilbert is actually getting the economic side of football incl FA very well. But then, he is guilty of manipulating and stretching arguments to make a point fit into his mindset. From a purely commercial standpoint, he is successful.
If it’s the FG writer I’m thinking of, he seems to step way out of his wheelhouse to write these “retorts to other peoples posts on the internet” pieces that come across more like an emotional response to a position he’s personally staked out than an actual informative piece. So it’s no surprise there is a lack of proper source credit.
This on top of 710 ESPN seattle not crediting Rob the other day, either.
I know Rob doesnt want to complain, but it is very discouraging for others to benefit from his excellent work, without even mentioning him.
I think we heard that 710 corrected their failure when it was pointed out them. Am I remembering that correctly? Better late than never.
because crediting you, discredits some of the crap they say. So they will only source you when they want to argue against what you say. Top notch journalism for sure.
I look at the Seahawks needs and this draft class and I see strong needs at DL, OT, and RB with potential matches for all those positions in Round 2. The draft is also strong at WR. I would love to see JS deal to get an extra pick in Round 2/early 3 and come out of the draft with a group like:
OT: Wilson or Prince
RB: Taylor or CEH
DL: Hamilton or Davis or Zuniga
WR: Reagor or Mims or Aiyuk or Claypool
We’d have to sign another DL like Griffin if we only get a DT (still holding out some small hope for Clowney too).
There are going to be some project type RTs later so maybe a potential future LT like Prince or even Niang makes more sense but I think Wilson is a Pro-Bowler at RT. Seattle will have RBs that fit their type available on Day 3 but Taylor and CEH are more than just part of a stable. Rob was all over Zuniga last year and Hamilton was a Senior Bowl stud which we know Seattle favors. There are so many good receivers of different types that are going to be there in Round 2 that I am believing for another Tyler Lockett/D.K. Metcalf level addition.
Like a Chinese restaurant menu where you get to pick one from each column.
I would be thrilled to see the Hawks exit the draft with one of those guys you listed from each of those position groups. I think it will require some of JS’s best maneuvering though. He’ll have to have some willing partners to trade down a couple times and up at least once, and some willing teams to let some of these guys slide a bit.
Your math is spot on cha. It would take a trade back from 27 to early 2nd to add another 3 or 4. Probably use that first pick for a RB. Then us one of our 2s plus a 3 or 4 to move up to first half of round 2 to make sure they get a DL or OL or WR they love. Then use the pick we get in trade from 27 plus our remaining 3 or 4 to trade back into the end of the 2nd. With that pick and 64 we get 2 players who slip.
One trade back, 2 trade ups and 2 slips. Maybe just one trade up if they get an early 3 and someone with a Round 2 grade slips a bit further.
On my list above I think Niang (hip surgery), and Prince (knee) and Aiyuk (core surgery) are most likely to slip because they haven’t had a chance to show they are completely healthy.
Is the 5th year option still on the table for 2020 draft picks or is that done away with in 2021?
That 5th year option has always been a boon to the Hawks’ trade back value. Teams want to sneak into the bottom of the first round for that extra year of control. Particularly if it is a QB.
And this year I am guessing there will be a QB – maybe even 2 or 3 – that teams might want to secure for the 5th year so they can develop for a season.
I’m guessing the most realistic option would be 3 of those guys rather than 4 on your list. Who/what position group can you walk away from if you had to of those 4 Steve?
OT. You can find developmental RTs mid-round and maybe later this year. And it might be better to get a proven veteran LT to replace Brown in the future We need 1 DL and there are Pro-Bowl players at RB and WR that are going to go in the 2nd round.
The 5th year option still remains in the CBA. The financial part of it got a makeover and I’m not sure if the new numbers make it more useful for teams or make it too expensive for any players but stars.
There could be RBs in the Seattle profile available later but I think they add two this year, one early and one late.
I would draft Taylor or CEH even if it meant missing on Isaiah Wilson.
For WR, I see Dorsett as a hedge for WR3. No pressure on the rookie to contribute on offense immediately without spring practices (and potentially without a full training camp) or if recovering from surgery like Aiyuk. WR3 is not an urgent need but there are so many good ones this year and I keep having a recurring dream where we get Pro-Bowl offensive players in back-to-back years at pick 64.
I have been trying to decide if I would rather have us take a WR or RB with our first pick. Honestly I would like to come away with 1 at each position in our first four picks. If we want someone like Raegor, Mims, CEH, or Taylor, we would have to use our first pick on them (if they are even still available at whenever we pick). So which combo would you prefer:
Raegor/Mims/Claypool + Akers
or
CEH/Taylor + Duvernay
Personally, I would take the 2nd option with CEH and Duvernay. I think CEH is going to be a star, and love Duvernay’s personality and toughness. Do you think there is any chance Claypool or Aiyuk are available at the end of the 2nd round?
Of those options, Reagor and Akers for me. But we need to add at least one DL, if not two, and also tap into the OT class as well. So I’m thinking WR likely gets left out.
IMO, Aiyuk no way he lasts to our late R2 pick. Claypool might in such a top-heavy class.
Ugh, I can’t bring myself to read Pauline’s scouting reports. He’s the best insider for sure, but I wanted to give his recent reports another shot since they are usually better closer to the draft, and the very first one I look at, I find this about Hamler:
“Consistent pass-catcher”
“outstanding hand-eye coordination.”
Really? Those two are about the only things I can knock him for and think might turn off the Seahawks when looking at him! Highest drop rate in the entire WR class. (16.9%) That’s one of every seven passes he isn’t hauling in…
https://thumbs.gfycat.com/PossibleEminentLcont-mobile.mp4
*one of every six passes
(btw, caption that frame where the above video ends 😄)
Following on news of Zach Baun’s diluted sample at the Combine comes, Tony Pauline is reporting that there was “an inordinate number” of positive diluted tests. Mekhi Becton also failed the combine drug test but I haven’t seen any reports yet about whether his issue was also a diluted sample. Becton was 100% clean in college so I don’t see much of a slide for him but I wonder if this is part of the reason for reports of Kinlaw sliding?
Zierlein notes:
At this point, I’ll be shocked if the Cowboys don’t draft Cesar Ruiz at pick 17.
Me either. Makes the most since since Fredrick retired.
Imagine if they take Love.
You mean because of the Prescott situation? If Dallas is smart they better take care of Dak soon.
Just a joke.
That’s a lot of what we’ve been saying for weeks or months aside from Terrell (who I haven’t watched due to short arms).
I like Claypool and thinks he’s intriguing, it just depends if they have enough picks to use. Obviously, JS will want to trade down, I do think they are looking for a quick WR – Dorsett is the test to see if that can work in the offense with DK and Tyler. I’m hoping Dorsett can make a difference because I’m not sure any day 3 WR makes in in this offense.
So, that is why I started looking at some combo guys and the day 3 RB/WR I see as Seahawky is Antonio Gibson – he could be the new CJ Procise 6′ 220 4.39 – has some special teams work, has a good first burst – but he’s pretty close to Carson (tho shorter arms).
Faffed about last night with a new 7-rd at SI last night, looking at who was available at each spot. They had Indy trading up from 37 to 27 and giving us 75.
37) Isaiah Wilson (CEH available)
59) Robert Hunt (taken at 60)
64) Gay/Akers/Claypool available
I didn’t anticipate taking OLine with the first two picks, but didn’t expect to see Wilson sitting there after a trade back. I selected Gay here, even though I REALLY wanted a skill player, because Gay was more highly rated on Rob’s horizontal board.
75) Jabari Zuniga
101) DaVon Hamilton
The DLine gets some reinforcement here. Is this enough? I don’t know.
133) Hakeem Adeniji
This was the funny thing and why I bothered to post. It seemed like there’d been a massive run on skill players by this point. This seemed like the best player available by far, but not at all what I was hoping for. I really found myself questioning the early pick on Wilson and taking Gay, having lost out on skill players I was interested in. I just gave up after that 😂
This stuff is hard, lol. Maybe that’s why I usually avoid these things.
34, not 37. Indy selected Jordan Love
That might be the single most incredible draft haul I’ve seen (which means it’s also highly unrealistic, but whatever)
And yes, Hamilton and Zuniga (together with Clowney and/or Everson Griffen) would be ideal.
Some of the talking heads have mentioned they think that guys with medical issues might get pushed down the draft, making them gamble picks….. since you can’t truly test them. Tua is the obvious candidate, is Miami willing to commit 30M to him at the #5 pick, not knowing 100% his medicals?!?
The RB Zack Moss from Utah also is one of these guys, he is great when healthy, but has some injury concerns / durability concerns from a report I was reading. Knee injury specifically. When he is on, has been compared to Lynch… yes that Lynch. So maybe he is a 4th/5th round pick now….. instead of the 3rd/4th??
It will be fascination to see which teams pull the trigger on these guys and if they work out. Similar with how things played out in Dallas with LB Jaylon Smith. It took a year or more of rehab and being patient, but they started to get out of the guy what he was projected before his injury in college.
This could get interesting…
The plot thickens…
For a team like the Hawks, on balance I think this is good news…
SEA 43.
Isaiah Wilson
OT Georgia
trade icon
SEA 59.
Raekwon Davis
DT Alabama
SEA 64.
Willie Gay Jr.
OLB Mississippi State
SEA 74.
Chase Claypool
WR Notre Dame
trade icon
SEA 97.
Zack Moss
RB Utah
trade icon
SEA 101.
Khalid Kareem
DE Notre Dame
SEA 133.
Michael Ojemudia
CB Iowa
SEA 196.
Kevin Dotson
G Louisiana
trade icon
SEA 214.
McTelvin Agim
DT Arkansas
SEA 244.
Derrek Tuszka
DE North Dakota State
trade icon
SEA 40.
Jalen Reagor
WR TCU
trade icon
SEA 59.
Willie Gay Jr.
OLB Mississippi State
SEA 64.
Robert Hunt
OT Louisiana
SEA 90.
Davon Hamilton
DT Ohio State
trade icon
SEA 101.
Cam Akers
RB Florida State
SEA 116.
Trevis Gipson
DE Tulsa
trade icon
SEA 133.
Michael Ojemudia
CB Iowa
SEA 144.
Kevin Dotson
G Louisiana
SEA 171.
Evan Weaver
ILB Cal
trade icon
SEA 214.
Reggie Robinson
CB Tulsa
SEA 223.
Derrek Tuszka
DE North Dakota
I’m trying to grasp the effect that not having the Pro Days will have on the later round prospects.
It feels like rounds 5-7 and the UDFA market will be like the Wild West, and there may be opportunities for a typically smart late-round team like the Seahawks to really make some moves.
I wonder if they’d be more inclined to stock up on late round picks and make an Ursua type move (‘trade your our next year 6th for this year’s 7th”) or stay put and rely on their scouts and their reputation to clean up in UDFA.
Any thoughts?
They should add 3 rounds to draft this year.
Gives each team 3 extra picks. Helps some players hurt by lockdown get drafted. Add 1cday to draft for rounds 8-10.
Seems to be a way to benefit teams and players.
I wish they would do that. It’s not unprecedented since they’ve done it in the past. At this late date though, doubt they do it.
The Cowboys and Prescott are at a stalemate. From what I have been reading it sounds like Prescott is the one who is playing hardball. Prescott wants more money than Russell Wilson.
Dak is a really good quarterback be he ain’t no Russ.
He should play hardball.
He’s done absolutely everything they’ve asked of him. Never held out, never had any off-field issues. Played well above his drafting. NFL Man of the year nominee, and actively involved in the community.
Then he watches as Zeke gets suspended 6 games for violating league DV rules. Has been in the news for pulling down a girls top at a St Patty’s day parade. Got into an altercation with a security guard. Then held out of camp, in Cabo, with two years left on his rookie deal. Cowboys reward Zeke with a new record-breaking new deal, while Dak continues to play out his entire rookie deal and then gets franchised.
Plus, one more NFC contender would be dealing with a QB on a mega-deal and trying to piece together a supporting cast. Stick it to em Dak!
RW’s contract is going to be passed up very soon.
Check this out. I opened Claypool’s twitter, and what’s the first pinned tweet?
Chase Claypool
@ChaseClaypool
·Oct 30, 2017
Blocking is fun too .. 😅
https://twitter.com/ChaseClaypool/status/924808611687264256
His coach had this to say about him as well:
And lastly, an eye-catching piece of data:
Win getting off the bus…
https://twitter.com/ChaseClaypool/status/1121907306445332480
DK missed that list by like 5 lbs. Tell him to drink gallon of water before he steps on the scales and he’s in.
Listen to DJ’s comment at the beginning of this video, though… 😏
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1233406506122522628
Serving up a triple stack of delicious pancakes:
https://twitter.com/ChaseClaypool/status/1064283285159899137
https://twitter.com/ChaseClaypool/status/1041868214815391744
https://twitter.com/ChaseClaypool/status/1231966619494223872
You had better bet the Seahawks are gonna be interested in him!
A lot of people are going to be disappointed when the Patriots draft him…
And what does that do for your run game?
https://twitter.com/mattfreemanISD/status/1173969745881833472