Sunday draft notes & 2019 names to watch

Did Seattle stick to their positional trends this year?

In putting together our combine preview, we highlighted a number of positional trends. Many of these did continue…

— Once again the Seahawks drafted a running back with size and explosive traits. Rashaad Penny is 5-11 and 220lbs and had a 10-0 broad jump. He also had a 32.5 inch vertical.

— The short shuttle again proved vital for defensive linemen. Rasheem Green ran a 4.39 shuttle, the third best among the D-line class at the combine. It felt like the Seahawks had their eye on both Green and Ohio State’s Sam Hubbard and traded down in round three knowing at least one of the pair would still be available. Hubbard ran a 4.32 short shuttle, the fastest at the combine among defensive ends. To compare, Bradley Chubb ran a 4.41.

— Rasheem Green has nearly 34 inch arms. The Seahawks are still yet to draft a single defensive linemen with sub-33 inch arms.

— They still haven’t taken a cornerback early in the Pete Carroll era. Not unless you want to classify the late third round as ‘early’. They took Tre Flowers in the exact range they usually take cornerbacks — day three, round five. On April 7th I wrote a piece titled, ‘No, the Seahawks won’t draft a corner at #18’. It was a general point emphasising Seattle’s approach to the position. If there’s one regret I have from this years draft it’s not sticking to my guns on this. I projected Isaiah Oliver as an early target amid a flurry of well sourced media reports suggesting they could go corner early (Tony Pauline, Mike Mayock, Ian Rapoport). After months of saying they should/will prioritise the running game and draft a running back early, there was no need to hedge at the end. Every draft provides a lesson, this was it.

Why didn’t they take a receiver early?

Two main reasons I think:

1. With minimal picks they had to prioritise certain positions and needs. They’ve already added players at receiver during free agency and a year ago drafted Amarah Darboh and David Moore.

2. To quote one of Bob McGinn’s sources, “This is the worst wide-receiver draft I’ve seen in my life.”

Have they done enough to be competitive in 2018?

They certainly did very well with the limited resources they had. They weren’t in the same position as someone like the New York Giants. The haul of Saquon Barkley, Will Hernandez, Lorenzo Carter and B.J. Hill could push the Giants right back into immediate NFC contention.

Had the Seahawks been afforded four early picks, they’d likely be in a very similar situation right now. Yet they only had #18 and weren’t set to pick again until #120. They simply didn’t have the stock to make a significant splash in the first three rounds.

As noted in this piece after round one, the San Francisco 49ers taking Mike McGlinchey possibly created a domino effect that prevented the Seahawks collecting picks #33 and #35 from Cleveland in exchange for #18.

If Rashaad Penny was a slight reach at #27, Rasheem Green was great value in round three. Personally I thought both were top-50 talents. Turning #18 into two possible top-50 prospects was about as good as they could do.

Day three was also a big success. They added possible future contributors and the Shaquem Griffin pick is going to be more than just a feel good story.

Are they back as realistic contenders though? That might be a stretch.

Most of their key moves this off-season have been subtractions. Big name departures. The most high profile addition is Rashaad Penny. A running game plus Russell Wilson can make the Seahawks competitive. But being competitive can mean a tough, more interesting version of 9-7. Whether they have enough talent in the pass rush, enough playmakers for Wilson or an adequate offensive linemen to be any more than that remains to be seen.

That’s not to say the season is a write-off or anything. Pete Carroll almost certainly doesn’t view this as a transition year, setting the table for the future. He’s gone to great lengths to re-capture control of this team and likely believes they can win in 2018.

Getting back to the top table, however, would require two things. An inspired addition or two in the mould of the Bennett/Avril signings or a handful of draft picks paying off in the way Chancellor, Sherman and Wright did.

Next year could be interesting. The Seahawks will have a lot of cap room. They’ll need to start talking contract with Russell Wilson. The Earl Thomas saga will take another twist one way or another in the next 12 months. But this year they just didn’t have the available cap space or high number of picks to feel confident saying, ‘the Seahawks are back’.

This draft was strange because…

So many big name players either fell into the later rounds or went undrafted.

Holton Hill, Brandon Facyson, Hercules Mata’afa, Akrum Wadley, Jeff Holland, Kam Kelly, Josh Adams, Quin Blanding, Deontay Burnett, Quenton Meeks and Skai Moore were all undrafted.

Ian Thomas and Dalton Schultz lasted into round four. Maurice Hurst and Josh Sweat fell due to health concerns. Tyrell Crosby, Andrew Brown, Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, Tim Settle and Jamarco Jones dropped to round five. John Kelly, Duke Ejiofor, Deshon Elliott and Luke Falk fell into round six. The seventh round included Javon Wims, Leon Jacobs, Bo Scarborough and Auden Tate.

It’s not unknown for a few big names to fall. Teams have masses of information on these players. We barely get any. We don’t know about injury or character concerns. Not to the extent the teams do.

Yet this is without doubt the largest group of ‘names’ I can recall falling down the draft. Perhaps the Seahawks aren’t the only team these days shortening their board?

No big surprises

It feels like we covered a lot of the prospects they added and essentially the plan they undertook. We spent a lot of time discussing fixing the run as a priority. We talked about Rashaad Penny, Rasheem Green, Shaquem Griffin, Will Dissly, Tre Flowers and Jamarco Jones. In the various seven-round mocks we did, Griffin, Dissly and Flowers were regular projections.

The point of the blog isn’t to have ‘the best mock on the internet’ or even the best Seahawks seven rounder the week of the draft. It’s simply a means to discuss various prospects that could be considered so we’re familiar with the names if/when they are called.

Last year my biggest regret was we didn’t spend any time on Ethan Pocic and felt Malik McDowell was an unlikely pick. I don’t think there were any major ‘misses’ this year. We could’ve spent more time on some players (Penny) and less on others (Ronald Jones II, Isaiah Wynn) but overall it feels like we had most bases covered.

An early look at some of the 2019 draft names to watch

Time for the customary way too early look at next years draft. Here are some of the players to check out over the summer ahead of the start of the new college football season.

Nick Bosa (DE, Ohio State)
Like his brother, a dominant force working the edge. Joey Bosa was long projected to go #1 overall until the quarterbacks (Goff and Wentz) became the focus due to positional need. The Chargers took Bosa at #3 and got a steal. Like Joey, Nick might not end up being the #1 overall pick. But like his brother he might be the best player in the draft.

Chauncey Gardner Jr (S, Florida)
He had a rough game against Tennessee’s John Kelly last season but Gardner Jr is the latest terrific safety prospect off the production line at Florida. He’s rangy, flies around the field, delivers fearsome hits and he’s a playmaker (six TFL’s from safety last year plus two interceptions). He’s a possible top-10 pick.

Ed Oliver (DT, Houston)
He’s already stated he’ll declare for the 2019 draft. Oliver was a big-time recruit by Tom Herman and a major coup at the time for the Cougars. He has everything you want in a modern day interior pass rusher. He’s 6-3 and 290lbs and had 16.5 TFL’s last season (5.5 sacks). Oliver had a SPARQ score of 105.63 in High School including an impressive 4.52 short shuttle. He could easily be a top-10 pick.

Rashan Gary (DE, Michigan)
Often combining with Maurice Hurst to wreak havoc, Gary was a storied recruit in 2016 and rated as the #1 defensive end prospect in the country by ESPN. He posted a SPARQ score of 95.82 but looks like he’s taken a big step forward since joining Jim Harbaugh in Ann Arbour. He had 12 TFL’s in 2017 during a down year for Michigan.

Trey Adams (T, Washington)
Given the importance of the offensive tackle position and the lack of quality options coming into the league, Adams could easily have been a top-15 pick this year if it wasn’t for his serious knee injury. He didn’t have the best game against Kemoko Turay in week one last season but overall he’s big, tough, long and athletic and if he returns to full health he’s a nailed on high pick in 2019.

Dexter Lawrence (DT, Clemson)
Bring on the Clemson quartet. We’ll start with Lawrence. Of all the players on Clemson’s D-line, he looks like the most likely to be a very high pick. He was 6-5 and 335lbs coming out of High School and still ran a 4.61 short shuttle. He’s an absolute monster up front and makes life so much easier for his team mates. A former 5-star recruit and a complete stud.

Clelin Ferrell (DE, Clemson)
Ferrell, Christian Wilkins and Austin Bryant all made a pact to return to Clemson together for one more shot at a National Championship. Ferrell sacrificed the most as he was expected to go in the top-10. He plays end but will likely move inside to three technique at the next level. He’s such a dynamic pass rusher.

Christian Wilkins (DT, Clemson)
Wilkins doesn’t always have the splash plays but he’s like a cannonball shooting around the field. His motor takes him sideline-to-sideline, he hustles to the ball carrier and there’s some Sheldon Richardson to his style of play. He won’t be a sack master at the next level but could go in the first or second round as a defensive tackle.

Austin Bryant (DE, Clemson)
Perhaps the most underrated member of Clemson’s ‘big four’. Bryant constantly found ways to make plays in 2017 and given the weak depth at EDGE rusher in the 2018 draft, he could’ve been a top-25 pick easily. He will need to prove he’s taken a step forward athletically though. Bryant only ran a 4.97 forty at the SPARQ combine, weighing 249lbs at the time. Some teams might wonder if he’s effective because of the loaded D-line at Clemson.

Damien Harris (RB, Alabama)
Had he declared for this years draft, he might’ve been Seattle’s choice. Explosive, ideal size, gritty, terrific pass blocker, dynamic. Alabama wasted his talent in some key games last year messing around with a running quarterback. Harris is legit and could easily be a Heisman candidate in 2018 and a future first round pick. For more on Damien Harris, click here.

Bryce Love (RB, Stanford)
Lightning quick and sudden, Love is another possible Heisman contender in 2018. Give him a crease and he’s gone. Size could be an issue (5-10, 196lbs). It seemed to hurt Ronald Jones II who was a much healthier 6-0, 208lbs for the running back position. Even so, there was a feeling had he declared that Love would’ve been very likely to go in the top-45.

Drew Lock (QB, Missouri)
For a while it looked like Lock would declare for the 2018 draft. He opted not too and perhaps that was wise given five QB’s ended up going in round one. Next year the options at quarterback are much thinner and if Lock can have a solid year, he could end up being the first off the board.

Jarrett Stidham (QB, Auburn)
Stidham really started to look the part at the end of the 2017 season. It helps when you’re supported by Kerryon Johnson and a physical tone-setting defense. Yet Stidham played his part. With another year as the starter he has an opportunity to take a step forward and show off his pro-potential next season. Might not be a really early pick but could provide a nice option for someone after the top-30 or so picks.

Greg Little (T, Ole Miss)
Former five-star recruit not getting much publicity because Ole Miss have collapsed. He’s a prototype with great size and length. Again, the league is desperate for talent at left tackle. Little, like Trey Adams, has a chance to go very early.

Coming up over the next few days… podcast appearances and a breakdown of Seattle’s draft picks.

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400 Comments

  1. cha

    Thanks for everything Rob. Superb job again.

    I think the biggest single factor in 2018 success will be RW taking that next step in his development. He has shown he can take over a game and will the Hawks to win when the running game isn’t there and the defense isn’t dominant. Hopefully that stretched his ability and confidence. And with more support from a rejuvenated running game he can get to that next level where he can take over when it is needed but isn’t pressed to do it consistently.

    PC talked about pushing RW in discussing the coaching changes.

    • Rob Staton

      Thank you 👍🏻

    • James

      “Pushing” Russ is an euphemism for giving him better coaching. Russ does not need to be coached, in the sense of yelling in his face to force him to give more effort. Russ already gives effort on the level of Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. This is most definitely not the problem with the Seahawks offense the past couple of years. The problem was in coaching.

      Bevell’s schemes would have been outdated in 1990, and whether it was his fault, or if he was operating under Pete’s orders to use the old USC offense in-perpetuity, we may never know. But anyone and everyone could see that, compared with, say, the Rams or any other decent team, the Seahawks schemes and play calling were inept. The offense came down to Russ running around and playing sandlot football in the second half to try to score a few points that might hold up for a win. And this does not even touch on Cable’s criminally incompetent coaching of the OL. I refer you to Ray Robert’s analysis on KJR for a primer on the incomprehensible techniques being “taught” by Cable to the unfortunate Germain Ifedi and others.

      Fortunately, Pete appears to have woken-up to this failed strategy, and wholesale changes were mercifully granted to our players. Schotty and Solari now must maximize our talent, or sail in circles for years to come. The signs and omens are good, and the draft this weekend seems to confirm a resurgence.

      • Donald

        James, Well said. I agree 100%.

      • jdk

        Just wanted to chime in with a ‘well put’. I don’t share your optimism about this draft on the offensive side of the ball, but believe that the coaching changes will put the entire offense in a better place to consistently gain yards.

  2. FuzzyLogic

    So I guess it’s going to be a crappy WR class next year also. I have a feeling we will be signing a WR in free agency instead. Damien Harris was my favorite RB in college last year. He has the perfect size and is explosive while being probably the best blocker. He is only like 20 years old too. I believe he would have been our first pick as well. Oh well, here’s hoping Penny knocks it out of the park.

    BTW I love that we have Kalid Hill in the building. He should work well with penny.

    • Volume12

      Anything but that. The class is all EDGE and WR.

      Ole Miss WR AJ Brown is a top 10 talent. Arizona St WR N’Keal Harry is very ‘Seahawky’. NC St WR Kelvin Harmon is a man amongst boys. Miles Boykin at ND. Ju’Wuan Johnson at Penn St has Calvin Johnson esque size. And a team Seattle seems to like more and more of, Texas? WR Colin Johnson.

      • Tecmo Bowl

        DT is a major strength too.

        Big fan of N’Keal Harry!

        • Volume12

          Yeah, I should’ve said DL. Will be surprised if Bosa isn’t #1 overall.

          • D-OZ

            Wasn’t Harry a true Frosh last year? He is the #1 receiver whenever he comes out in any draft. Super talent!!!

            • drewdawg11

              He will be a junior next season. He’s a beast.

  3. Lewis

    Great writeup. Definitely have my eye on Damien Harris for next year. What a ridiculous tandem he and Penny could make.

    I think what started the chain reaction wasn’t the Niners, though. To me, it was the Browns passing on Chubb at 4.

    • Cameron

      That will depend highly on how Carson responds coming back this year. There’s every chance he returns to the dynamic form we glimpsed in the first few games of the year, even having no help from the line in front of him.

      If he shows a return to starter ability, or even if he doesn’t and Penny proves to be the talent expected of him and the running game begins thriving as a consequence, it’s hard to see another top 2 round pick being spent on a RB (almost certainly what it will take for Harris).

      • Lewis

        I think he’d be worth it if he continues to play at the same level.

    • Guillermoman

      I didn’t think the Browns were going to go for Chubb because then they’d be on the hook for three 100 million plus contracts at the same time (Garrett, Mayfield), but yea Ward definitely came from left field.

    • D-OZ

      Next year it’s DE/DT with a class loaded with them. How many guy’s do we have on one year deals? A very good OT class also. I also like the safeties. All Seattle’s needs next year. Next years class is falling right into our laps. If only we had our 2nd rounder. 😉 Pretty good QB class also. 😉

  4. Millhouse-serbia

    I still really hope that we will trade ET (or.re sign him). I really can’t see anything positive if he stays and play only for next season. And there is a lot of negatives.

    1. No chance to gain draft pick for him (2nd or 3rd round)
    2. We will be better team with him but not.good.enough to.win SB…so it.basicaly mean lower.draft pick
    3. With him and.mcdougal as starting safteis we will lose.one more.year without knowing what are delano and thedric capable for

    • Lewis

      Why do people insist he will only be here one more season? They could easily franchise him twice.

      • Millhouse-serbia

        Because they won’t spent 12,5 mil on him for 2019 or 15mil for 2020!

        • Lewis

          Why not? Sure beats a 3+ year deal at 15 per. They will have plenty of cap space to do that if they want to, even with th need to work on a new deal for Russ. The cap went up 10 million this year and will probably do so again.

          • Thy Hawk is Howling

            Because it would piss him off! Players find it disrespectful to be franchised especially in the NFL where contacts are not guaranteed. If they have a career ending injury that it. That’s why they want multiple year contracts with as much guaranteed money as they can get!

            Lewis I don’t know what you do for a living. However imagine going to work ans your employer gives you a considerable raise for next year but you don’t know if you have a job there the year after even though you’ve been busting Arse for 7+ years.

            Not many People are going to be pleased with that.
            It’s about Respect especially when you’re famous and an Athlete who proud and competitive by Nature.

            For those that didn’t know-

            “Pissed” In U.S. means – Angry
            “Pissed” in U.K. means – Drunk

            • Lewis

              Believe me, I get that they don’t like being franchised, but the tool exists for a reason. If the choice is between tagging him and letting him walk, I’d rather tag him. At least then you have some form of leverage while seeking a trade. I absolutely get that it isn’t ideal.

              • Thy Hawk is Howling

                Right on thanks for the Reply M8!

                In my mind the Franchise Tag is just going to create Drama. I don’t want ti read about that ForrrEvveeerrr! However yes it is an option so at last resort it may be used.

                I’m so Happy Earl wasn’t traded. He’s a Baller shot caller ( Actually he’s Quiet on the field Bam Bam is the shot caller) anywhoo Earl’s here they obviously worked it out.

                Listen Y’all. We’ve all got emotional at work and fed up and wanted to change jobs because we felt like we weren’t being appreciated!

                That’s what happened in Dallas it was right after He made the comment about Bobby Wagner and there was some animosity between them.

                Thankfully he’s a Man and he doesn’t hold grudges for long. Yes that was a sexist jest. I still Love Thy Ladies!

                So I forsee an extension now. I was so Wrong about Earl being traded to Dallas, it sure felt that way to me and I’m happ

    • cha

      I think he ship has sailed on an Earl trade.

      I don’t grant your premise that keeping him is all negative.

      1-The Hawks will get an All Pro quality FS for another season, maybe more if they franchise him. They could franchise him one more year and get a comp pick in 2020.

      2-always compete. No tanking for draft picks. The day PC even thinks about that he will call it a day. Earl is not just a contributor. He’s a guy that can single handedly save a win for the Hawks.

      3-Keeping Earl and developing Hill & Thompson aren’t mutually exclusive concepts. They can keep coaching them up and even spell Mcdougall & Earl occasionally on series. If they’re not pushing for snaps next year the chances are they aren’t going to be more than average. Sherman and Kam pushed the starters when they were young.

      • Trevor

        I disagee on point 3 Hill and Thompson are not going to develop year 2 sitting on the bench. Year one perhaps to learn scheme and adjust to pro game but they actually need playing time to develop. They are not going to get that with Earl here so we go into next off season still not knowing what we have in them.

        I am with Milhouse if they are not going to extend Earl then it was time to move on. I assure you this will be a year of drama with him and can you imagine if they franchise him what he will be like.

        Either extend him or move on IMO.

        • Nolan

          Injuries happen 2yr players can beat out vets

        • cha

          “Either extend him or move on IMO.”

          If the Hawks held that philosophy they would have taken whatever Dallas offered this weekend.

      • SheHawk

        Agree Cha – well said on all 3 points. I personally think we should extend him The entire locker room dynamic will change with new coaches and a couple larger personalities gone. Earl is here to stay I hope

    • BobbyK

      I disagree this team can’t go to the Super Bowl next year. Granted, they are not as deep and overall talented as they were the two years they went to the Super Bowl under Carroll. What if Penny is the real deal? What if a line that has been together gels the way it could (they aren’t starting all rookies and first year guys anymore… Brown and Fluker are full fledged vets. Britt is now a vet. Pocic is the talented younger guy who could take strides, and if there is a legit competition at RT and they play the best man (whoever that may be; Ifedi/Fant likely), it’s possible they can have a good blocking OL. Add improved RB and TE blocking and they may set themselves up to be the bully up front with a legit run game to keep our defense off the field. Throw in improved ST at all levels and they could be legit. They won’t be as talented on D without Sherman and Bennett, but their LBs are going to be better because last year they only had a total of two decent (granted, great) LBs. Now they have four. Can Griffin be a Michael Boulware type guy his R season when he only played a role as nickel backer and flourished (then became a meh SS the following years). I can see Griffin playing a significant role but having an impact in that limited amount of snaps. With this lack of depth, they are going to get lucky in terms of injuries, but younger teams usually seem to get “luckier” with injuries, too. This is going to be a fun ride being the underdog with some championship players leading the way.

      • UKAlex6674

        I agree with Bobby K.

      • Pedestrian

        It’ll be interesting to see how our rivals have improved (9ers, Rams). On paper they’ve improved a lot and would seem there’s been shift in power from Seahawks and cardinals. BUT on paper we looked very intimidating last year. You never know how things play out. Should be interesting!

        • SheHawk

          The Rams and 49ers may have improved on paper BUT as you point out, so did we last year. The Rams in particular also took on some MAJOR locker room drama creators == That cast of characters may be a lot harder for new head coach to keep focused… Will be interesting to say the least
          Now the tables are turned and Hawks ” up and comers” I just LOVE it when folks write Hawks off == a few years ago – we beat Pats in NE when literally one thought we had a chance. We still have Russ, ADB, BWags, ET3 +a great group of new hawks — NFC West gonna be fun!

  5. Troy

    https://www.gofundme.com/get-rob-staton-sdb-laptop/

    Great piece Rob! Thanks for all that you contribute to us Hawks fans!

    • Bigmarinerfan

      Now just 12 more Rob and Hawks fans giving $100 bucks to get Rob a new laptop. Let’s get it done.

      • Kenny Sloth

        I put in ten.

        I’m pretty sure every dollar that Rob has gotten through the blog has gone back into the blog, such as subscribing to stuff Thats behind paywalls to get better information to share tidbits of.

        Really he has so much respect for his own website

    • white-salmon-hawk

      Thanks for everything you do Rob! 🙂

      • Isaac

        I read the blog on a daily basis. I just can’t get enough. The way rob writes is part hawks fan/ part Pulitzer Prize writer. When rob broke his computer it was like he broke his pencil. I feel honored to pitched in and help. Thank you for all that you do ROB!

  6. East Side Stevie

    Fantastic stuff here Rob. Thank you for the work you’ve put in these sleepless nights you’ve endured over the last couple weeks! Its been a pleasure reading your content.

    • Rob Staton

      Thank you! The pleasure has been all mine 👍🏻

  7. Volume12

    Great piece Rob and just wanted to thank you for letting me be a piece of this community. I can be overbearing and tough to deal with. Appreciate all ya do. Still don’t know how u don’t get burned out. As usual had a great CFB, bowl, and draft season here with ya and everyone else. You’ve put together quite a special place in a land of podcasts.

    • Kenny Sloth

      +12

      Thanks for letting me flood your message boards

      All night with the roster predictions and the TEF scores.

      Then we draft Jamarco Jones. Jk great year again.

      Felt like a really succesful to me as a cog in our research and evaluations

    • Rob Staton

      Thank you for being a long term valued member of this community 👍🏻

  8. Misfit74

    This draft off-season has been a blast. I’m very excited about the goals we accomplished in the draft and how it shapes our team.

    I was particularly pleased by the Jamarco Jones pick because he was a favorite, and the #4 rated OT on some scouting services boards (Kyle Crabbs, Joe Marino of NDT Scouting, for. Ex). Love his length and size. If he gets stronger, which is correctable, there’s no reason to think he can develop into a starter on either side in time.

    I can understand why the team opted for Penny over guys like Guice and Michel and at the end of the day I’m just thrilled we took the 2nd RB off the board in a very stacked class. Digging more into Penny there is just so much to freak out about! Over 1,400 yards AFTER contact in 2017. Led nation with 86 broken tackles. Perhaps the most pertinent stats are how he eluded tacklers that penetrated into the backfield at an amazing clip. That’s a good fit. Love his contact balance and watching tape last night – he has outstanding feet. Very efficient with his movements.

    • Volume12

      I obviously love the Shaquem Griffin selection (I’m assuming everyone else feels the same), it’s one of the greatest draft picks in the history of the draft purely for what it represents and the message it sends.

      But DL Rasheem Green or OL JaMarco Jones are my favorite picks this year.

      • Ishmael

        That even if you enter the league with a disability you can still get turned into an opioid addict with a vegetable for a brain like everyone else? I’m happy for the kid that he’s getting a chance to live his dream, but the NFL hype job around him and Shazier has me feeling more than a bit icky.

        I think I’m happiest about the special teams guys – Dickson and Griffin. So sick of being clowned in that department.

        • Volume12

          Haha. Fair points. I get where your coming from though. I have many of the same issues with the NFL as you do.

        • Kenny Sloth

          Hey, if Dickson comes in and balls out, Ish, we’ll laugh in their faces.

          I bet we stole the pack’s pick.

          2 more punters went off the board backtoback not much later

          I’m just kicking myself for not realizing we had met with the punter when we had the staring contest at the senior bowl

          • CBR

            Draft was definitely exciting. Interesting to trade up for a punter, but when I saw where he was from (Australia) and that he was a Ray Guy Award winner it made everything better. Why? Since I teach in the Middle-East, I have been converting all these S. Africans, English and Australian teachers into Seahawk fans. The icing on the cake was this pick as I invited an old c0-worker over for the weekend to watch the draft. 330-4:00 am for us depending upon the day. When we selected an Australian he was thrilled. Great weekend, as my wife cooked and we ate. I did clean-up and cook breakfast when others came over on Saturday. Just trying to do my part and get the International community on-board with OUR Seahawks.

            Thanks, Rob and everyone else for all the contributions over the years.

            Looking at the recent additions (Draft), I’m thinking we might be looking at OL next year as well as some Wr’s unless some of these recent additions (Undrafted Free Agents) pan-out.

        • EBurgz

          I don’t feel the least bit bad for these guys and would trade places with them in a heartbeat if I had the talent. Me and my employees put our bodies on the line every day and I pay my guys $15-$20 an hour. Granted, me and my guys aren’t as talented as lots of these guys at what they do but I won’t be shedding any tears for the millionaire that play an awesome game for a living. I bet it’s damn hard work to make it and play in the nfl but so is being a mover lmao.

  9. Benjamin Davis Ft. Worth

    Lmao!! You did put up the future prospects of next year up! Made my day Rob. Thank you. Almost as big of news as hearing today that Sprint and Tmobile are merging. Ugh! I hate Sprint. Anyways, thank you again for all that you do. You’re site is the best!

  10. CharlieTheUnicorn

    The NEW and IMPROVED ShamWow…… oh wrong blog

    2018 Seattle Seahawks known UDRFAs

    Emmanuel Beal, LB, Oklahoma
    Tanner Carew, LS, Oregon
    Poona Ford, DT, Texas
    John Franklin III, FAU
    Marcell Frazier, DE, Missouri
    Jason Hall, S, Texas
    Albert Havili, Eastern Washington, DL
    Chris Hawkins, S, USC
    Brad Lundblade, C, Oklahoma State
    Marcus Martin, FB, Slippery Rock
    Jake Ohnesorge, C, South Dakota State
    Skyler Phillips, OL, Idaho State
    Jacob Pugh, LB, Florida State
    Caleb Scott, WR, Vanderbilt
    Viane Talamaivao, OL, USC
    Ka’Raun White, WR, WVU
    Taj Williams, WR, TCU
    Troy Williams, QB, Utah
    Eddy Wilson, DT, Purdue

    • 80SLargent

      This says Albert Havili signed with the Chargers.

      https://www.profootballrumors.com/2018/04/chargers-sign-21-undrafted-free-agents

      Also, didn’t Seattle get FB Khalid Hill, or is that just rumorville? I know a lot of people here were pounding the table to get him.

      • Volume12

        They got him

      • Kenny Sloth

        I see Havili as a workout predraft.

        Looks like you are correct

    • Hawktalker#1

      ShamWow, great start. Anything having anything to do with Shamwow, sign me up.

    • Alaska Norm

      I’m excited about Poona Ford. If you haven’t read up on him he sounds like anoth “chip on the shoulder” kind of guy. Uses leverage and incredible lower body strength. My UDFA to stick.

  11. Thy Hawk is Howling

    I was going to stop being apart of this blog but I just can’t help Myself. Damn you Rob for creating the best Seahawks site!

    *Repost from live rounds 2-3 thread* A Live thread wasn’t a good choice, but I’m very emotional and this is how was feeling.

    This is my Last Post

    I say Heart Felt Words and I am sincerely Always Real.

    I was hoping to find a Seahawks Fan Like me.
    I don’t even know why I’m Fracking Writing this?

    I found this Blog the Night of the Interception
    I was in such a Bad place. I had insane Insomnia where I could only sleep for 3 hours at a Time for around 2 God Damn year’s. I spent the rest of my time wanting to Die while Drinking Beer.
    I found out now that a Benzo namely Xannax would most likely of helped me sleep and find Peace.

    Since I am a Drunkard ( I’ve Finally learned to control myself) and was honest about my recreational drug use the Doctor would only give me Seroquel. I wasn’t wanting to get High , I just needed to sleep. Most of you have no Idea how severe Insomnia detriments your body and mind!

    I Lived in a World of Constant Despair.

    I have been reborn as a Person and I am so very Thankful that I can Sleep! I’m so much more appreciative of Life and Love!

    I’m feeling Alive and Happy finally since around six years ago.

    This Blog isn’t the one I should be spending my Energy on. I was just reaching out for someone who felt like me and wanted to talk Hawks as well.

    So for those of you I bother, your wish has been bestowed.
    I’m going to focus my energy on My Music!

    *Poster’s I appreciate who have been kind and responsive to me,
    Craig.*

    Kenny Duck – you’ll always be my Brother and it showed me the kind of Man and person you are for supporting me on a Damn Seahawks Blog.
    You’re going to be just fine Laddie (Kido)!

    Vol. – We share the same Passion for Seahawks and you know your shit; I understood your Pain and how much you Loved(Still Love) your Mother. I see Mrs.12 every night when I Gaze up unto the Cosmos. She’s proud of the decent and intelligently funny man that you are!

    SeahawksTalkerEric- We had a good connection there for awhile I’m assuming I said something or maybe didn’t read a post directed at me and respond? I still like you the same as Always;

    Old But Slow – We’re Both From Wenatchee ( Wet Sn*atchee) you’re automatically Radical! “Apple Blossom” !

    C-Dog – You’re one of my Favourite Fanatics on here. We both live in Seattle and I Still want to toss The (Hogskin) around with some of Y’all!

    Trevor – You’re one of my Favourites as well and you are Hardcore for a Canadian, just jesting! Thanks for being appreciate of my Thoughts for the tragedy in Toronto. I’ve been well maybe not ignored but let’s say it means alot to me when people appreciate me for Caring. For that is the kind of person I want to be!

    Hawk Eye – Do you Live in an Igloo or a Double wide in a trailer park by chance? Trailor Park Boy’s for Life! My fececious humour get’s mistaken for being rude so much it really sucks. You’re a smart guy (well you’ve read 2,000 books) and You figured me out. I read your response to my Comment about you and it means so much to me! You’re the person I’d want to have a couple Pints with thy Most, Along with you Kenny Duck!

    I appreciate the other conversation with people I have had especially you DCD2! You and my Brother Kyle he’s in the Army as you were and would probably be good Buddy’s.

    I’ve enjoyed every conversation with you all. I read everyone comments though I do have a feeling some may skip mine. It’s alright I understand that some of you consider me a weirdo and take that as a compliment!!!

    Also of Course – Robbie Staton, You’re Fucking, oops Fracking Brilliant! ( That’s How he says Awesome) ! Cheers for Being a Hawk, you’re the best a Hawk can get!

    I’m always down to have a Laugh and I’m here if any of you just need someone to talk to who Wilson listen.

    I’d really Love to chat with anyone who is reading this and would like to become Text Pals ( Modern day pen pals).

    cragiesea@gmail.com

    Since Friday my thoughts-

    I told you Dante Pettis was a special player! He probably grew up a 49er so in that sense I’m happy for him!

    I broke down when I read that we drafted Shaquem, I was attempting to explain the story to some friends and they thought someone had died. Love and Sacrifice is such a beautiful part
    Of friendship ans being Human.

    Will Dissly is who I wanted for tightened as well. John Schneider said he’s the closest player to Zach Miller since, well Zach!

    Glad we didn’t draft Ballage because some of you would have puked you guts out and that’s bad unless you’re a boxer or wrestler. ‘Sports joke’ – you are welcome My People!

    Now onto the topic of this thread:

    Trey Adams is from my Hometown Wenatchee, Washington.
    So you know he’s awesome just like me!

    *Note* I ask you to leave this post up Rob I won’t be writing another as this. I just want people to know how I feel and I’ve spent alot of time on your blog. I always tell every Seahawks fan to check out this site and join our Family!

    To Quote Sea Mode,
    LOB – Love our Blog!

    Go SDB!

    Go Hawks!

    • Volume12

      Wow! What an incredibly fun post this was.

    • Hawktalker#1

      Good to have you here. Hang in there bro.

    • Kenny Sloth

      Just when you thought you were out….

      They Pull you back in!!

      • CHawk Talker Eric

        Brilliant

    • Hawk Eye

      thanks for the kind words THY. Just keep being you, you have a good soul. Just remember the down times are there so the good times are that much better. Do your music, be unique, be creative, be you.

      no igloo or double wide, a nice big house near Niagara Falls, with wife and 5 boys.

    • EBurgz

      As a long time reader and short time poster— always really appreciated reading your comments.

      Don’t quit the blog bro (unless you have to). As with alcohol, moderation is key. Although I am also a drunkard so don’t listen to me.

    • CHawk Talker Eric

      I hope you stick around Craig. You’re part of what makes this blog great. Don’t forget it. Don’t ever let anyone tell you different.

      Where would this community be without Thy Hawk Most Screeching?

      I don’t want to find out

    • C-Dog

      You win Best Post, Craig! Godspeed with your music endeavors. Go Hawks!

      • Thy Hawk is Howling

        Thank you All for your support and kindness. That’s all I want in Life is to feel Appreciated. Your words mean so Damn much and I feel accepted.

        For all I Truly want is to Love and be Loved!

  12. Tecmo Bowl

    “The point of the blog isn’t to have ‘the best mock on the internet’ or even the best Seahawks seven rounder the week of the draft. It’s simply a means to discuss various prospects that could be considered so we’re familiar with the names if/when they are called.”

    That’s what makes this the best blog out there! Of course there’s surprises, we can only gather so much information, in every draft, but I felt like Rob and the SDB community was really dialed in to this draft.
    Cheers to a great draft season!

  13. Coleslaw

    A way too early crack at the 53 man. Some guys got left out for special teams talent. A tough list to trim down.
    DE: Frank Clark, Marcus Smith, Jake Martin
    DT: Jarran Reed, Shamar Stephen, Poona Ford
    DT: Tom Johnson, Naz Jones
    DE: Dion Jordan, Rasheem Green, QJeff
    11

    WLB: KJ Wright, Shaquem Griffin
    MLB: Bobby Wagner, KJ Wright
    SLB: Barkevious Mingo, DJ Alexander
    5

    CB: Byron Maxwell, Dontae Johnson
    CB: Justin Coleman
    FS: Earl Thomas, Bradley McDougald
    SS: Bradley McDougald, Maurice Alexander, Delano Hill
    CB: Shaquill Griffin, DeAndre Elliot
    19

    Defense: 25

    ____________________________________________

    LT: Duane Brown, J. Jones
    LG: Ethan Pocic, Skyler Phillips
    C: Justin Britt, Joey Hunt
    RG: DJ Fluker, Jordan Roos
    RT: George Fant, Germain Ifedi
    10

    RB: Rashaad Penny, Chris Carson, Mike Davis, JD McKissic
    4

    FB: Khalid Hill
    1

    TE: Ed Dickson, Will Dissly, Nick Vannett
    3

    WR: Doug Baldwin, Tyler Lockett, Jaron Brown, Amara Darboh, Marcus Johnson
    5

    QB: Russell Wilson, Austin Davis
    2

    Offense: 25

    ____________________________________________

    Kicker: Sebastian Janikowski
    Punter: Michael Dickson
    Long Snapper: Tanner Carew

    Special Teams: 3

    ____________________________________________

    Roster: 53

    • Coleslaw

      And a ranked list of our 2019 free agents

      Tier 1:
      Frank Clark DE UFA
      Duane Brown OT UFA
      George Fant OT RFA
      Tyler Lockett UFA

      Tier 2:
      K.J. Wright UFA
      Justin Coleman UFA

      Tier 3:
      Dion Jordan UFA
      Sebastian Janikowski UFA
      D.J. Fluker UFA

      Tier 4:
      Maurice Alexander UFA
      DeAndre Elliot RFA

      Tier 5:
      Marcus Smith UFA
      David Moore ERFA

    • Lewis

      Tre Flowers?

      • SoCal12

        I’m high on Tre Flowers as well, but I think there’s a chance they redshirt him for a year on practice squad since he has so little experience at CB. If he can make the 53 that’s even better, but I think the idea with him is really a 2-3 year project that will eventually come in as a sort of Sherm replacement.

        • Lewis

          I think they see him as a pretty unique player and won’t take that risk. He’d also be expected to contribute on special teams immediately with his speed. Just my two bits.

    • Millhouse-serbia

      Odhiambo?

      Prosise?

      • Lewis

        Yeah, we could keep Odhiambo over Hunt. Isn’t 11 d-line a bit high?

    • vrtkolman

      I’m not ready to give up on Prosise yet. He’s too good, and I think he’s due for a relatively healthy season.

      • GerryG

        LMAO

        Not on the talent, just on the he can actually contribute.

        • GerryG

          To expand on this, the guy has repeatedly shown that a sprain will linger for weeks>months and he can’t ever get back on the field. It’s not like he is a guy prone to catastrophic injuries, but he can’t play through anything, and apparently he is an extremely slow healer. I’ll be shocked if he makes it through camp/preseason healthy and isn’t cut.

          • SeaHusky

            Agreed. Through the course of a season, no player is ever going to be 100% healthy. Big-time players will be able to play through the minor stuff. If Prosise can only play when he’s truly 100%, then he doesn’t have a spot on the roster.

    • H

      You’ve got 1 too many players there (26 D, 25 O, 3 ST) but looks ok to me. Definitely want to see Tre Flowers in the 53 as well, corner competition should be fierce though, Tyson could definitely be in the mix. Plus they never seem to be willing to let go of Thorpe’s special teams ability.

    • 80SLargent

      This is a fun exercise. I want to try it.

      DEFENSE: 25

      DL (10)
      DE: Frank Clark, Marcus Smith, Branden Jackson
      DT: Jarran Reed, Shamar Stephen
      DT: Tom Johnson, Naz Jones
      DE: Dion Jordan, Rasheem Green, Quentin Jefferson

      LB (5)
      WLB: KJ Wright, Shaquem Griffin, (Maurice Alexander)
      MLB: Bobby Wagner, (KJ Wright)
      SLB: Barkevious Mingo, DJ Alexander

      CB (5)
      LCB: Byron Maxwell, Dontae Johnson
      NCB: Justin Coleman, DeAndre Elliot
      RCB: Shaquill Griffin, (DeAndre Elliot)

      S (5)
      FS: Earl Thomas, (Bradley McDougald), (Tedric Thompson)
      SS: Bradley McDougald, Delano Hill, Tedric Thompson, Maurice Alexander

      OFFENSE: 25

      OL (9)
      LT: Duane Brown, George Fant
      LG: Rees Odhiambo, (Ethan Pocic)
      C: Justin Britt, Ethan Pocic
      RG: DJ Fluker, (Ethan Pocic), Jordan Roos
      RT: Germain Ifedi, Jamarco Jones

      RB (4)
      Rashaad Penny, Chris Carson, C.J. Prosise, Mike Davis

      FB (1)
      Khalid Hill

      TE (3)
      Ed Dickson, Will Dissly, Nick Vannett

      WR (6)
      Doug Baldwin, Tyler Lockett, Jaron Brown, Amara Darboh, David Moore, Tanner McEvoy

      QB (2)
      Russell Wilson, Austin Davis

      SPECIAL TEAMS: 3

      K: Sebastian Janikowski
      P: Michael Dickson
      LS: Tanner Carew
      KR/PR: Tyler Lockett, Rashaad Penny

      PRACTICE SQUAD: 10
      QB Alex McGough, TE Tyrone Swoopes, C Brad Lundblade, DT Poona Ford, G Skyler Phillips, DE Jacob Martin, CB Tre Flowers, LB Jacob Pugh, WR Ka’Raun White, FS Chris Hawkins

      • Kenny Sloth

        Practice squad was recently expanded fyi

        • 80SLargent

          How many practice squad players can teams carry now?

      • Donald

        Looks Good 80s,

        I would replace WR White with WR Taj Williams, TCU. Taller, faster.

        White is pretty good though, looks like Marshawn in the build and hair.

        • 80SLargent

          Yeah, it’s definitely a stab in the dark. I put McEvoy in there because I was thinking of the possibility of Schott also using him as their move TE. The competition for the last couple WR spots should be pretty intense.
          I could also see a guy like Poona making the 53 over Branden Jackson. In that case, all the other DEs except Marcus Smith have the capability to play inside on passing downs. They can also rush guys like Mingo and ‘Quem from the edge, so they should be all right there.
          I think Jamarco Jones projects better at RT, and his path to actually playing is clearer there; he’s not going to beat out Duane Brown at LT. I think Seattle needs to continue to develop Fant on the left side as Brown’s backup/understudy, as his athleticism projects better at LT. Odhiambo, while he was definitely out of his depth at LT, should be a pretty good LG. Pocic could beat him out, but I like having him and his ability to back up every interior line position on game day.

    • Misfit74

      Prosise medical reports will be key, but if he somehow stays health this off-season our backfield will be amazing. Besides Barkley and last year’s Joe Mixon there isn’t a better young 220+lb pass catching RB. I’m hopeful about him. Our RB1a a possibility.

      • Mark Souza

        To hell with his off season physical, if he misses any significant time in camp, it’s more of the same and I think he’s gone. This is his last chance. Either he’s consistently available to play, or he’s gone.

  14. vrtkolman

    Really appreciate all the hard work you put into this Rob! I’m already excited for next year.

    I think this draft class could help out Pete in a big way. Last year Pete looked exhausted during games, almost like he was over it all. Some suggested he already had a foot into retirement. But, we removed the problem players and injected a class of high character, all football guys. I think this reignites the passion that Pete has for coaching and he comes back strong after a few less than ideal years.

    I haven’t been this excited for a Seahawks season since 2014. The last three years felt like we were holding on for dear life with an aging core, while the team got progressively worse. I don’t think were a Superbowl contender or anything, but I’m psyched to watch all the young guys develop.

    • Trevor

      +1

    • Rob Staton

      Loved every minute 👍🏻

  15. Trevor

    Rob I just wanted to say a heartfelt thanks for another incredible year on SDB. I am not sure how you do it but the content just gets better year after year. This truly is an addictive site and makes being a Hawks fan fun even during a year when the team is fustrating like this past season.

    I can be opinionated and hard headed at times so I appreciate your patience with myself and other posters even when we ask questions or post things which I know have to be driving you crazy.

    I think this is going to be a really fun year as the Hawks reinvent themselves with a new young core and I am looking forward to another fun year on the blog when things get rolling again!

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks Trevor, and thank you for your valued contributions in the comments section too. The community in the comments section here is unique and make this blog what it is. Thanks to you all 👍🏻

  16. Volume12

    I still can’t get over how some fans and not any here that I’ve seen, are still stuck on Seattle taking Rashaad Penny and passing on some of the other backs.

    Look, this was a talented class at the RB position. Other than Saquon Barkley though, Penny was the only other back who had the production and most importantly a clean background/medical that fit what Seattle is now looking for. It’s really not hard to understand.

    • Lewis

      Because they inmediately assume the front office doesn’t know how to evaluate talent because their choice was someone they were less familiar with, instead of asking why they chose that player and doing some actual work on their own.

    • SoCal12

      The three things that revealed to me how much talent NFL staff see in Penny were:

      1. PCJS stating pretty matter-of-factly that Penny was on the same talent level of but just slightly below Saquon Barkley
      2. John revealing that a team had called them to trade up for Penny meaning he was a hot commodity
      3. And the sudden run on RBs at the beginning of the second after Penny was gone, which proves the second point

      Makes a ton of sense why we picked him at 27 after considering these points. Had we replaced his name with Chubb or Ronald Jones even Guice with certain people I think there would be less commotion, but FO’s clearly see Penny as the superior back. Fans and media just slept on Penny I think because we got too caught up in ‘level of competition’ being a factor.

      • Lewis

        Not to be pedantic, but they didn’t call to trade up for Penny, they called to try and acquire him after he’d already been picked, which simply doesn’t happen very often.

        • SoCal12

          My bad. That to me is an bigger mark of approval, since a team was literally pissed enough at missing out that they immediately tried to bargain for him.

          • Lewis

            Agreed, which was why I mentioned it. They had the pick of whomever they wanted (except Barkley) and this was their guy. They don’t seem to have been the only ones.

            I hope the kid tears it up.

            • Mark Souza

              And let’s not forget the last sign. NE had their choice of all RBs except Barklay and Penny, and didn’t choose RJ II or Chubb. They picked Sony Michel despite him being bone on bone in his knee.

              • 80SLargent

                What surprises me about the Patriots picking Michel, doesn’t he have a bit of a fumbling problem? Belichick is going to love that.

        • Volume12

          Whoa.

          Like SC12 I thought the same. Didn’t know a team tried to trade for him after Seattle had already acquired him.

          • Lewis

            Here’s the quote:

            “We would have taken him at 18, so that’s why we feel super blessed,” Schneider said. “Whenever you move back, people are always like, ‘Oh, you just moved back.’ It’s a pretty hard thing to do. You have to find a partner—we had several people walk away from us—and we felt real blessed that Green Bay hung in there with us. And really a true rarity is that we had a team call us after we selected him to try to acquire him. I’ve never experienced that… Isn’t that cool? It’s amazing.”

            • Volume12

              Thanks. That does seem to be pretty darn rare.

              • Kenny Sloth

                new england..?

                • SoCal12

                  I think it’s for sure one of the guys that drafted RB right after us. So NE, Tampa, Cleveland, or Detroit.

                  I think NE is the pretty likely since I imagine Bill would love Penny’s versatility and they went with Michel right after who has similar ‘well-roundedness’ so to speak.

                  Cleveland would be my next suspect since they had a lot of capital and were already linked to trading with us. Penny would’ve been a great compliment to Carlos Hyde too.

                  • teejmo

                    Penny’s college coach was mentioning that, while Seattle called once, he figured the Patriots would get him.

                • 80SLargent

                  I’m kind of surprised the Patriots took Michel instead of Ronald Jones. I think Tampa made a killing on their first two picks (Vea, Jones).

                  • CHawk Talker Eric

                    Agreed on TBB’s first 2 picks

      • JimQ

        I have been a strong advocate of the RB-Rashaad Penney selection since before Christmas. If you look back in the comments section you’ll see me trying to influence others here about Penney for months now. I’m not looking for any recognition about this, I just want to say my interest was shared by those that count the most, the Seahawks brass and THAT makes me so damn happy. It’s kind of nice to finally forecast (on my personal final mock) 4 of the first 5 players that they actually drafted. Plus, they signed several of the guys I liked as UDFA’s, (there are several excellent players in that group). This was my best mock outcome in the last 5/6 years by far. Also: Don’t sleep on WR-Ka’Raun White! (I’ll post some about him a little later in this thread). Until then, who was #1 of all WR’s at a combine event and was signed as an UDFA by the Seahawks?

        I will continue to be an outspoken advocate for Rashaad Penney as the next great NFL RB. PC/JS have put together a squad that has a single goal – be the best rushing team in the NFL. Rashaad Penney is going to be a really, really GREAT addition to the team. I can’t wait for the preseason, y’all will see it then and all of you will be sooooooo happy. Isn’t SDSU alum Marshall Faulk a hall of fame RB? That very well could be repeated by Penney in future years, but then, maybe I’m just to damn excited to see any other outcome, realistic or not. But, anyway…..GO HAWKS.

        • Lewis

          You certainly convinced me to take a second look! That second look convinced me he was going to be the best option available.

        • Tecmo Bowl

          Gotta hand it to you JimQ. You were consistently saying Penny was your RB target. Its always cool to get ‘your guy’. Can’t wait to see how the run game looks next year, with Penny and new OC and OL coach.

        • FresnoHawk

          Jim Q yes I remember adding to your analysis “2,000 yards in a year is never a mistake”.

        • Sea Mode

          Kudos, man. Job well done.

    • John_s

      Even as a whole. It’s amazing how Seahawks twitter is so
      Upset that there are not more “impact”. Guys.

      You already had a deficit of no 2 and 3. Seahawks did very well to get two top 50 prospects with only a 1 and 3.

      Schneider predicted the runs perfectly and picked his guys when he needed too.

      Overall this is a blue collar draft. Guys who will be a part of the new nucleus and team leaders of the next generation of this team.

      This rebuild or retool was never going to be fixed with one draft cycle. You take last years draft, next years and one more draft, cap space to sign a big ticket FA and you will have a super bowl contending team again.

      • Volume12

        Great post and points. Agree with everything you said.

        And a lot of complaining about the O-line too. As if they didn’t address it. Duane Brown has a full off-season with us now. We hired Mike Solari. Added DJ Fluker, the best blocking TE in the draft, a very good pass protecting FA TE, have Fant coming back, added a 3rd round talent in the 5th round (at one point Jones was being mocked in the 1st), and some solid UDFAs at the position.

        • Lewis

          I think it’s fair to question how improved the o-line will be, but you have to consider the other moves we made (that you just listed) unlike Reggie Bush who picked us as his loser of this draft because we didn’t get o-line help until round 5. They did a LOT to help the run game, but if the line ends up being awful and we can’t run, those criticisms will be valid.

          Me, I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt for the moment that a change of coach/scheme is going to bring out the best of some of these guys we’ve invested heavily with draft capital.

          If we don’t see major improvement this year, we will be looking at OL as a priority again next year.

          • Volume12

            Unfortunately you could be 100% right.

            But as you said, let’s see how this plays out.

            IMHO and projecting too far out, I see 4 big needs for next year maybe 5 depending on the ET situation.

            WR
            DL
            CB or S
            OK

            And I’m pretty confident they add a big time FA this off-season to fill a need

            • Lewis

              What about LB? Seems unlikely KJ gets another contract based on recent history.

              Will be interesting to see how all the new d-line guys shake out. It would be nice if we went into the draft next year with no massive holes to plug.

              • Volume12

                That could be another one. Griffin should take over for him. Day 3 seems to be where they target OLB’s.

            • D-OZ

              DE 😉

          • FuzzyLogic

            I doubt Reggie Bush knows more than 1 player on our line. He probably doesn’t even know Dissly is the best blocking TE. Poor Reggie):

    • Ishmael

      It’s a name thing. Most people don’t dive that deeply. They look at NFL.com, they look at Bleacher Report, they look at CBS, they look at Field Gulls, but they don’t ever look themselves. Just means they get sucked into the groupthink and assume that a ‘name’ player is better.

      • Hawksince77

        I am a perfect example. After reading this blog faithfully, I thought picking Ronald Jones would be the most exciting possibility, and really didn’t like getting away (as Rob did towards the end) from a top RB. I dug into Jones, Chubb and Ballage (the latter when his name became more prominent) but never looked closely at Penny. Something I read about him early in the process had me dismiss him from being their first pick. Maybe, like Ballage, a later round pick to go along with a Jones or Chubb.

        When his name appeared on my screen as Seattle’s pick, I was shocked. Literally shocked. Radically CPR was required to revive me. But I wasn’t disappointed or critical; his selection simply meant (in my mind) that I missed something. We can spout all the opinions, analysis, and projections we want – that makes this blog truly special. But for me, the answer lies in what actually takes place, how the team actually behaves, what decisions they make. In the case of Penny, as has been pointed out, Seattle had their choice at the position and drafted the player they ranked the highest. That, for me, is definitive.

        • Hawktalker#1

          Ditto on my initial response. In honesty, probably not too different from all the jokers on Twitter.

          • JimQ

            I recall numerous posts about Penney citing his low production against BSU (& Fresno St.) in the middle of their 2017 schedule. Those games were all that those posters could see. The actual facts are that SDSU had 3 freshmen starters on their OL and 2 were injured against BSU and another went out against Fresno St. they were replaced by inexperienced backups. Also, of note SDSU was behind in both games with a poorly passing QB and lost both games. I guess some people think a RB has to block for himself. It is completely wrong to judge a player entirely on 2 games where he had less than 100 yards in both and ignore every other game. Again, I cite the name Rodney Dangerfield. He gets NO respect at all, and that’s gonna change very soon. Does anyone here know that of all the RB’s, which one had the best bowl game? Look it up, you’ll see a guy with a very bright future.

            • Thorson

              I think Penny was somewhat overlooked because of the level of competition SDSU faced. Still, I think he opened some eyes during Senior Bowl week. Also, SDSU has produced at least one other pretty good NFL running back – HOFer Marshall Faulk.

            • AlaskaHawk

              My creaky mind remembers Rob Staton doing one of the first big writups about running backs = and it was about Penny. Somehow he drifted away from that article and settled on RoJo or Chubb. First impressions Rob!!!! You should have stuck to your guns.

              • Rob Staton

                Penny was the first RB we talked about during the season: https://seahawksdraftblog.com/college-football-week-three-draft-notes

                And then there was this from November:

                “It’ll be interesting to see how Nick Chubb tests following his knee injury. We’ve often referenced his performance at one of the Nike SPARQ combines. If he gets anywhere near that again and the medical checks are OK, he could go very early.

                There are others to mention — Bryce Love, Derrius Guice, Damien Harris, Ronald Jones and Royce Freeman to name a few. The one I’d keep an eye on the most at the moment is San Diego State’s Rashaad Penny.

                He’s having a fantastic year with 1368 and 12 rushing touchdowns (plus 136/2 as a pass catcher). He has six career kick return touchdowns and he combines toughness, elusiveness and the ability to break off big plays. He’s in Seattle’s size bracket (5-11, 220lbs). He also talks well in interviews and is elevating his team to a strong season.

                I’m not sure where Penny will go in terms of round. We’ll need to see how he tests. Yet if the Seahawks did move down into rounds 2-3 to accumulate more picks, I wouldn’t bet against Penny landing on this team.”

                https://seahawksdraftblog.com/seahawks-draft-needs-status-check-de-ol-rb

                • Duceyq

                  “Robstadamus”…any other predictions you can share with us? End of the world perhaps, who wins the World Series in 2045, ….please do share!

                  Great call on Penny and for sharing with this community players worth paying more attention too. After being a bit “meh” on the pick because I really wanted Landry, I am enthusiastic about the Penny pick and applaud your knack in identifying him as a Seahawk target. Bravo!

  17. BobbyK

    Rob – another great year with excellent content. That’s passion.

    I think one of the things I’m most excited about next season is reading your reporting about Seahawks/Raiders game since you’re going to be going to it and having press access, too. Really looking forward to that, as I’m actually super excited about the Seahawks playing here in Minnesota for preseason game number three in August. It’s always fun to get behind their sidelines and see the little things that can’t be captured on t.v.

    Again, I know you get a lot of thanks… but thanks again. Just shows how much people think of you and appreciate you, too.

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks Bobby, really appreciate that.

      And the Raiders game in London will be an awesome week. I plan to be at everything the Seahawks do that week and hopefully get some interviews done.

  18. C Dub

    The front office MUST have been following SDB this year. Commonly mocked players on this site:

    Dissly
    Griffin
    Ford
    Green
    Dickson

    To all the regular posters and mock draft guys, I’m impressed by your scouting abilities!

  19. Bob Johnston

    I think we’re overlooking the concept of “addition by subtraction” for next year. I loved Sherm and Bennett but it really seemed like their attitudes weren’t what they should have been. What kind of example is set for the young guys when you’re reading and not listening in meetings or screaming and flipping off the coaches?And with Bennett, I’m still of the mind that the anthem protests were divisive to the team.

    Graham’s gone but is that a negative or a positive? His receiving TD’s were nice but his blocking was bad and he didn’t help at all between the 20’s. I think losing Jimmy is actually a positive.

    It’s not like the Hawks were bad last year, they could easily have been 12-4 with even a modicum of luck. And that’s with Avril out most of the year, Sherm out for half the season, Bennett playing hurt and Jimmy dropping passes all over the joint.

    I don’t see any reason to believe that there’s no room for optimism about next year. Now of course they could be bad or mediocre but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the level of competition rise a notch or two simply because some entrenched stars are now gone. I would bet big money there are several D-linemen thinking right now about their opportunity now that Bennett’s gone. Ditto the cornerbacks and you just know Vannett is thinking it’s his time to shine.

    I’m optimistic. I’ve seen way too many times where a star leaves and the team improves. I’m glad it happened for the Hawks. I think they were stale and “Always Compete” had become just a slogan rather than words to live by.

    • Hawksince77

      I tend to agree, and would add that in some respects, to your point, PC has been a bit limited in the past couple of years in having a purely competitive team environment, given the entrenched starters and the sagging attitudes that we witnessed on the field and on the sideline last year.

      As JS has already reminded us, there are players on the team we don’t really even know, who haven’t had the opportunity to shine. Whether they do so and play championship football is yet to be seen. But for the first time in a couple of years, I think we are going to see a truly different team hit the field, and I wouldn’t bet against PC finding the right combination to make things fun and interesting next year.

    • Old but Slow

      The Hawks could have been 12-4 if they had a better kicker.

      • AndrewP

        Or 7-9 without Houston’s D collapsing and a Kupp catch.

        • Alex Higgins

          Thank you, Andrew. I get so tired of the Blair Walsh excuse for our record. It was a fair record. Period.

    • A, Chris

      PC and JS actually alluded to this very fact in their day 3 press conference. The organization has built a reputation in the league as being player and performance oriented. No free rides. That goes for rooks and vets. The UDFA guys have as good a shot as any to make the final cut. Now that a bunch of vets are gone/questionable, undrafted guys are knocking their doors down. Hence the legitimate haul they brought in directly after the draft.

      Optimistic doesn’t adequately cover how I feel at the end of this weekend. 😉

      • AlaskaHawk

        You can’t separate this from coaching and a decline in team play. Seahawks held onto those offensive coaches for about three years too long. Frustration builds as the team declines = and competitors speak out = sometimes in bad ways. Was it a distraction? Perhaps. But our guys aren’t used to a Belechik style regime.

  20. Omar

    Wait is Rob going to stop writing blogs until it gets close to next years draft? I’m sorry I just joined into this community in December.

    • Volume12

      Without speaking for him, there will be some posts on what each draft pick brings, trying to understand why they picked them, what to expect, etc. Then it’s a break over the summer until training camp and pre-season. If you liked the draft process here at SDB, the CFB season is just as fun.

    • Kenny Sloth

      He usually take a break pretty soon after the season until the championship wraps up.

      • Kenny Sloth

        Sorry, the ENGLISH EFL championship

    • Rob Staton

      My plan is to review the picks, do some more podcasts. Review where the Seahawks are at. That should take some time yet. Generally the blog quietens down quite quickly in terms of traffic now so it’s a good time to take a break, do some family stuff and come back in July. But I have some things to write about before we get there so my message is ‘stay tuned’.

      • D-OZ

        🙂

      • Thorson

        Thanks Rob for all the work you put in for this website. This is an awesome source of info and a really unique community of commenters. Even when people get a bit salty (i.e. Trudy Beekers yesterday) the tone is generally respectful and unpopular opinions are generally at least considered or debated and not shouted down. Not many other websites can say the same. Excellent work.

        • Kenny Sloth

          Can we try not to call people out?

          That person has great opinions that I want to hear.

      • Omar

        That’s great Rob! You deserve a break after all the hard work you put into this blog.

  21. Gymno

    Rob, just want to add my thanks as well for all the work you do and for setting the tone of this blog. It really is amazing to read and be a part of (hoping to more of it). I read the CBS analysis of all the picks, and looking at the grades, and commenting to myself how dumb some of their ideas are and that it was obvious they had no clue about a particular player, their performance and or issues. I found out that because of all of you guys and gals on this i do have a much better understanding of the reality of what is going on.

    I also need to complement you all on how you discuss and disagree without bashing. We see that now so much on social media, and in DC. Conversations can’t be had. But here, we not only converse, but often come to a consensus of what is best. People change their minds without embarrassment. You guys all make me smile. Thank you. Looking forward to next year.

    • Guillermoman

      I felt the same way. I was watching the NFL draft with a friend and when the Seahawks went to pick at 27 and the clock ti.er went below two minutes I said to him “uh oh, it looks like they couldn’t trade back again. The analysts say we should be taking Isaiah Oliver, but if it were me I’d pick a running back.” And then they picked Penny. I was initially angry because I thought he could be had in the middle of the second round, but then with Cleveland having Penny in their sights at 33, plus an additional year on the rookie contract, I’ve really warmed to it.

    • Rob Staton

      Thank you 👍🏻

  22. Pran

    How many blue and red players do you think Hawks added in this draft.

    • Kenny Sloth

      2 red chips.

      • Kenny Sloth

        There were maybe a dozen blue chips in the whole draft

        • CharlieTheUnicorn

          It is hard to tell, since so many QBs went kind of early.. and I’m not sure you could call them “blue chippers” per say… likely 1 or more will end up being a cowchip

          • Lewis

            That sounds like an awesome draft analysis feature:

            Blue Chip, Red Chip, or Cow Chip?

            • CharlieTheUnicorn

              +12

              God damn, you are a genius! ~ Rob

              (What the hell is a cowchip? ~ Rob) 😉

              • hawkdawg

                It’s dried cow shit.

              • Lewis

                It’s something you step on while in a field and wish you hadn’t.

    • SeaHusky

      2 red chips in Penny and Green, and one blue chip in Dickson.

      I think Green has the potential to develop into a blue chip, but he needs to refine his technique and add more functional strength. WIth how successful our coaching staff has been at developing defensive linemen, I’m excited to see his progression.

      I think Dickson has the potential to become a top-5 punter right away.

      • Alex Higgins

        Best athlete is a UDFA named John Franklin III. Blue chipper signed to play QB at Auburn. Runs a 4.19 in the 40. Not a typo. Converted to WR. Better prospect that Cyril Grayson. The UDFAs are receiver have a real shot given this year’s roster.

        • CHawk Talker Eric

          According to draftscout.com he ran a 4.44s 40. Not bad, but hardly a 4.19.

          Also his SS and 3C weren’t very good for a guy his size.

  23. C-Dog

    Terrific year of coverage and analysis, Rob!

    Much appreciated.

    Going to throw out UW’s Greg Gaines as a prospect to watch as a DT. Jarran will be already heading into a contract year in 2019. Gaines looks like he has terrific two gap potential with an ability to get up field. Seattle asks a lot out of their DTs and Gaines could be another Chris Peterson OKG Seattle might be intently looking at to fit their mold.

    • AlaskaHawk

      I like Gaines, he has been in Vita Veas shadow, but he will shine now.

  24. DAWGfan

    Adams if healthy should be a high draft pick, but McGary will be the better pro, kid is nasty and has a rare desire(and will) to be great. Hope teams sleep on him and he falls to the Hawks.

  25. Lenny J

    I regards to Prosise, I’d rather move him into a more WR role. He doesn’t have the durability of a Tailback IMO. That would be a great way to have more impactful players on the field at the same time.

    • Kenny Sloth

      (We can probably carry 5 WR and 5 RB because of this)

  26. Volume12

    The Vikings UDFA class is wild!

    Wazzu EDGE Hercules Mata’afa, WRs Jake Weinke & Korey Robertson (S. Dakota St & So. Miss), Texas CB Holton Hill, Jax St. HB Roc Thomas, Wisconsin LB Garrett Dooley, Auburn S Tray Matthews

    • Trevor

      That’s a good day 3 in the draft.

  27. Hawktalker#1

    So when do all these UDFA guys start showing up at camp?

  28. H

    I’m really starting to love this Jamarco Jones pick, just watched his tape against USC, a game Ive watched a few times now but never focused on him. He’s often matched up against NFL talents like Nwosu and Green and, whilst he doesn’t blow you away, he holds his own for the most part (he gets smoked by Nwuso on one play but that kid is really good)
    Makes me feel comfortable he’s not gonna be too poor an athlete to play in the NFL.
    He’ll likely never be a pro-bowler at the position, but he looks a guy that will be really really solid. I imagine most Seattle fans consider that a win. I think he’d definitely be a better starting LT year one than Rees was last year.

    I think he might be my favourite draft pick of this class (besides obviously Griffin, and I am a sucker for punters)
    We got a steal.

    • CHawk Talker Eric

      Call me crazy, but Jamarco Jones reminds me of Isaiah Wynn. Not flashy. Not a great athlete. Just really technically sound. Rarely caught out of position.

  29. white-salmon-hawk

    I’ve been following Ed Oliver since he made headlines going to a non-power school (hate BCS funding disparity). He looks dominant vs the lesser competition. Do you think that hurts or strengthens his draft stock?

    • Misfit74

      He’s the current 1.01, so no. He’ll be fine. Khalil Mack went to college at Buffalo…

  30. Misfit74

    I have to self scout a little bit and say that I was too dismissive of Penny as a top 3 RB because of his poor pass pro. I a a didn’t look as heavily in to his analytics beyond his excellent athletic testing.

    I totally understand why we went with him as the 2nd RB off the board now that it’s played out. I think the team put more emphasis on injury history and character to a degree this year after recent problems around Prosise and McDowell. It was fun to hear Josh Schneider rattle off about his analytics in the presser. PFF had some outstanding stats on him and was their #2 RB, #29 player overall. 1,400+ yards after contact. Led nation with 86 forced missed tackles. Top marks in yards per carry when contacted behind the line of scrimmage (top, 4. Saquon was 52nd). YouTube has a good video about him from PFF, as well. They are not gospel, but as one piece of the puzzle it’s great stuff.

    • Sea Mode

      Yup, Saquon is amazing but likes to dance east-west to make things happen. Penny is one cut and always gets north-south.

      Level of competition and Pumphrey last year putting up similar numbers in that system knocked him down for me after I loved him early on in the process.

  31. Guillermoman

    My thoughts on this draft:

    This is my first full year reading through the draft process and I have to commend Mr Rob Staton for being so good at identifying how the Seahawks think. Your list of potential targets and ability to study tape as a Seahawks scout is unparalleled.

    I’m excited at how PCJS is able to identify when runs on players are going to occur, and select their guy before it happens. Picking Penny is an obvious example, but then they picked up Dissly in the 4thright before Schultz and Smythe were picked, and then they picked Dickson in the 5th right before a run on punters.

    I’m disappointed that both Tim Settle and Josh Sweat both were not drafted by Seattle, as they opted to go with Dissly and Flowers over them. I could see how Sweat, like Hurst, could have been off the Seahawks board due to injury concerns, but Tim Settle looked so good on tape.

    Getting Ford and Hill as UDFAs is huge, but I feel like we missed out by not getting any comers. Meeks, Kelly and Hill were all available and looked like good fits.

    This quote from Walter Football should be some good bulletin board material, as this is way off base:

    “Seattle managed to trade down once from 18th overall. The team shifted to No. 27, picking up a crucial third-round pick in the process. That was nice, yet the front office still reached on Rashaad Penny, a running back who teams had rated in the second or third round. One team that tends to draft well considered him a tertiary option in the middle of the second round.

    Penny was the beginning of an underwhelming haul. I liked the Rasheem Green pick in the third round, as he’ll replace Michael Bennett on the defensive front. Shaquem Griffin also earned a high mark; the athletic linebacker was a nice choice in the fifth frame. However, those two choices were the only ones that scored higher than a C+ until Round 6.

    The Seahawks made a number of mistakes beyond Penny. They spent a fourth-round choice on a blocking tight end even though those grow on trees. They traded up for a punter in the fifth round. They reached a bit earlier on safety Tre Flowers.

    I don’t know what happened to Seattle. John Schneider used to be a great drafter, but his past couple of classes have been duds. He had 11 combined picks in the first three rounds in the 2016 and 2017 NFL Drafts, and only two, Shaquil Griffin and C.J. Prosise, have enjoyed any amount of success thus far. The jury is still out on some prospects (and Prosise has injury woes), but it’s not looking good right now. And I’m not confident based on the 2018 selections. “

    • CharlieTheUnicorn

      There has to be something lurking around the CB Hill. He was a very decently graded CB on several sites… like a 4th rounder or so…. and he slide out of the draft. If it is character related, then he was never on Seattle’s radar…. but it is indeed curious to say the least.

      I wouldn’t get to down on Seattle’s draft. I think they got back to the 2010-2012 glory days of drafting.
      This draft ultimately will come down to Penny being more like S. Alexander and less like C. Micheal.

      • Guillermoman

        I actually really like this class and I agree with you. I liked Chubb a little more than Penny, but I would have taken either above any of the other running backs.

        However, you reminded me of one more highlight I missed. We get to see a post-Tom Cable draft, and we draft a lineman that is known for actually blocking people and was a good value pick. Gone are the days of reaching for athletic potential or trying to convert defensive linemen.

        • Lewis

          For the record, they consider Flowers a CB, so that position was addressed. As you note, they could have picked the others, but didn’t. As with a Penny, I think Flowers was the guy they wanted.

      • Sea Mode

        Holton Hill was a day 2 talent but went undrafted. That tells you all you need to know as far as the seriousness of the character concerns IMO.

        The fact that Seattle even had him in for a visit and still passed on him through all 7 rounds sends a pretty clear message as well.

      • Donald

        I thought I read somewhere that a skilled evaluator who work under JS during the 2010-2012 years was a key contributor to the Hawks drafting success. He was recruited and hired to work for another team a few years ago, and that is why the Hawks have not had as much success. I don’t remember his name, but he now works for Cleveland or Green Bay. Not sure where.

        • CharlieTheUnicorn

          The guy you are thinking of is Scot McCloughan.
          Ex GM for Redskins. He also worked with JS in GB and had some ties to the 49ers…. when they were building a team back in 2010 or so. His problems are off the gridiron… personal demons. He is legit for talent evaluation.

    • C-Dog

      WTF? CJ Prosise enjoyed success? SERIOUSLY?!Put the PCP pipe down Walter Football. Jarran Reed is evolved into one of the better two gap DTs in the game. Naz Jones flashed potential as a rookie. Ethan Pocic faired well enough as a rookie starter. What a joke.

      • mishima

        LOL. Agree with you, but ‘ridiculous’ works. Stay classy.

    • AlaskaHawk

      I agree that according to draft boards Penny went early. But we all guessed there would be a mad rush for running backs at the top of the second round. And indeed that happened, after the Patriots picked up a running back in the first. So if Seahawks had traded back, and they would have been after Cleveland’s picks, that would have been a very risky move.

      I don’t know who will be successful out of that bunch or running backs, I’m willing to believe at least half of the top six will be productive. So in my mind Penny is as good as the rest, and as we look at the statistics, the only thing not in his favor was playing in the PAC conference.

  32. Misfit74

    Penny vs Barkley highlights comparison video (hat tip D. Hsu)
    https://youtu.be/f_THDxZhGrs

    PFF Penny Prospect Profile (say that 5 times fast!)
    https://youtu.be/eM4xLIZybeM

  33. CharlieTheUnicorn

    Here is what I liked about the draft… Seattle got their guy before the runs on each position really got going. Punter, TE, RB….. they set the tone for each round with their picks and within 10 picks a big run on each position group commenced.

    JS is very good at identifying pockets of talent and grabbing who he wanted before the “gold rush” hit. Maybe it is just me, but this seemed like a much more straight forward draft than in years past… pretty much all the needs we identified on the blog got hit. Maybe the only big change was taking guys who loved football… and where good football players. Very few project types, unlike years past.

    I’m excited to see how the revamp offense looks. If they can get to average run ans pass blocking out of the OL….. Penny might end up having a monster year (1200+ yards).

    • Misfit74

      I noticed that too, even if nobody on TV did. I firmly believe Penny would have gone within the next 8 picks. Maybe NE at 31 or CLE at top of 2nd round.

      • CharlieTheUnicorn

        Hot rumor was Cleveland at 33.

        However, since the Patriots took Sony at 31.. they might be the one.

        Long story short, he wasn’t going to last until the mid second.
        They grabbed their guy….. which is a perfect draft imo.

        • AlaskaHawk

          Agreed.

    • FresnoHawk

      First 6 picks were all targeted 1st choice players the only other must haves for Hawks in this draft were a few 2nd round OL prospects that were taken at he top of the second. If we traded Earl I’m sure we wanted a top 5 2nd round pick plus 2019 pick or nothing at all. I don’t think we ever considered Dallas #50 2nd rounder for Earl it was 1st or nothing at all. Dallas says they’re still pursuing Earl after the draft I’m sure they’re dangling 2019 picks.

      • Simo

        If we’re still interested in trading Earl, a couple nice 2019 picks wouldn’t be all bad!

        If we’re not a team in the midst of a rebuild, we definitely are a team in transition, and a high-mid second and third next year would work nicely.

        If you’re Dallas, or another contender, getting Earl for a couple picks that don’t come due for a full year would be a definite win as well. We’ll see what happens over the coming weeks.

  34. Ground_Hawk

    This was a great draft season, and I wanted to thank everyone, Rob most of all, for the incredible content made available here! This was an amazing haul for Seattle, especially considering their initial draft-stock; JS and company made it happen, again. I cheered out loud when Rasheem Green was picked, because IMO that was the steal of the draft. Love this draft class! Penny running behind a blocking duo of Khalid Hill and Will Dissly? Yes, sir!

  35. Awsi Dooger

    I hate mocks. Normally they are a lazy bail out for analysts who can’t think of anything else. Typically there is an inverse relationship between number of mocks and caliber of the blog.

    However, this site is nicely different because the mocks aren’t plastered there as an end all. The names are used as spark to discussion in text below, and also in the comments. It plays out well, although often I wish the mocks were eliminated and replaced with a couple more paragraphs about some interesting player, one who fits the Seahawk profile. But Rob always gets to those guys anyway, and the blog has a great hit rate in terms of who Seattle actually picks.

    The only fault I had this year was too much faith in Tim Settle. He was mocked mid first round in the early going. But when I took a look at him there was little to recommend that plateau. Talented — yes — but the other Hokie defensive tackle Ricky Walker looked better than Settle more often than not. And by the bowl game against Oklahoma State Settle had clearly reverted to his 2016 sloppy body and was not only being handled but often out of breath or shoved to the ground. Tremaine Edmunds stood out in that game while Settle looked pathetic. This blog tried to ignore it. Then Settle was every bit as awful at the combine. He continued to be mocked too high here. I concede it’s a nitpick but defensive tackle is my favorite position so I’m sensitive to misplacement.

    Regardless, great job overall. I think back to the review of Stanford/San Diego State and the praise for Rashaad Penny. I remember commenting down below…yes but don’t forget about Bryce Love, he looked great in his own right. I think both will be very good pros.

    From a big picture standpoint, I’d say the Eagles really know what they are doing right now. There is always one team that is seemingly relaxed from a personnel standpoint and making astute decisions. Quality over quantity. My belief is two special players should always be the annual goal, no matter where the team is in relation to the rest of the league. Two is manageable. Everything else is low percentage desperation. For Philadelphia to trade up for the best tight end prospect in Dallas Goedert and then patiently wait for Josh Sweat to fall to them was a standout aspect of this draft. Fortify your pass offense and pass defense. That’s now basic football 2018.

    As a Canes season ticket holder who has a good feel for the roster, the names to look out for who may enter the draft early next season are Joe Jackson and Ahmmon Richards. Jackson is narrow but has elite ability and pass rush instincts. Jason Taylor type. Richards was dinged in 2017 and doesn’t seem to click with current quarterback Malik Rosier. Much frustration on Richards’ part when Rosier either doesn’t see him or throws it to the wrong spot when Richards is targeted. However, in 2016 with Brad Kaaya at quarterback Richards was the best true freshman Miami receiver since Reggie Wayne, and looked every bit as special as Wayne. Nick Saban got into the recruiting battle very late with Richards and was reportedly very frustrated that he missed out on him.

    • Coleslaw

      I mocked Settle to Seattle in the 2nd all the time, you never said any of this on the blog, so idk if anyone “tried to ignore it”

      • Rob Staton

        I saw him mention he didn’t rate Settle.

        Lance Zierlein also initially listed Tim Settle as a R1 pick when he did his NFL.com bio. So it wasn’t too left field.

        This is a process and teams have so much more info than we do. Settle’s tape was only part of the evaluation.

    • vrtkolman

      I commented about Joe Jackson on here when he was a freshman. He looked like a man amongst boys then and routinely got into the backfield. Glad to see he’s still a beast.

      • sdcoug

        Shoeless Joe Jackson? That baseball thing worked out pretty well for him.

    • Sea Mode

      Thanks for your thoughts and outside (non-Seahawks) perspective. Good to know SDB has its own “SE area scout”. 😉

      Our guy Herndon also ended up in the top half of R4, earlier than some projected! And RJ McIntosh in R5.

      Can’t believe the Browns took a swing on Callaway that early (R4) even after the recent new wave of red flags on him. You know I liked his talent throughout the process, but even I ended up taking him off my board a couple weeks ago. Kind of like Malik McDowell, eventually something bad will happen around him. And I was banking on the strong leadership of Baldwin and Lockett to keep him in order; the Browns have Josh Gordon and Landry in their WR room to “guide” him… yikes.

  36. EP

    The off-season can be long and boring but at least it’s a World Cup year. Thanks again to everyone for making it enjoyable. Hopefully this draft is the start of something wonderful.

  37. Nick

    Rob and the SDB community-thank you so much. The Seahawks mean a lot to me and it’s wonderful to be able to share that obsession with all of you. I cannot wait for training camp!

    • Rob Staton

      Loved every minute 👍🏻

  38. FuzzyLogic

    This reminds me of the 2012 draft when almost everyone thought we reached on players.

    Penny – Starter
    Green – Starter
    Dissly – Starter
    Griffin – ST Starter and invaluable team member
    Dickson – Starter
    Kalid Hill – Starter….I truly believe this.

    If we had 6 starters with this draft class this in an A++ draft. Period.

    • Hawktalker#1

      Good summary break down. I have to agree on all counts. Six starters out of this draft, phenomenal.

      I was thinking about drafting success and the relative stats a little bit more recently.

      Since it seems far more likely to get a starter when you draft early, to get a true indication of how successful you are drafting, perhaps the stat should work something like, from picks 45 to the end of the draft, how many starters did you get?

    • Lewis

      You mean eventually, not necessarily day 1, right? I think it might not be the case immediately for Dissly and Green, but the competition will certainly be open for them.

      We were talking about blue chips upthread a bit. Dickson could end up being in that category if he continues to do what he did in college.

      • SeaHusky

        I think Dickson has the talent to become a top-5 punter right away. He was far and away the best punter that CFB has seen in recent years, if not ever.

        Plus it saves us a couple million dollars in cap if we cut Ryan.

    • Jacob M

      Don’t sleep on Jamarco Jones, his tape is good. His tape against speed rushers makes me more confident in his athletic ability to play tackle on either side.

      • Aaron

        Watched a bunch of his 2016 and 2017 games now, plus some combine and pro day workouts videos. Dude is solid, better than any tackle we’ve drafted in years in terms of pass pro. Great ability to mirror defenders, good recognition of stunts and twists, anchors well when bull rushed. He should immediately be in competition at RT with Ifedi. If he hits the weight room and bulks up 10-20 lbs then he could definetly be a starter year two. I’m seeing an o line depth chart like this…

        LT: Brown, Fant
        LG: Pocic, Roos
        C: Britt, Pocic
        RG: Fluker, Odhiambo
        RT: Ifedi, Jones

        Finally we drafted a guy with sound technique…FINALLY!!!

        • Sea Mode

          Just a note, I think they have said Odhiambo is exclusively a left-side guy, so maybe swap him and Roos. Otherwise, that looks like a great depth chart to work with and should provide some continuity going forward as most of them are young.

          • D-OZ

            Yea, Roos played RG at Perdue.

  39. Patrick Toler

    Thanks for another great draft season Rob! You are the best, and this community is at mazing.

    Reason 3 they didn’t draft a WR: that group is unproven, but talented and ridiculously deep. The trio of Baldwin, Lockett, and Brown isn’t bad. And it’s not a reach to think that one or more of the young guys could take a step forward to push them. I’m quite excited to watch them this summer.

    • Rob Staton

      Loved every minute Patrick. Thank you 👍🏻

  40. JimQ

    For all those concerned about the lack of a WR in the draft, an UDFA you’ll want to keep an eye on is:

    WR-Ka’Raun White, W. Virginia. He’s a little more than just another name among hundreds of players in the draft. In my personal final mock, I had him as a 7-th round pick for the Seahawks. There is a lot to like in his profile, that I think many may not be aware of. I think he’ll make the final 53 with a good chance of having a nice rookie year. Of all the later round WR’s, IMO-White is a good fit for the RW’s “style”. Call him a sleeper for now, but I think this kid will shock a lot of people!

    White had some impressive #’s testing wise. ( Some of his #’s are from his Pro day.)
    6-01/206, 32-1/4″/arms, 9-5/8″-hands, 78-1/8″ wingspan.
    4.51/40, 1.57/10-yd, 2.50/20-yd, 33.5″-Vert, 118″-Broad, & 24-reps on the bench press.
    —> NOTE: White’s 24-Reps on the bench press was #1 of all WR’s at the combine!!!!!
    4.40/20-yd shuttle, 6.85/3-cone.(#8 among WR’s) 11.73-60-yd/shuttle, (#9 among WR’s).
    Pre-draft ranking #343-overall, Projected Rd-7/UDFA at nfldraftscout.com

    2017: 13-games, 61/1004/16.46-ypc, 12-TD’s, 4.7-rec/game, 77.2-yds/game
    (12 TD’s = 4-th. among all draft-able WR’s in the draft in 2017, and 8-th overall in the NCAA).
    2017: Situational stats: 13-games; 79-yd/long rec., 43-rec/for 1-st downs, 30/15+yds, 17/25+yds
    Career: 29-games, 124/1862/15.0-ypc, 17-TD’s. (White was a JC transfer to W. Virginia)

    Ka’Raun White is the brother of Kyzir White who was drafted by the Chargers in Rd-4, pick #119. His older brother, Kevin White was a 1-st Rd. WR drafted by Chicago. That is some pretty darn good bloodlines for sure. + The Seahawks seem to like players with a brother(s) already in the NFL.

    *Major Strengths* 1. Clean release against press. 2. Active on scramble drills, 3. Catches passes that
    are high, low, or contested. 4. Light feet, good quickness out of his breaks 5. Consistent at working back to the QB for the throw. 6. Can catch with defender draped all over him. 7. Plays with energy & competitiveness, plays same level all game long. 8. Really consistent. —Per several scouting reports.

    Major weaknesses: 1. Run support blocking, 2. some body catches, 3. Has the occasional focus drop.
    4. Needs to use his strength better (#1-WR with 24-reps at the combine) on the field. All of which should be coachable. White has a very good chance to be on the team somewhere, even if only on the PS while he learns and continues to develop further. Seems like there are no character concerns and that now seems to be a major decision making factor for the Seahawks going forward. Check him out guys, you’ll like him.

    • FuzzyLogic

      I’ve checked him out as well. He seems pretty solid to me. Not super fast or long/tall but seems pretty Seahawky to me. PS first year and maybe with coaching could be a good rotational guy. Worth a look for sure.

    • Sea Mode

      Thanks for the rundown. I had checked him out as well back when I found Kyzir at SS.

      https://seahawksdraftblog.com/what-constitutes-jaw-dropping-change#comment-361478

      Just that he didn’t run particularly well at the combine, and the Hawks have that consistent history of WRs in the 4.4s. But as a UDFA guy fighting for a spot or developing on the PS for a year, sign me up.

      • JimQ

        I’m not saying that White is anything like Steve Largent, but, Largent didn’t depend on his long speed to be a hall of fame receiver & personally I think WR 40-times, as long as they are not really slow, don’t really account for much. Long speed WR’s are considered “game breakers”, but the slightly slower WR’s can offset that long speed with other WR abilities, like separation & route running & grit. ADB is an excellent example of this. There is surely an argument to be made that most teams covet a “tall & fast” WR, but all
        of their receivers don’t have to meet that metric & most teams would like to have a WR or two with that skill set. Every team needs a guy or two like that, but not every receiver has to be a speed freak. The Seahawks have several young speed WR’s on their roster that could very well be game breakers, if given
        the opportunity.

  41. JimQ

    Many, many thanks for this place Rob, you must really love doing it or it wouldn’t be so darn good. I hate going to sites that are filled with negative crap (Seahawks.net) with a bunch of BS going on all the time, although occasionally they serve a purpose and not all of the posters there are negative, but a whole bunch of them are. It’s great to have civil conversations here, and it makes everyone want to participate and share knowledge.

    It has become evident over the years that you know sooooo much about the draft and the Seahawks and your blog is #1 for many of us fans. I personally would be lost during the lead up to the draft without this wonderful resource.

    .

    • Lewis

      Amen, brother. I love that we can talk about different opinions and learn from different perspectives and not have to be inundated with whining about every little thing.

      Rob may do a lot of the analysis for us, but I think the way he does it and the way he delivers the information encourages all of us to think and look at things from different angles instead of just scratching the surface (though *cough* occasionally still guilty) and for that I am grateful.

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks Jim, those words mean a lot 👍🏻

  42. Dale

    Rob I think the coolest part of your performance this year has been the amount of interaction you’ve created with posters. Whether it’s on the blog or via Google your input is so much appreciated. I know you’ve looked at other platforms for your content. If the question is someone to install and maintain a new platform it’d be nice to know what it might cost the community. I’m sure most of us do Patreon but I suspect many would kick in more for a more robust environment.

    I was on the NFL site the other day and remembered another reason why your product is so superior. NFL.com was dominated by fanboys talking smack but ignoring the game. Your ability to keep this blog focused on respectful discussion centered on the game and the talent is refreshing.

    Thanks again for all you’ve done. Now it’s time to re-introduce yourself to the family.

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks for those words Dale. Love this place, love the community.

    • 503Hawk

      You nailed it Dale.
      I love Rob’s incite. His writing style is perfect for my taste; professional, not sophomoric, detailed w/o the rambling, mind numbing details.
      I don’t agree w/ all of his analysis or that of some of the posters. But one of the things that keeps me coming back is the dignity and civility that all of us show. SDB is like a haven for me. An escape from all of the anxiety of the real world.

      Thanks Rob and thanks loyal SDB community.
      Go Hawks.

      • Rob Staton

        Love that review 503Hawk. Thank you 👍🏻

  43. Hawktalker#1

    Saw NFL analyists gave the Seahawks and Jets a tie for the worst draft this year. (However, the facts they used to build their case were so incomplete and inaccurate, not sure how they can keep their jobs)

    Hope that gives our guys a chip on their shoulders and makes them a little chippy as well.

    • BobbyK

      If Darnold becomes a franchise QB – their draft was a rousing success.

  44. JimQ

    No rock unturned! UDFA signee: FB/DE/LB/ST-Marcus Martin, 6-1/240 from Slippery Rock.
    Strong (32-Reps) NEVER missed a game, very smart & MANY neat accolades, you can read up on him here. http://www.draftscout.com/members/ratings/profile.php?pyid=1019830

    Interesting kid that might be seen as a LB but more likely a FB, leading our new superstar Rashaad Penney thru gaping holes one day. Looks like a big fish small pond type player who could potentially pop as a pro. Those Seahawks scouts sure dig DEEP for talent – but, really, Slippery Rock?

    • Coleslaw

      He definitely looks strong on the little tape I’ve seen, but that was at DE. I didn’t know if he was DE or FB, hopefully FB

  45. Coleslaw

    Pete and John pointed out that Shaq Griffin makes a ridiculous % of big plays on critical downs and game situations. With him playing Will, is he gonna get KJ off the field on 3rd downs? That could extend KJs career and give us added speed, blitzing, coverage and playmaking ability on 3rd down, albeit minus KJs superb run support and edge setting. Maybe 3rd and short bring KJ, anything that’s not in running distance bring Shaq.
    We could get an awesome blitzing package featuring 4 DL, Shaq, Wagner and Mingo.

    • Coleslaw

      Seems like he feeds on the need to succeed, and wills his way to success on those situations. Playing him on 3rd downs he’ll be making his living off that.

    • Coleslaw

      You’d imagine a big impact if he plays this much. 5 sacks easy

      • Ryan

        over/under at 5 I think is about right! I’m excited about this class and specifically watching our defense grow around Quille and Quem! Go Hawks!

    • Misfit74

      Wright can play MLB a few snaps and give Wagne a breather every so often and help him stay fresh and healthy, too. I still expect a ton of 2 LB sets. I wonder how Shaquem is in coverage? If he can man up with speedy pass catching backs or slots in space that’d really be something. LB/S hybrid snaps. I look forward to him as a rusher though. Amazing speed and tenacity.

      • Hawktalker#1

        Giving our starters some breathers would have a test n of value too.

        I know he has had some coverage responsibilities, but not sure how good he really is yet.

        Anxious to see him rushing as well.

  46. drewdawg11

    I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who makes this site amazing. Rob, I’ve said this before, but this is the best Seahawks site around and your tireless work is much appreciated. I’m a little sad that draft season is over now, but I’m looking forward to next season and watching all of the future great prospects battle it out. Also, I’m definitely positive about this draft. I think the only thing I wanted to see was a WR like Deon Cain, and maybe another back, but I’m sincerely pleased with the guys we drafted and signed. We have to make sure that we don’t lose track of the fact that this could be a two year restock to get back to where we want to be and we will still need to find some young difference-makers to carry the torch and replace the guys who have moved on. I’m hoping that Penny is a bell cow that makes the whole team better.

  47. Coleslaw

    I think if we signed all of our priority free agents I listed above we’d still have maybe a little under $50M in cap space left. And we can probably replace some of those guys with cheap young replacements, too.
    Point being 2019 free agency we’re making a splash. Probably a WR, LB or DL. Those are our biggest needs imo with room for a legit player.
    Some nice options there too, Ansah, Atkins, Carlos Dunlap, Cam Wake, Brandon Graham for DEs to name a few.
    For ILB you got Preston Brown, CJ Mosley, Deone Bucannon, Bernardrick McKinney.
    WR has Randall Cobb, Moncrief, Golden Tate (???), Chris Hogan, Kelvin Benjamin, Devin Funchess, Stefon Diggs.

    Yeah I know its early, I’m bored

    • Coleslaw

      If not a splash, bennett/avril type deals. We’re gonna sign outside FAs

      • Coleslaw

        No point in staying out of FA for comp picks if we’re gonna resign our guys, we won’t get comp picks anyway, might as well make the most of lt and add add add

        • Hawktalker#1

          Good post Slaw. Glad you were bored. Thx

          • Coleslaw

            Thanks man, I’m glad I did it too, Golden Tate is back on my radar lol. It would be a no nonsense move, you know exactly what you’re getting. For the right price that could be a nice reunion. ADB, Tate, Lockett and Jaron Brown…. that would be legit!

            • Simo

              Love Tate, always hated when he left, but a WR like Funchess would be nice as well. Might not break the bank and would provide a nice red zone, big body type receiver.

  48. Alex Higgins

    Best athlete acquired was UDFA John Franklin III. Blue chipper signed to play QB at Auburn. Runs a 4.19 in the 40. Not a typo. Converted to WR. Better prospect that Cyril Grayson. The UDFAs are receiver have a real shot given this year’s roster.

    • Hawktalker#1

      His pro day recorded a time closer to 4.40

  49. Saxon

    Bottom line: we simply didn’t have enough ammo. The FO did a credible job with what they left themselves to work with, but it won’t be enough in 2018. I’ll be shocked if we’re not picking in the top 10 next year. We’re just lacking top shelf talent at too many positions.

    Unless the DL gets career years from the retreads or rookies become prodigies, the defense will take another step back. No Sherman, Avril, Chancellor, Bennett, and I still think Thomas is a goner. The young DBs may be talented but they will take some lumps while they grow up, especially without reliable pass rush.

    The offense has arguably the worst WR/TE group in football. The OL is hopefully ascending but still below average. I’m excited that they are reastablishing the run and I love Penny but the backups are either injured or average.

    Dinosaur Janikowski and a rookie punter. Opposite ends of the career spectrum. I guess we’ll see.

    A lot can change between now and game 1, but If Pete can get this ragtag group to the playoffs he better finally win coach of the year. Ultimately, we are in year one of a 2-3 year rebuild. We need more talent.

    • Saxon

      Oh, and thanks a million Rob Staton for this tremendous resource you built. Superb work!

      • Rob Staton

        Thanks

    • Coleslaw

      Roster wise I think we’re a lot like 2012, some vet talent and a lot of nice young talent. Should have good running game, not like 2012 but RW is also way better than 2012. We have an actual stable of linebackers now to go with our stars. We have a lot better depth than last year.
      The only places I think we took a downgrade is DL, got high hopes for Green to replace Bennett sooner than later, but Bennett and Avril gone, were still 1 DL down from years past. That and the slight downgrade from Sherman to Griffin, which was fine last year.
      Losing Kam isn’t even a huge deal imo, our identity will change and we’ll get different types of players there, McDougald is better in coverage and covers more ground, chancellor was a liability in coverage at times.

    • purpleneer

      Whatever you want to bet on being bad enough for a top-10 pick, I’ll take you up.

  50. Ed

    Put in my $100 for the gofund me. Don’t get a Mac.

    I liked their draft. Get back to dictating. With talk of Dallas still interested in Thomas, would you take a 1st or a 2nd and 3rd in 2019?

    • Coleslaw

      Food for thought, 2019 picks are still considered future picks and worth 1 round less point value wise

    • CHawk Talker Eric

      Depending on where the teams are in the playoff race, I could see an in-season trade before the deadline to DAL for one or more of their 2019 picks.

      • Millhouse-serbia

        I would take 2nd without 3rd.

  51. Coleslaw

    You heard it here first, with their 1st pick in the 2019 NFL draft, Seahawks select Cameron Smith, Linebacker, USC

    • FresnoHawk

      I always look ahead love Cameron Smirh!

  52. Robert Las Vegas

    Thank you Rob for all your effort in this draft season can’t thank you enough in the future can you give us some of your thoughts on some of these undrafted guys the seahawks signed..

    • Rob Staton

      I will start to take a look at them for sure and offer some thoughts in the coming days.

      • Elmer

        Poona Ford? Not tall enough?

  53. James

    The plot thickens… many of us were wondering why Shaquem was still available (to Seattle’s benefit) in R5, after getting so much favorable publicity. Yes, he is a 230# LB, but he’s not the only one, and his game tape was off the charts. The buzz was he was possibly R3, R4 for sure. Then suddenly, there he was in R5.

    The nfldraftscout website published an article today claiming that word got around among the teams that Shaquem’s legendary 4.38 time was a mistake, and in fact he ran like a 4.58, hence the reason he dropped. After receiving this “news” the teams downgraded him. This we know is “fake news” and here’s why… one of the networks, ESPN or NFL.com, did a precise super-imposed overlay of Shaquem’s and Shaquill’s 40’s from the combine, where they both recorded 4.38, to see which one beat the other, even if it was just by a hair. We know for certain that Shaquill ran a legit 4.38 last year, and supposedly Shaquem’s 40 was only a 4.58, or so the fake news article claims the teams were informed. But, lo-and-behold, the precise overlay actually showed Shaquem beating Shaquill by an inch! In other words, Shaquem did indeed run a 4.38, and the proof was right there on screen.

    We can be thankful that this fake news caused Shaquem to drop to R5 so the Seahawks could land him, for the guy is going to be great. But who do we have to thank for this false story of the false 40 that should have read 4.58 (when in fact it actually was a 4.38)? Now that person is the reason we have Shaquem today, and I would like to shake his hand.

    • Donald

      Interesting James.

      And now you know… the rest of the story. Another example of JS working his magic!

    • Sea Mode

      Um, nice thoughts, but that is highly highly unlikely. Every team hand times the runs as well and knows what he really ran.

      My personal opinion is that he has much more value to Seattle than to other organizations because of his brother, and as long as JS didn’t try to totally lowball the pick like in R7, they were not going to jump in and ruin it. That’s just pure conjecture on my part, though.

      • 503Hawk

        There certainly seems like there is more to the story.

        • Kenny Sloth

          Certainly doesnt.

      • hawkdawg

        Agreed. Remember, Pete said at the post-draft conference that the Hawks had separately timed Shaquem as faster than Shaquille at the combine. I doubt they were the only team to hand-time both of them.

    • FresnoHawk

      No no think corruption over hyping prospects and bad mouthing your competition. Pete Carroll & John Schneider understand this bias in the draft.

  54. Travis

    For three years this is where I come to read my Hawk news before bed. I rarely chime in, but am always watching. Sure there are plenty like me. Thank you for your insight, passion, and time.

    • fiddleman

      Yep me too!

  55. KD

    I have a new job, new life, new outlook, and a better outlook on life, so I was not able to do as much homework on this draft as I would have liked , but reading this blog has kept me as informed as I could possibly be. Thanks so much for doing so much homework, Rob, so that you can keep us informed as well as the rest of the community.

    I decided to not post for a while because I was being abused at my old job, and I let that bleed into my comments here, so I decided to remove myself rather than bring that negativity here, but I feel better and looking forward to being part of the discussion again with a more positive attitude.

    Thanks so much for everything you do for us Rob. Cheers

    • Sea Mode

      Welcome back! Glad to hear things are going better for you.

      • KD

        Thanks bro

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks for being part of the community KD. Glad to hear you’re feeling better and I’m looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the Hawks in the future!

  56. Donald

    Back to the Earl saga.

    I think what is best would be to sign Earl to a reasonable contract, then trade him during the season when there is an injury on another team. That is when Earl’s market value will be the highest. When there is a need, teams will be more concerned about replacing an injured safety than draft picks.

    • Sean-O

      That’s an option but the the trading team would only get him for part of season so the return would likely be lower.

      I can see SEA exploring it again this summer once they start to know what they have as far as the young safeties go plus seeing what endd up happening with Kam. Plus, the trading team would have a window to sign ET3 to an extension if it happened during the off season.

    • Tecmo Bowl

      If the goal is to trade Earl, it doesn’t make sense to sign him to an extension. Its an either/or situation. We would eat the signing bonus in a sign and trade. You can give Earls agent permission to negotiate an extension with another team before a potential trade. We can franchise tag him after the season and trade him if we want.

      Bottom line this Earl situation needs to be addressed before the regular season starts. Even if its just JS saying they’ll wait until the 2018 season is over. End of the story. For a team that rid itself of ‘headaches’ to let this situation linger just doesn’t fit the message.

    • FresnoHawk

      Dallas is still after him!

  57. Millhouse-serbia

    Guys,here was a guy who studied players with his brother and posted exel work sheet for draft class.

    Does he still read this blog?

  58. Ulsterman

    It annoys me reading so-called draft experts continue to state as if it’s fact that penny would have been available in the 2nd or third round when it now seems clear he would have gone within the next 8 picks.
    Watching dissly after the catch reminded me of mark bavaro, the giants tight end from the late 80s. Not saying dissly will be on the same level as bavaro but like him he doesn’t go down easy and drags tacklers with him. Bavaro was also a really good blocker.
    Looks like a good haul of udfas, really excited to see what ford can do. Watched a highlight reel of lb emanual beal. Looked like a quick guy who gets into the backfield and is a really good solid tackler. The knock on him is he’s not the biggest.
    Also looking forward to the we white challenging for a roster spot.

    • Rob Staton

      What annoys me is the ‘experts’ don’t (and never did) understand Seattle’s priority to fix the run.

      Had they not taken their preferred RB at 27 they would’ve missed out at pick 76. It was better to go RB and then DE like they did. Had they taken Harold Landry at 27, the pundits would’ve said ‘good pick’ but they wouldn’t have got the much needed RB.

      Penny + Green = better than Landry + whatever runner they took on day three

      • 503Hawk

        “Amen” to that brother!

      • Ulsterman

        Read one review that said the seahawks already had a good stable of backs, completely ignoring the fact that Carson’s coming off a serious injury and is relatively unproven, procisse is an injury waiting to happen leaving mike davis and JD mckissoc. When you read superficial crap like that it makes you appreciate this site all the more.
        Just to repeat what everyone’s been saying, the coverage has been superb here and is greatly appreciated.

        • Rob Staton

          Thanks 👍🏻

      • RealRhino2

        Agree with this, Rob. Every time somebody said we should go with a non-RB with our first pick, I ran draft simulations to see what was likely to be left at the RB spot. Every time there were just a handful of JAGs left at RB once you got to the 3rd or 4th rounds. Once we decided to fix the running game by adding a bellcow type back, the wheels were set in motion for it to be the first pick.

      • FresnoHawk

        I’m on board with the folks who think Penny is better than Barkley, well find out soon enough. I think it was Penny or nothing at all. Really cool draft, it took us 3 drafts to finally get a blocking TE, the year Sherman departs it just happens there is a clone of him in the draft and we get him in the 5th. Get a Bennett clone in the 2nd, Future All Pro Punter, Griffith finally got a Will & team leader!
        Bet Paul Allen loved this draft

  59. Ulsterman

    Wr white that should say.

  60. Forty20

    Should go without saying that this blog is legendary, Rob. Cheers for the amazing work that you do for a passion project.

    Now begins the unbearable wait for the preseason proper with only drip fed information from Rookie Minicamps and the like to sustain us.

    One request that I have Rob, if it isn’t too much. When you take your well-earned sabbatical from blogging soon, is it possible to get a weekly open blog to discuss any happenings in the NFL plus any early scouting work the usual suspects on here might do?

    The community here always makes for great reading and it would help alleviate some of drudgery that comes with the wait for the preseason.

    • Rob Staton

      Of course. I’m not going to do what I did last year and go quiet for a long time. Last year was unique with a new born to deal with. I’m going to be posting things, during the summer this time. I will take a break after a week or so but lot’s to get into before then. And thanks for the kind words too.

      • D-OZ

        A well deserved break at that, you’r the best Rob. I’ll always be lurking…. 😉

        • Rob Staton

          Thank you!

  61. clbradley17

    Great info and recap on the draft, and preview of next year Rob. Think we also got several good UDFAs in addition to Poona, surprised he made it to FA. Thanks for all you do, and looking forward to the draft recap podcast.

    Found some info on former UW to Utah QB Troy Williams from his pro day this time last month and a highlights video. Could be in the mix for a backup QB. From his pro day: “Williams ran a 4.58 – one scout told him he showcased everything they needed to see: “Touch, accuracy, velocity, arm strength, everything.” Of all the throws he made, only one was behind the receiver. About midway through his throwing session Thursday, scouts asked Williams to change it up on the fly, to sprinkle in different throws and play-action-type deliveries. He adjusted, as he’s had his entire life. It concluded with the deep ball to Carrington that left Williams hopping up and down in jubilation in his custom cleats and his family members a few yards away.”
    https://www.sltrib.com/sports/utah-utes/2018/03/29/utah-pro-day-the-latest-installment-of-a-lengthy-football-friendship-between-troy-williams-and-darren-carrington-ii/

    Highlights video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuCwqxENsyo

  62. Georgia Hawk

    Finally back after a weekend away from a computer!

    My thoughts on the draft:

    – Penny is a better, faster, more versatile version of Mike Davis. He should be an immediate improvement on the Run game. Great hedge in the ST game in case Lockett walks next year ( I don’t think he will, WR class is trash). You can argue about value and having others still on the board, but ultimately the Hawks got their man. Until proven otherwise, I trust their judgement. There are some advances stats that say Penny was the best back after contact in college, by far last year. With a suspect line, This is probably more important than most stats.

    – Not overly excited about Green, but he certainly fills a need

    – SOOOOOOOO thankful I got my wish of Shaquem in the 5th. Hawks nailed that valuation and he should go a long way towards improving the culture of the organization.

    – Trading up for a Punter is normally considered a head scratching move, but I like it. Ryan will always have a soft spot in my heart, but his time was up. He definitely wasnt worth the cap hit for the quality of play he was giving. I don’t thin the value of ST is stressed enough and having a punter that can do the things Dickson can do is going to be huge. Hekker is a difference maker for the Rams, now we have one as well.

    – I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that Cable is now ruining the Raiders and the Hawks were actually able to draft a competent OT in Jones. Finally we get a guy that is already a polished Tackle and not a college basketball player “project.” Fant has been somewhat forgotten about, but now he can move over to RT, Jones backs up at LT, and Ifedi can either move inside or just rot away on the bench…I don’t care either way. As long as he isnt left on the outside by himself, I don’t care. I think folks are sleeping on the potential of the OL this year with just the one draftee. 4 of 5 starters returning with the 5th being a glorious upgrade in at least the run game, Fant returning, new OL coach, and a real actual OL with experience from the draft….man I don’t even know how to deal with all that.

    – Tre Flowers is intriguing to me. Dude hits like a truck and has enough length to make a yard stick jealous. The question is how he adjusts to playing CB and can he bring a ST value? Thorpe is pretty unexciting at CB, but has the ST advantage. I think Griffin, Coleman, and Maxie are safe, but the other 2 spots are up for grabs and cuold be quite the legendary battle in camp.

    – Bottom of the draft: depth and nothing more. I don’t really expect any of the last couple guys to do much more than push for a roster spot. But that is ultimately what this offseason has been about. Getting back to the “Always Compete” mantra. I think the Hawks lost a lot of that over the last couple years and it dulled their edge. Lets get back to the hard nose, hard hitting competition that made the Hawks great previously.
    I can’t wait for th\raining camp to start and to see where everything falls!

  63. Largent80

    It’s going to be the most interesting season since 2010 in my opinion. And they addressed every concern with a great level of commitment.

    Considering the ammo they had I thought they picked up a good group of players PLUS they got some good possibilities in UDFA.

  64. Kenny Sloth

    The only post draft stuff for Seattle podcasts is super negative so far because they already know that the run game is overrated and overvalued. Don’t need to review the actual players.

    “I’m not even interested in this as a debate anymore…. There’s no evidence out there for the pro-running back position” Peltoncast

    • john_s

      As in the words of Kevin Durant the “Blog boys” are out in force on this overvalue of the RB position.

      I will just say this –
      Spencer Ware – had good couple years
      Robert Turbin
      Christine Micheal
      CJ Procise
      Alex Collins – Had a good year last year
      Zac Brooks
      Chris Carson

      Seattle has tried to go moneyball with the RB’s and it hasn’t worked. They need a guy, one guy who they can count on to be there 16 games.

      None of the current backs on the roster before the draft have proven that they can be the guy.

    • john_s

      I just went out to the Peltoncast and saw who he was speaking with. Of course the guy who has been at the forefront of Seahawks twitter pushing the overvalue of RB narrative.

      • Kenny Sloth

        It’s good work.

        Just wish they didn’t agree with themselves so much

        • john_s

          It’s good work, but the total dismissal of the running game is absurd.

          The guy says that he would be ok if the Seahawks drafted Saquon Barkley in the 3rd round and Marshawn was a little overvalued by Seahawks fans.

          Basically this is like basketball analytics emphasizing the 3 and baseball emphasizing OBP.

          • Kenny Sloth

            You can br physical with the passing game

            But the ground and pound is a culture.

            • Mr. Offseason

              I think these people are on the right track with the RB position but are taking the wrong route (if that metaphor makes sense). A good RB can be very valuable to your team. It’s the market for RBs that is depressed. This means you don’t necessarily have to take an RB in the first round if you can avoid it. Furthermore, you should almost definitely not take on in the first 15 picks unless he’s a total game breaker. You also shouldn’t pay one more than market value because he’s “special”; the Steelers are treating the Le’Veon Bell situation right.

              You can find good RBs later in the draft and for sub-$5m in FA. Using your high resources on shallow positions is smarter, if you can help it. Take the rare pass rushing DEs. Take the lockdown LTs and CBs early and often. You can get a good RB in the mid-rounds who can be a very important part of your team without all the cost involved. There is simply a larger, more versatile pool of talent in the RB corps than in others.

              I do like the Rashaad Penny selection, though. I think he has a chance to be like Marshall Faulk, a do-everything RB that Russell can rely on. I don’t think he’ll ever be nearly as good as Marshall Faulk, but I think he can be a very dependable runningback who will be able to move the needle in many different ways for the Seahawks.

              • AlaskaHawk

                I think the Seahawks used six different running backs last year. The highest was third round and lowest was UDFA. they tried to get by on the cheap but have had the worst of injury luck in that regard.

                It was only two years ago that I was convinced that Rawls was the second coming of Shawn Alexander. Until he broke his ankle. It was so sad.

                Anyway – I’m willing to double down on this choice next year. Get another good back in second round. Dump the 5-6 backup running backs and clear up space for more important positions.

                • Lewis

                  And the thing is, in the preseason, I honestly thought we had an embarrassment of riches. Turns out it was just an embarrassment,

    • H

      I really hope the Giants win the super bowl this year, if for no other reason than to end this narrative.
      Could happen if Eli plays ok and the stay healthy

  65. Comfect

    I’d like to join the chorus of people thanking Rob for all his hard work and amazing analysis. So thank you, Rob. I’m continually in awe of how much effort and thought you continually put in.

    Also, this is a really fun community–probably the only online community where I always choose to read the comments and never regret it.

    As for the picks: I’m sad they couldn’t or didn’t trade down again from 27, not because I didn’t like the Penny pick (I’m willing to trust their evaluation of which RB was the best for their system at least until proven otherwise) but because I always love more draft capital. But the actual picks they did make look really good. Here’s hoping they either extend Earl or someone really breaks the bank for him and we manage to come out with an actual comp pick (unlike this year).

    • Rob Staton

      Thanks!

  66. H

    After some thought here’s my opening week depth chart/53
    I am a sucker for new players over the old, but this year I really think that’s the direction they lean into, getting back to always compete.

    QB 2 : Wilson, McGough
    I’ve came away impressed with McGough from what I’ve seen. Davis could win the back up spot, but this is the team that rolled with Boykin in 2016

    RB 5 : Carson, Penny, Prosise, Davis, McKissick
    We kept 5 running backs last year and, given all the injuries we’ve had I expect that to continue. McKissick and Prosise also add WR depth. Carson’s pass blocking keeps him the day 1 starter.

    FB 1 : Khalid Hill
    He scored 13 TDs in 2016, there’s some of Graham’s redzone production made up for right there

    WR 5 : Baldwin, Lockett, Moore, Brown, Darboh
    The fact that they brought David Moore of the practise squad to avoid losing him is telling, they think they’ve got player here so Im going to punt for him to, not just make the roster but, be the third receiver.

    TE 3 : Dickson, Dissly, Vannett
    This one’s obvious right?

    OL 9 :
    LT : Brown, Jones
    LG : Pocic, Roos
    C : Britt (Pocic)
    LG : Fluker, Ifedi, Skyler Phillips
    RT : Fant, Ifedi
    This is a new era of Seahawks Oline play and the mistakes of the past will not be lingered on. Fant was the best lineman last preseason and you could tell how devastated Pete was when he got injured, I expect him to beat out Ifedi who goes into the right guard battle but Solari vouches for his man Fluker. Odhiambo doesn’t make the team; he’s been terrible whenever he’s played and we have plenty of guard/tackle depth now.

    DL 9 :
    LEO : Clark, Smith III
    5tech : Jordan, Green
    3 tech : Johnson, Naz
    1 tech: Reed, Stephen, Poona
    Poona is making this team.

    LB 6 :
    Sam : Mingo, Pugh
    Mike : Wagner, Alexander
    Will : Wright, Shaquem
    I went with a 6th linbacker over another LEO because Mingo, Pugh and Griffin can all provide some edge depth. Keeping Pugh gives us a back up SAM, he was also a special teams standout at FSU.

    DB 10 :
    Corner 6 : Shaquill, Maxwell, Coleman, Dontae Johnson, Flowers, Thorpe
    Safety 4 : Thomas III, McDougald, Hill, Thompson
    Flowers ability to be an emergency safety and, I assume from his speed and ferocious tackling, a good special teamer. All this keeps him on the 53 over a 5th safety.

    K 1 : Seabass
    P 1 : Dickson
    LS 1 : Ott
    This Punter is a good pick guys. One of the big reasons behind the Rams blowout was a terrible punt game.

    • All I see is 12s

      That last point about the rams game was excellent

    • Mr. Offseason

      I think your roster is super solid. I think that Carew will beat out Ott for the LS spot though. He was the kick coverage MVP of the Senior Bowl, had multiple tackles and downed punts inside the 20. It would probably save a tiny bit of cash from Ott’s $630k cap hit I’m guessing.

      • H

        Could very well do, I just knew nothing about him so didn’t put him in.

    • Cameron

      Mostly agree. Wild card could be Swoopes’ development. Given Schotty’s expected frequent use of 2-TE sets, I wouldn’t be surprised by keeping 4 TE’s on the roster. Schotty is also known to use TE in the FB role, so could save a roster spot there (depending on if they truly see K Hill or other as having significant additional value, such as the TD production you alluded to).

      I strongly believe that DeAndre Elliott will be on the roster, if not starting. Given significantly more time in the system, and what I saw in preseason last year before the injury, I’d see him as taking Dontae Johnson’s spot as the direct backup, if not able to beat out Maxwell for the starting CB2.

      • Ely

        Agreed Cameron! The exact changes I would make too! I think Swoopes looked really good last preseason and you have to remember it was his first try being a TE. He looked like he and russel had a connection and he just had a feel for the soft spots in the zone. No idea if he can block but I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes Vannets spot or they carry 4 TE’s. Also Elliot looked like he was well on his way to being the first guy in as backup last year. I was pretty bummed when he broke his leg. I think he could press for some playing time. I think procise has to stay healthy through camp or he might be gone. At some point you just have to have guys you can rely on.

    • Comfect

      So the two people I wonder about here are Deandre Elliott and Mike Tyson in the DB ranks, but I think a lot of what you’re saying here makes sense.

    • Simo

      A good looking early projection, thanks for putting it together. It will be interesting if any of Avril, Kam, or McDowell are cleared to play this year. This would surely bump some good young players, all of whom need playing time, off the final 53! It should be fun to see it play out though.

      • hawktalker#1

        What a smokin’ great post and thread. Thanks all, an outstanding read.

    • j hawk

      H I really liked your picks. Could be close when all is said and done. Only Mckissick I would change out for someone else, maybe udfa or pickup from another team.

  67. Largent80

    Good work H.

  68. Cameron

    One thing of note on positional trends, with regard to offensive linemen, their only target (Jones) almost certainly would have fallen well short of the 3.0 TEF score previously sought in OL. Instead, I’m hearing a lot about how despite the lack of athletic measurables, Jones was a good value pick having succeeded on the basis of technique and was just flat out good at doing his job in college.

    We know from comments provided by Cable while he was here that he sought primarily highly athletic linemen to work within his zone based scheme. With Solari, as well as Schotty’s new run-game system, I wonder just how predictive TEF will be going forward. It’s possible we see (and have already started to see) a shift in priorities regarding traits/evaluation of OL prospects out of college, where athletic measurables become secondary to less tangible/measurable traits (i.e. the eye test watching film, evaluating existing fundamentals & technique).

    • Mr. Offseason

      My thinking is that Jones suffered some kind of injury before the combine that hindered his performance. Not only was his athletic performance bad, it was the worst overall athletic performance EVER. None of his actual athletic testing graded above 11th percentile. When you look at his tape, that’s just not there. I have to assume he had something bothering him at the combine but still wanted to record something for scouts.

      After being such a solid tackle in college, I am surprised he fell to the 5th round. Usually when a player has a bad combine, teams just check the tape to see if they missed anything. With Jones, it’s easy to see that the combine does not define the player he is. And yet, he fell to the fifth round, so idk?

    • Rob Staton

      I think we’ve already addressed this though, Cameron.

      When we did the TEF scores this year it was acknowledged that they were based on a Tom Cable physical ideal. We did the scores not as a predictor of what the Seahawks might do (and thus, I didn’t do any articles saying they might take player X based on TEF). We did the scores purely as a means of comparing physical attributes. TEF might not tell us who they’re considering drafting. But it does still compare all the different players in terms of explosive traits.

      The O-liners I talked about the most for the Seahawks were Austin Corbett, Billy Price and Isaiah Wynn. Corbett didn’t score a 3.00 and Price/Wynn didn’t test.

      • Cameron

        Got it, I just recall the evaluation of TEF for the lot and highlighting of those over 3.0, so that’s what was stuck in my mind through the process. Also pointing it out as an interesting (to me at least) storyline/concept to monitor in subsequent drafts going forward. 🙂

    • Kenny Sloth

      Athletics were never their primary determinant.

      Under Cable they valued grit and intelligence much more than testing numbers

      • EBurgz

        Right. Cable was here last year and they drafted Pocic. The year before Odiambo.

        The glowinski/Sokoli/Poole draft was all TEF guys (and Britt/Scott/Gilliam before them) but since it hasn’t seemed to be a great predictor (still super interesting). Now that Solari is here it’s probably not a thing at all.

        • Kenny Sloth

          I’m sure they still have some athletic qualities they like. Especially length

          I just think the tape and level of competition is going to factor more heavily.

          Production, character, and dependability.

  69. Logan Lynch

    Trying to catch up after the long weekend. Here are my thoughts. I was wrong on most of my pre-draft predictions…surprise surprise! They did draft a backup QB (and P for that matter) and didn’t save them for UDFA. There were not more D players drafted than O (4 on D, 4 on O, 1 ST). I expected them to target a pass catching back…they called Penny a 3 down back so maybe that counts a bit? I said they would trade Earl…if the highest DAL was offering was that 3rd I’m glad they didn’t. My one correct prediction was that they would draft at least 2 DL – one being a Moses replacement and the other an Avril replacement. Green is clearly in the same vein as MB, and Martin will be a LEO, so that one looks to be correct.

    This may have been discussed already, but it seems like SEA really focused on analytics this season. In pretty much every press conference surrounding the draft, PCJS mentioned something about analytics. They had a lot of stats backing up Penny. When talking about Shaquem they mentioned something about a “critical stop %” or similar. The QB they drafted was their 2nd ranked in “off the spot” completion % behind Mayfield (side note, I bet Baker was their highest rated QB also). It just really seemed to be a focus along with character.

    Other random thoughts:

    – I see people saying Hubbard was their preferred choice over Green. I think Rob was right that it was actually Nnadi. The fact that they took Penny early and traded up for Dickson show me that if Hubbard was really “their guy”, they would not have taken the chance to trade down 2 spots for an extra 7th. Hubbard and Green were probably graded the same and they were fine with either one. Poona is likely a Nnadi consolation prize.

    – I may have wanted Fumagalli, but Dissly became one of my favorite picks. His “No sh*t” reaction to JS on the call was priceless.

    – A lot of these UDFAs seem super athletic. Khalid Hill and Poona have my eye already.

    – As Rob mentioned, we didn’t draft a WR. Someone is going to step up this year. I get the same feelings H did above about David Moore and I can’t really explain why.

    – Love the blog, can’t wait to continue the discussions. Is it rookie mini camp time yet??

    • AlaskaHawk

      As far as receivers go, they have three more UDFA camp bodies to try out. Plus there will be cast offs when the cuts start happening. So I would anticipate one of them making the starting squad.

      The other part is, with this renewed emphasis on the run, RW may not be passing as much in early season. They may choose to work on run blocking until they get it right.

      • Logan Lynch

        All good points. I also think there may be more of a focus on using the RBs in the pass game this season.

  70. cha

    Browns just waived Kasen Williams. Maybe the Hawks bring him back into the mix at WR.

    • Coleslaw

      Id like that but if he can’t make it onthe browns roster he won’t here, worth a shot

      • Mr. Offseason

        It’s worth it to get him in the mix. He’s one of our guys! It’s possible that he flashes again and none of McEvoy, Johnson II, and David Moore, any of the UDFAs do. He could end up being WR 4 or 5 when all’s said and done.

        It’s weird that he went from being a 1st round pick to just fighting for a roster spot.

      • Lewis

        Eeeh, I wouldn’t let the Browns judge talent. They have quite a history of other teams picking up their castoffs. Spoken as a former season ticket holder.

  71. Brett

    Can anyone give me a good explanation of why Poona Ford wasn’t invited to the combine and then fell out of the draft? Just because of height or are there other concerns?

    • Mr. Offseason

      I think it’s his height and according to Mike Mayock: “The old-school nose tackle that can play has been de-emphasized a little bit.” Sounds like teams aren’t really looking for gap-shooting NT’s/1-tech’s. But he was Big-12 defensive lineman of the year and by all accounts was a really important player for Charlie Strong. He was also a first-team all Big 12 selection last year. He was a four-star high school recruit. I don’t really get it.

      Yet again, the Seahawks may have benefitted from the league not wanting a player who’s “too short.” At DT, though, being short helps with leverage and shooting gaps.

      • Mr. Offseason

        Here’s another snippet from NFL.com.

        “Ford played in a slant-heavy, scheme in 2017 that asked him to try and disrupt in the gaps. While Ford flashed the ability to stack blocks and play with some strength at the point of attack, his lack of overall mass could make it tough for teams to see him in anything other than a penetrating, 4-3 scheme. Ford has a shot at making a team, but his lack of physical traits will be a challenge.”

        Also says under weaknesses that if he doesn’t win with power, he won’t win. Says he focuses too much on the blocker in front of him.

      • TCHawk

        I heard Brock Huard on 710 ESPN say that he probably fell due to a medical concern, although he never missed a game because of it. He said the Texas coaches all said Poona was The Man, the alpha dog and leader of the team this last year. All think really highly of him, including Huard who called several of their games.

  72. LouieLouie

    Hey Rob:
    I enjoyed reading your articles leading up to the draft. I think you did an outstanding job in your analysis and your insights. For Seahawk fans who pay attention to the draft, Seahawks Draft Blog is the best spot on the internet.

    • Rob Staton

      Thank you, means a lot!

  73. EP

    The thing I’m looking forward to more than anything next season is the development of Shaq. Hopefully he can become elite. Would love to see him get some more interceptions under his belt.

  74. pran

    Did they add a Kicker for competition from UDFA pool?

    • Cameron

      Not that I’ve seen. Seems the “competition” will be between Myers and SeaBass, but with the guarantees and salary of SeaBass, I have a hard time seeing him not being the guy for 2018.

      • pran

        sad…they are rolling the dice and hoping it works. both are no good at this point in time.

    • Rob Staton

      Jason Myers

      • pran

        He was a failure with Jags..no hopes

  75. Madmark

    A list of UDFA guys for Seattle
    https://www.fieldgulls.com/2018/4/28/17296846/seattle-seahawks-2018-udfa-signings-tracker-college

    • Logan Lynch

      The Mockdraftable comps for Jacob Pugh are really interesting. He could be one to watch since we need LB depth too.

      • Madmark

        I really think Poona Ford DT Texas has a shot at making the roster. Its another story when we took Russel Wilson. This guy will definitely have a chip on his shoulder with short guy attitude. The fact that he wasn’t draft will be motivation to get job done.

        • JimQ

          Aaron Donald isn’t exactly a giant, maybe the shorter guys with good leverage becomes a trend?

        • Lewis

          He’s short, but has long arms. That gives him the ability get under the taller o-line guys. Think he can be really good.

  76. Volume12

    Who’s everyone’s sleeper team this year? Mine…??

    Chicago Bears

    • Logan Lynch

      Not sure if they really qualify as a sleeper, but the Chargers.

      • AlaskaHawk

        They definitely qualify!!!

      • 80SLargent

        After losing the first 4 games last year, they finished out 9-3. Those 3 losses were on the road against playoff teams (New England, Jacksonville, Kansas City). They’re winning the AFC West this season.

    • Tecmo Bowl

      Like the Bears draft a lot too-3 impact starters.

      The Bengals had an excellent draft, especially when you factor in quality LT Cordy Glenn.

      OL- Price, Cordy Glenn
      RB- Walton is a Gio clone
      WR- Auden Tate
      DL- Hubbard, Brown
      LB- Jefferson
      CB- Phillips, Harris
      S- Bates

      • Volume12

        I just looked at their depth on ourlads.com and your right. Cincy has a good looking roster after their draft.

    • Kenny Sloth

      If Lamar beats out Joe fair n square?

      Baltimore

    • SoCal12

      I think I might actually root for Tennessee this year in the AFC. I like their QB, their new coach and most of the talent they have building there. I think they can make another good playoff run even though I’m not sure they’re SB ready yet.

    • 503Hawk

      I don’t think either of these qualify for “sleepers”, but I think both TB and NYG are going to be good.

      • Volume12

        Yup. IMO the Bears, Broncos, Giants, and Bucs had the best drafts.

      • pran

        If only TB HC can step up..make or break season for coach.

        • Coleslaw

          I don’t think it’s make or break, they were in the same boat as us last year, no running game and no pass pro. Winston was banged up all year and they had minimal defensive talent. They went from a bottom 10 roster to top 15. I see a breakout year for Jameis. The yards and TDs won’t be much higher than his usual, but his completion % will spike with the running game. Shoot with the best defense I could actually see 4,500 yards from him

          • Coleslaw

            Better defense*

    • H

      Chicago have had an excellent offseason. Anthony Miller is gonna be so productive in a Chiefs style offence.
      The Bucs we’re my sleeper last year, but theyre gonna be it again. They rebuilt their dline, added a couple nice corners, got RoJo and my favourite day 3 wr Watson.

    • Coleslaw

      TB for NFC, Chargers for AFC. Gordon gonna go off behind that line

    • cha

      Tampa. 5-11 last year and 7 losses of 6 points or less. Basically if they had a kicker they’d have been at least 8-8 with literally nothing else changing. Even if all they do is progress to the mean they’ll be in playoff contention.

      They had a terrific draft and Winston should be healthy and ready to step up in his 4th year. Try doing anything against that DL.

      Also, I honestly think the media is going to peg the Seahawks for a down year. There’s going to be tons of talk about Sherman, Bennett, Kam and Avril gone. But there won’t be any talk of how those guys missed significant portions of 2017 and the Hawks still went 9-7 and with a break here or there are 10-6 or 11-5. Combine that with the Rams’ go-for-broke approach and there will be a lot of stories about the Hawks’ days ruling the NFCW are over.

      Maybe they won’t be a traditional sleeper but I think lots of national folks are going to underestimate them with that stupid narrative of losing so many star players.

      • Coleslaw

        9-7 with that team and there were 3 games we lost that if Walsh made his kicks, we would have been 12-4 and Carroll would be the “next belichick”. All if we had paid Hauschka instead of Eddie Lacy.

        • icb12

          Letting Hauschka walk was one of the dumbest things the FO has done.

          Still drives me nuts.

    • icb12

      Are the broncos a sleeper? They took home quite a haul over the draft.

      No excuses for Joseph now..

    • nichansen01

      Buccs, Chargers

  77. JimQ

    I think this draft proved that PC/JS meant exactly what they said when they announced that they had trimmed there big board down to eliminate players with any significant off-field concerns or any major injury history. It seems logical to me to continue that trend in the years to come. Also the really significance importance of mental makeup (love of the game, desire to be great & their “heart” issues) has importance. A big part of the future scouting is that we as fans are often not privy to much of this information, but we should all realize that that is a major aspect of future drafts by the Seahawks, As Rob has often shown us, the player interviews are a big, big, big factor for being a Seahawk draft pick now. (As if we didn’t have enough to consider in evaluations already.)

    Another thought I’d like to throw out is something I gleaned from the post draft Penney interview. What makes me curious is Penney’s response about – if the Seahawks had much contact with him prior to the draft. Penney said the Seahawks had been in constant contact with him. The Seahawks basically kept there interest under wraps. I also have to wonder if Griffin was told that if any other teams come sniffing around him to instantly call JS on his personal cell phone, so PC/JS could help him join his brother? Sounds far fetched, but still I wonder……

    • Volume12

      The only thing or connection to Penny that I read or saw was a pic of West Coast scout Tyler Ramsey and Penny talking/laughing with each other at SD St’s pro day.

      I’m seeing some on Hawks Twitter now complaining that ‘Be Humble’ was their approach to this draft. Dirty diapers over ‘You don’t win with those types!’ If Seattle had stuck to trying to fix guys with character concerns, track records of being hurt, wild cards, I doubt the response would’ve been different. I honestly don’t get it.

      • Volume12

        Another good one I saw from a fairly prominent member of Hawks Twitter was, ‘I wish Seattle hadn’t drafted a great RB at the end of the 1st.’

        The F*** is that even supposed to mean?

        • Rob Staton

          It means… ‘I place ideology over common sense’

      • Logan Lynch

        I’m with you, man. Did you hear the interview with Penny’s coach at SDSU on Clayton from Friday? They were talking about how humble Penny is, but the coach made no bones about it that he’s super competitive. Just because you’re humble, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not confident or competitive. I think they want more guys like Bobby and Kam who are pretty quiet off the field, but alpha’s on the field.

        And the whole thing about Pete “toning down” the team? That dude gets more fired up on the field than almost anyone else. I guarantee there will still be swag on this squad and big balls Pete will be right there with them.

      • John_s

        Yep Seahawks twitter is hanging on that comment from Pete to Quem.

        I think it’s super obvious what Pete was meaning there. Quem is going to get so much media attention, requests for interviews and appearances that Pete wanted to remind Quem to stay humble.

        Look at Michael Sam. Great story but then all the attention he received went to his head and he felt he deserved a spot instead of earning it.

  78. Jason

    Have the hawks officially announced UDFA yet?

  79. Madmark

    I going to give you the ramblings of a mad man on this draft. Its a B+ and its not just the draft but I like the FA signing before the draft. The Byron Maxwell signing was a key to helping in this draft. He knows the system here so well he thrives in it and that’s why he wasn’t so successful in other defenses. Now the media today have written the Seahawks off and they shot down are draft nationally. We aren’t going to fall as far as some might think. The only reason I don’t consider this draft an A was the lack of picks in the 2nd round. That’s it. They did what they wanted to do. They had to take Rashaad Penny this guy really does tick the boxes in every way. the coach Rocky Long had a chat with John Clayton on ESPN 710 kiro here. John ask coach well they say he not a good blocking back and the coach said that’s all on us coaches cause we wanted the football in his hands instead. He’s a play maker that has a chance to take it to the house at times, catch ball outta the backfield, and return kicks and punts but if he starts at RB he may only return kicks I think. Rashaam Green DT from USC will take a year he has some work to still do but where you got him the draft his potential is thru the roof and he’s young. I think he buys into Pete’s philosophy. Will Dissly is a monster to take zack Miller spot he will block and help that run game and if he popes 25 reception half of those for 1st down its a win here. Griffin will come in and be that Special Team leader and we instantly get another Ricardo Locket. There is always a need to a great special team player to inspire the team. Nothing to be ashamed of to be K.J. Wright backup,. LB is a tough position and anything can happen. Tre Flowers looked at him as Snead player could play multiple position in the backfield but he does tick all the boxes as a CB and with Maxwell has a year or 2 to get ready. No one coaches up DB like Pete Carol he Couched some of the best in San Fran for Bill Walsh. Michael Dickson again Seattle just doesn’t address the running game but also the special teams. It felt like it was the time to move on and its said this is the best punter in the draft. We got him and then you saw the flurry of 4 going real fast after which tells me there were 4 teams that need a punter. Jamarco jones is interesting he was a 3rd round draft till the combine. I’m not sure what was the deal but his tape in games is not bad as you would think. He should easily make it as a backup. Jacob Martin DE is a need and you have to takes chances here will have time to learn. Alex McGough QB the Ron Wolf system for getting QBs works he may end up be a practice squad guy but multi QBs have gone down to injury and having a backup does not hurt. A UDFA we got in Poona Ford DT fromTexas I have good feelings about this guy. I would love here the conversation that he could have with Doug Baldwin because I think he has a chip on his shoulder as Doug’s. Not invited to the combine and not being draft this guys has a lot to be angry about. Well with this draft we addressed the run game, got some defense player for backup, and we addressed the special teams this year with a punter, returner, and a gunner. I think this could be our 2012 year slipping into the wildcard and as with Atlanta that year just miss the NFC Championship. My FA pick that Seattle signed is Jared Brown I have this feeling with a good QB he will be a surprise to a lot of people. For what we had when we started I like this class cause I believe all of them love football and when they get here they will have something to prove.

    • Lewis

      Paragraphs are our friends.

      • hawktalker#1

        LOL – I looked at that giant post of text and said to myself, “am I ready to try and read all that”?

        Yes was the answer, but I was honestly concerned about getting “gigantic-mono-paragraph-indigestion”. 🙂

  80. Ishmael

    I think the funniest thing I’ve found about the fallout from the draft is the national analysts falling over themselves to praise the Patriots for taking Michel at 31 while crucifying the Hawks for taking Penny at 27, an entire four picks earlier.

    • Ishmael

      Although the other one was Kevin Clark and Robert Mays on the Ringer NFL podcast in furious agreement that teams should draft based on athletic traits and not put any stock into personality, only for Mays to state all of 30 seconds later that he loved the Colts taking Quentin Nelson because of his attitude.

      Lot of galaxy brain blog boys around at this time of year

    • 80SLargent

      The even funnier thing about that is, the Patriots were probably the ones Schneider said were trying to trade for Penny AFTER he was drafted at #27.
      Remember, the Patriots lost Dion Lewis in free agency. He was a very efficient back with his carries, and among other things, their kickoff returner.
      Penny also happens to be a very efficient back with his carries, and oh yeah, an ace kickoff returner. If the Patriots picked Penny at 31, everyone would continue to fall over themselves about another genius Belichick draft pick.
      Seattle picks Penny at #27, oh yeah, “total reach” (rolls eyes).

  81. DC

    I don’t see this on any of the ‘lists’ but Khalid Hill aka The Hammering Panda is heading to Seattle.

    https://www.maizenbrew.com/2018/4/29/17298710/khalid-hill-signed-by-the-seattle-seahawks-michigan-football-nfl-pro-blue-udfa

  82. Coleslaw

    Are we sleeping on Jaron Brown a little bit? I mean he could actually jump Lockett on the depth chart just cause hes more of an X receiver and has the size to win off the line. Lockett and Baldwin can split time in the flanker/slot spots.
    Brown is 6’2 205 and has never been given a chance to be more than the #3 guy. 2 years ago he had only 11 catches in 7 games (3 of 5 of his seasons are 11 catches), but his YPC spiked up to 17.0. He followed that up last year with a line of 31/477/4TDs. 15.4 YPC and 23 of his 31 catches moved the chains.
    He had a bad catch rate of 44.9% and I attribute that to a case of the dropsies, and QB play. When you look at his catch rate on catchable passes, it’s 65.2%, he caught 31 of 45 “catchable” balls.
    Is he our X? Idk

    • Coleslaw

      If he got 80 targets from Wilson, and 60 were catchable, that would equal out to about 41 catches, 620 yards, and 5-6 TDs. With a need for a big body playmaker, hed likely draw red zone targets he didn’t draw ever before in his career. Make the (theoretical) stat line 45/650/7-8 TDs being conservative, thats only converting a couple of the red zone attempts. If hes 50% in the red zone the line could be more like 50/700/10 TDS.

      • Hawktalker#1

        I actually like this guy a ton. Looks to get good separation and does well with contested balls. Sound like a guys RW might want to target?

        • Coleslaw

          I agree completely just the hands are iffy for me, I’m not convinced they’re a problem, just maybe slightly below average. What I do know is that hes on the up and up. Last 2 years hes been getting better fast. He’s got an opportunity to take a major role for us IMO, if Kearse could, Brown definitely can lol. A real QB and a lot of play action off the run, it’ll be an exciting/ interesting year for the offense

  83. CharlieTheUnicorn

    Who’s everyone’s sleeper team this year? ~ Vol12

    New York Football Giants

    The offense is going to light it up (it will be lit in modern lingo)
    The defense still needs some work, but I’m not convinced anyone in the division is going to pull away from the NFCE pack. Dare I say they will win the NFCE with a 9-7 record… and win a SB 😉

  84. CharlieTheUnicorn

    Vol 12

    On the radio today, the Seahawks had Penny rated as the #2 back in the draft.
    You would never guess who they had #3? Yes, Chubb.

    • Hawktalker#1

      I’m gonna be watching RoJo like a hawk this year just because I gotta know how stacks up against Chubb and Penny.

  85. Pedestrian

    Oh boy, idk if my comment will even be read all the way down here. But been wondering (and checking) if hawks will bring in competition at kicker. Really don’t want to lose games next season because our kicker couldn’t kick a 30 yard FG

    • Hawktalker#1

      Kinda suprised they didn’t grab a UDFA kicker to come in and compete.

    • HawkfaninMT

      Janikowski

      • Hawktalker#1

        ??

        • HawkfaninMT

          They signed Janikowski. Is the OP saying he doesn’t think SeaBass can make 30 yard kicks? The Hawks have Jason Myers and janikowski on their roster. Two Ks is enough I think

  86. Hawktalker#1

    Anyone have any tape of Hill blocking and not just scoring TDs?

    • peter

      i dont but a good start would be to try and find tape of the running backs on the team and watch for him that way.

  87. Hawktalker#1

    Lukewarm take: Hawks win 10-11 games this year fueled by a fired up running game, upgraded special teams (punting, coverage and returning), improved depth across the board, an effective OL and a surgical passing attack made possible by RW getting 1-2 seconds on average more it an he previous three seasons.

    In the playoffs, anything can happen.

    I’m especially anxious to see how our improved OL, blocking TEs, blocking FB and our new RB bring life and fear back to Seahawks running game. Once that happens, the whole field will open up for us.

  88. Coleslaw

    Holy cow! Jaquan Johnson is a BEAST! Definitely someone to watch this year as an earl replacement. The dude is so rangy and fast, BIG hitter, quick to diagnose a run or screen and blow it up, sure tackler when hes not trying to knock someone’s head off. Hes a ball of energy on the field and obviously loves to hit people. One play vs ND he just starts jumping cause he doesnt know what to do after the ball carrier got tackled before he could knock him back to his Grammas house in the late 90s.
    Wanna see him play more disciplined and not let guys get past him, seems like awareness, gets caught playing other receivers and is late to the ball. Only 5’10 190lbs so he can get blocked out of a play if he gets engaged. Playing more disciplined will help with that, although hed be way off the LOS for us as a deep free safety.
    I like the kid a lot.

    • hawktalker#1

      Love it – 2019 draft work already underway.

  89. Millhouse-serbia

    Report: Seahawks wanted Cowboys’ second-rounder for Earl Thomas

    My.guess is that ET will not be seahawks by training camp. 2nd.round 2019 + maybe 4th round 2020.

    • Rob Staton

      I’m not sure about that — if nobody’s even willing to give them a second rounder, it changes the entire complexion of the situation.

  90. Old but Slow

    Just for entertainment purposes, it is fun to look at the pundits post draft grades. Nearly all of them start off by declaring that it is way to early to judge the draft, but… Here we go anyway. In other words, it’s way too early but the Seahawks flubbed the dub.

    Too bad that we don’t make them eat their words 2-3 years later. But, then the mush mouthed excuses would be hard to stomach.

  91. Coach

    Do you think we bring in a free agent wr to come in and help out since we didn’t draft one? I see Dontrell Inman is out there. He had some good moments in San Diego.

    What do you think?

    Go Hawks!

  92. James

    For those who have fallen prey to this nonsense about Shaquem’s 4.38/40 time being a mistake, how do you explain this? This is visual proof that Shaquem ran faster than Saquon Barkley’s 4.40, unless you believe that time was also a mistake? But here it is… Chark, 4.34, Shaquem 4.38, Barkley 4.40, Calvin Ridley 4.43.

    And just to confirm, there is another super-imposed video of Shaquem and Shaquill doing their 40’s. We know for a fact that Shaquill ran a 4.38 last year (unless you believe that was also a mistake), and in the overlay Shaquem beats his brother by a hair, again confirming his 4.38.

    For anyone interested in facts and not click bait, there it is.

    http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-combine/0ap3000000919329/Simulcam-Shaquem-Griffin-vs-D-J-Chark-vs-Saquon-Barkley-vs-Calvin-Ridley?icampaign=“search-video-shaquem+griffin+40”

    • 80SLargent

      That Field Gulls article, along with the one about how much weight he gives up by not having a left hand; complete garbage. We should be celebrating getting Shaquill’s twin brother and a 2nd coming of Rufus Porter instead of trying to trash his combine 40 time and talking about stuff like that. I posted it elsewhere and I’ll post it here, by my non-scientific calculations, Shaquem’s heart weighs about 227#, that’s all I need to know.

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