Last year I gave the Seahawks an A+ grade for their 2022 draft haul. It proved to be a deserved grade, with many of the picks having an immediate impact while laying the foundations for the future.
This year, they’ve built on that success and taken the roster to another level — adding talent at various positions while improving the overall depth, quality, violence and leadership on the team. It deserves another A+.
It’s always easier to achieve success when you have more picks, especially in the early rounds. Yet the Seahawks have executed a plan well and deserve credit for the additions they’ve made over the last three days.
High character, high talent
A week ago I spoke to someone who’s been in the Seahawks locker room and asked what he expected from this 2023 class. Here’s what I wrote in a corresponding article, discussing the answer:
The source suggested Seattle was seeking the ‘next wave’ of leadership. That the way they drafted a year ago, plus the decision to bring back Bobby Wagner and Jarran Reed, had been a concerted effort to create a particular dynamic in the locker room.
It’s felt that the pick at #5 will need to add to that. It’ll need to be someone who can come in and fit into that culture. The description used was ‘firebrand’ — someone with the grit, energy and tone-setting qualities that can help elevate this team. The attitude has to match the talent.
Devon Witherspoon completely fit the bill at #5 and alongside Derick Hall could be the future soul of this team. They are physical and aggressive on the field, helping to set a tone. Off the field they are driven and focused. They’ll lead by example and drive the culture for the future.
All of the other picks fit in behind this. They didn’t take any character risks. They’re determined to create a locker room that can come together with a common goal, support each other and drive towards a Championship run in the future.
It’s not a surprise — they’ve stated their intentions multiple times over the last 12 months. It wasn’t difficult to project they’d continue with that plan, having put the success of the 2022 class down to a renewed focus on character.
The roster is coming together, on and off the field.
Best player available is the right approach
Free agency is for addressing key needs, the draft is for adding talent.
That should always be the approach. The Seahawks would probably admit that, for several years, they didn’t follow this plan. They nickel and dime’d certain positions in the veteran market then forced needs in the draft.
This is the second year in a row where the plan has been on point. They made a big free agency splash to add Dre’Mont Jones — a much needed impact defensive lineman. They followed that up with Jarran Reed before adding the likes of Bobby Wagner and Julian Love. Talent was acquired at every level of the defense and their big investment in Jones added a quality player at a good age.
That set up the draft for BPA. They didn’t force anything. They picked players where the value was high, rapidly upgrading their talent across the board.
This is a more physical team in 2023
Devon Witherspoon was the most violent player in the draft. Derick Hall is very aggressive and tough. You’ll get a shift up front from Anthony Bradford and Cameron Young. Zach Charbonnet is a classic Seahawks runner who drives through contact. The Michigan duo had a lot of success on a BIG-10 winning team.
The Seahawks are set up to be far more competitive, including in the trenches. There’s still work to do but it took the 49ers nine years and seven first round picks to create their excellent defense. Rome wasn’t built in a day (or two off-seasons).
Finally, a commitment to the pass rush
For years they talked about fixing the unit and then resorted to band-aid players like Benson Mayowa and Bruce Irvin. Now, there’s serious investment in the rush:
Derick Hall — R2
Boye Mafe — R2
Darrell Taylor — R2
Uchenna Nwosu — Big money FA
Dre’Mont Jones — Big money FA
There’s a real chance to get after teams now and improve the unit once and for all.
Stop moaning about running backs
As noted yesterday, plenty of teams spent high picks on the position again this year despite already having primary runners. The Seahawks now have a fantastic 1-2 punch and insurance against injury issues. They have Zach Charbonnet and Ken Walker on cheap contracts for the next few years. The Seahawks want to run the ball and they’ve never been any good relying on plug-in players at the position. They need talent and they’ve added talent.
Don’t sleep on Kenny McIntosh either. That guy can play. He was integral to Georgia’s National Championship win last season.
The Seahawks have a loaded offense
Young book-end tackles. Three legit receivers. Depth at tight end. Two top running backs. Geno Smith must be salivating at the weapons he has to work with. This could be the most explosive and dynamic offense this team has ever had. They are stacked.
Deep into day three they are finding contributors
Last year it was Coby Bryant and Tariq Woolen. This year, the six players drafted in rounds 4-7 can equally come in and compete, provide depth and potentially have a significant impact. That was the foundation of their great drafts between 2010-12 and it’s happening again.
Value across the board
In my mock I had Devon Witherspoon at #6 and Jaxon Smith-Njigba at #20. They were drafted at #5 and #20. I had Derrick Hall as a high second rounder and Zach Charbonnet in the top-50. They were taken at #37 and #52. Anthony Bradford and Cameron Young both had third round grades on my horizontal board and they got them in round four. Olu Oluwatimi was a fourth rounder, taken in round five. I had Mike Morris in round five. I had Jerrick Reed II in round four, they got him in round six. I had Kenny McIntosh graded in round three, they took him in round seven.
No reaches, nothing forced. Pure talent acquisition.
A nice bonus
Despite filling out their roster with a cluster of picks, they also managed to add an extra 2024 third rounder courtesy of the Broncos. They did it by trading out of round three, then taking a player (Anthony Bradford) I had graded as a high third rounder anyway.
The deal is all the better because per the draft trade chart, Seattle was only due approximately a sixth rounder in return. Getting a 2024 third rounder is daylight robbery.
What are the concerns?
The simple fact is Geno Smith is in a prove-it year. He can earn a minimum of $32.1m next year and millions more in incentives. With an obvious out on his contract, he’ll need to justify the deal. He’s capable but it’s no given.
If he fails this season, it’s a concern. Drew Lock is only contracted for a season and there’s currently no long term plan. They don’t want to end up in a situation like the Colts, going year-to-year at the position. Neither do they want to let down a good roster with issues at the most important position. Desperation in 2024 to get a QB will be a recipe for potential disaster.
Even then, there’s not a lot they could do this year. There was no obvious option to trade up for the top-three quarterbacks and they clearly didn’t rate Will Levis or Hendon Hooker enough to draft them.
It will be a source of some discomfort that the Seahawks are in basically the same situation as last season but with a greater financial outlay on Smith and Drew Lock. I think they would prefer to have a longer term plan in place, ideally.
I talked more about this subject here.
Elsewhere, they are still a bit light at defensive tackle. They’ve upgraded this off-season but they need more depth. It won’t be a surprise if they now create some cap room (somehow) to bring back Poona Ford and possibly one of Al Woods or Shelby Harris.
Conclusion
As with last year, I just wanted to see a proper plan. With free agency and this draft, the plan is obvious. They are building a team, not reaching for needs, they’re adding talent across the board and the roster is taking shape nicely.
The discipline and approach has been admirable. The Seahawks continue to head in the right direction.
My instant reaction notes on every pick
#5 Seattle — Devon Witherspoon (CB, Illinois)
The most violent player in the draft. His tape is incredibly fun to watch. He levels people. He is a total throwback to the LOB days. He has shown so much grit in his career as a no-star recruit going to the JUCO’s, then Illinois and then progressing rapidly. He can be a tremendous NFL cornerback. I think this is a good addition and signifies two things. The Seahawks ARE focusing on BPA and they ARE focusing on character. Witherspoon was one of only nine legit first rounders on my horizontal board.
Bob McGinn’s scouting sources on Devon Witherspoon:
“I love the kid,” said one scout. “I love his interview. I love the way he plays. He’s got this presence to him. You know he’s locked in, he’s all about ball. He doesn’t care that he’s 185 pounds. He carries himself like he’s a bigger dude, almost like he’s invincible. If Witherspoon had Gonzalez’ size you’d have a top-10 corner.”
“Faster than everybody thinks,” said a second scout. “Wants to play the best man on the field. Got change of direction, acceleration, feel for the game. Very good tackler for the cornerback position. Top 15. He’s got everything you want.”
“I think he should (be drafted in the top 10),” another scout said. “He had a sensational senior season. He contested everything. He’s got a lot of fight. He’s on the borderline height-weight. His speed is good.”
“Hell of a football player,” a fourth scout said. “All he did was press. That’s all they did.”
There were no negative comments on Witherspoon.
#20 Seattle — Jaxon Smith-Njigba (WR, Ohio State)
I find this pick very interesting, intriguing and a bit surprising. I thought his lack of great speed would be an issue in Seattle. However, his agility testing is remarkable. Before his injury-hit season last year, he was very highly regarded. A lot of people had JSN as a top-15 pick so again, it’s another sign that the Seahawks are very much in BPA mode. They haven’t used either first round pick on the D-line. It’ll be exciting to watch JSN and see how he gets on. If he delivers, what an offense this could be.
Bob McGinn’s scouting sources on Jaxon Smith-Njigba:
“I thought he was Adam Thielen,” one scout said, referring to Smith-Njigba. “He can get deep because of his route-running ability, whether it’s a double move or a little shake. His 40 was fast enough for me. He may be the most consistent out of the bunch. He can do some outside stuff, but he’s mainly best in the slot.”
“I do like him,” said a second scout. “He can be a good pro. More in the vein of a big slot kind of guy. He catches the ball. He’s competitive. You just wonder if he has the top-end juice.”
“I’m really concerned about his speed,” said a third scout. “The (4.52) is not real good nowadays, and I don’t think he plays that fast. He plays like 4.6 to me. He’s a really good player. I just don’t see that explosiveness.”
“He’s one of the most overrated players in the draft,” said a fourth scout. “He’s got good hands, not great hands. He’s got good vision and run after but he doesn’t run away from anybody and he’s not particularly elusive. He can find holes in zones, and he’s tough. He’ll take a hit to make catch. I don’t see special traits. Has to be a slot. Not fast enough to play outside. I’d rather have (Zay) Flowers because he’s really fast and really good after the catch. Sounds like he might be a solid second-round pick, and I didn’t see that.”
#37 Seattle — Derick Hall (EDGE, Auburn)
The Seahawks didn’t waste any time making their pick. They take Derick Hall, the top remaining edge rusher on my board. I had him with a high second round pick so this fits. He is an alpha dog and an absolute culture-setter. This fits perfectly what they have been saying, and I have been constantly repeating, that character is king. He also ran a 1.55 10-yard split and a 4.20 short shuttle. He has long arms. These are ‘Seahawk’ traits and a ‘Seahawk’ personality. Big fan of the pick. Seattle is finally loaded at the edge.
Here’s Bob McGinn’s scouting sources on Derick Hall:
“Love the kid,” said one scout. “High-effort, motor guy that isn’t athletically gifted enough to play outside linebacker. He’s got to be a 4-3 defensive end, an undersized 4-3 defensive end.”
“Makes out-of-position plays,” a second scout said. “Does all kinds of things to make plays. Has a hump move, the Reggie White move. That’s pretty good for a guy that’s 252. Very athletic with great acceleration. Is effective with his long arms. Can outrun the drop-back of the tackle and backdoor the quarterback.”
“He was the leader, the bright light in the dark room with (coach Bryan) Harsin and all that controversy,” said a third scout. “It’s a disaster of a year, and he held it together. He’s a hard-charging guy. He’s not going to be a premier 12 sacks-a-year guy, but he’s going to get six to eight. You’re going to know exactly what you’re getting. He’ll raise the level of the guys around him. Very, very hard worker. Vocal leader. One of the few legit leaders that you find. There just aren’t that many of them. Everybody’s on their phone or scared to speak up.”
“Try hard,” said a fourth scout. “Gets swallowed up at the point of attack. More of a straight-line, effort (rusher). Tweener.”
I don’t think he’s a tweener, for what it’s worth. I think he can be Carl Lawson.
#52 Seattle — Zach Charbonnet (RB, UCLA)
I’ve been a big fan of Charbonnet for a long time. He was the third running back on my board behind only the two guys taken in the top-12 yesterday. He’s so tough and physical and will run through contact. He’s explosive and has ideal size for the Seahawks. This is the range I thought he would go in and for a team determined to run the ball as a priority, this creates a thunderous, dynamic one-two punch.
Bob McGinn scouting sources on Zach Charbonnet:
“He’s so subtle and smooth and effective and athletic,” said one scout. “Just got great feet. Knows how to run the football. Smart. Catches the ball. He’s going to be undervalued. This guy’s way more athletic than AJ Dillon.”
“He’s been kind of the heartbeat of that team for the last two years,” said a second scout. “He had a really good game two years ago when they beat LSU (38-27). He’s done really, really well for himself. He fits any scheme. Not the fastest guy but a good, patient runner. He’s powerful. What will hurt him a little bit is he’s not a huge threat in the passing game, but I think he’s good enough. He probably gets drafted lower than he should. His production was obvious. He’s got a lot to offer.”
“Straight-line speed, vision, tough, gritty. Stiff in change of direction. Upright runner. Does run hard but with less power because he’s too stiff and upright. Non-elusive. He’s not as good as Hassan Haskins was in a similar kind of role. Haskins was a better athlete.”
R4 (#108) — Anthony Bradford (G, LSU)
I really liked Anthony Bradford and had a high third round grade on him. He reminded me a lot of Damien Lewis. He’s an explosive tester with a 3.17 TEF score and an outstanding 105.2 weighted TEF mark. Clearly, explosive traits are still a big focus for Seattle. He also ran a very good 5.08 forty at 333lbs and he has the length they like. Just a really good pick and he has the potential to be a long-term starter at guard. Excellent pick. I would’ve been happy to take him at #83.
Bob McGinn’s scouting sources on Anthony Bradford:
“Kind of an interesting guy,” said one scout. “He’s a big guy that runs well. Big body with strength. He had a nice strength match vs. (Georgia’s Jalen) Carter. He matched strength against him. Most of the time Carter just grabs the guard and would throw him aside. Adequate movement and quickness. Has body control and balance. With that size and speed he’s probably up to the fourth round.”
“He could (start) in the right scheme,” a second scout said. “He’s more of a gap-scheme player. Early-to-mid Day 3.”
R4 (#123) — Cameron Young (DT, Mississippi State)
The Seahawks are smashing this out of the park and have taken two blog favourites to start day three. Cameron Young had a fantastic Senior Bowl and like Abraham Lucas a year ago, received no attention. It was bizarre. He is very powerful with long 34.5 inch arms. He can control blockers with that length and he can anchor down or barge his way through contact. He is better than some of the other defensive tackles already taken. This is a home-run selection and what a round four for the Seahawks.
R5 (#151) — Mike Morris (DE, Michigan)
There was a time where people wondered whether Morris could be a second rounder. He started to receive a lot of buzz and was being touted as the next big pass rusher out of Michigan, following in the footsteps of David Ojabo. I thought he was outstanding against Michigan State in the rivalry/revenge game — playing with his hair on fire and the bit between his teeth. I also thought in other less important games he played well within himself. At the combine, he was still an interesting prospect but he laid a total egg running a poor 5.04 and then following it up with a 5.08 at his pro-day. There’s something there and the Seahawks are banking on bringing it out of him. I had him in round five.
Bob McGinn described Mike Morris as a ‘scouts nightmare’:
A first-year starter, he led the team in sacks with 7 ½ and was named Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year. Before the combine, one personnel man predicted he’d be a Top 50 pick for sure. Then Morris (6-5, 274) ran 5.04 at the combine and even slower (5.08) at pro day. “I think he ran himself out of that (edge) position,” said another scout. Perhaps Morris’ best chance now would be to bulk up to 295-300 and try as a defensive end in a 3-4.
R5 (#154) — Olusegun Oluwatimi (C, Michigan)
I like Oluwatimi and praised him several times during the season for his solid performances. He won the Outland trophy and played on a double-award winning Michigan O-line. However, he has impossibly small hands (8.5 inches) for a 309lbs blocker which is a little bit odd. He’s explosive (9-2 broad jump, 29 inch vertical) rather than agile (4.68 short shuttle) which again hints at Seattle maybe returning back to explosive interior blockers rather than outright copying the Rams’ system. He will be able to compete quickly, he’s played a lot of football and he’s a solid pick. I had him in round four.
Bob McGinn’s scouting sources on Olusegun Oluwatimi:
He didn’t win the Heisman Trophy but just about everything else: the Outland Trophy, the Rimington Award and consensus All-America honors. “I don’t know how he got the award as best lineman,” one scout said. “That was wild to me. He’s an undersized center only. Average athlete, quickness, strength and instincts. Lacks power and finish. He does a lot of good things but you wouldn’t want him out there full-time.”
Began his career in 2017 at Air Force and redshirted. Spent 2018-’21 at Virginia, starting 35 games at center his last three seasons. Moved to Michigan in ’22. “I’m not sure if there is a lot of love for him out there but he can play,” a second scout said. “It seems people either really like him or they hate him. I’d take him over Schmitz. He’s athletic enough. He’s strong, plays hard, plays smart.”
His 29 on the Wonderlic paced the top six centers. “I’ve seen him at Virginia and Michigan,” said a third scout. “He’s got high pad level. He’s got no strength. Doesn’t know how to use his hands. He does have some quickness and can get to the second level. He plays so high and they just push him all over. I didn’t like the guy.”
Arms were 32 5/8, hands a minuscule 8 5/8. “He’s going to go on Day 2,” a fourth scout said. “He crushed the interview process. He’s not like a wow-you athlete but more than athletic enough. Smart as shit. He’s a great communicator. He kicked ass at the Senior Bowl. He’s going to start next year.”
R6 (#198) — Jerrick Reed II (S, New Mexico)
I had Jerrick Reed graded in round four. He’s very aggressive running downfield and attacking ball-carriers. His testing is good and he has positional flexibility at safety and nickel. He can get around the field with range. Reed should be able to provide immediate special teams value and he’s a good candidate to replace Ryan Neal.
R7 (#237) — Kenny McIntosh (RB, Georgia)
What an end to the draft! I had McIntosh graded in round three. Kirby Smart called him a ‘BAMF’ and you see it on tape. He’s so physical and competitive. He drove Georgia’s running game last year. He’s a tremendous receiver out of the backfield. He has an incredibly engaging personality. This is a seventh round pick that could look like a steal in the future.
Video reaction on each pick between rounds 1-5
Live stream with Robbie (including live reaction to the Kenny McIntosh pick)
If you’ve enjoyed the blog this draft season and want to support the site via Patreon — (click here)
UDFA list so far:
LB Cam Bright, Washington
WR Jake Bobo, UCLA
S Ty Okada, Montana St.
LB/S Jonathan Sutherland, Penn State
DB Mo Osling III, UCLA
WR Tyjon Lindsey, Oregon State
TE Noah Gindorff, North Dakota State
DL Jonah Tavai, San Diego State
LB Michael Ayers, Ashland
WR Matt Landers, Arkansas
DT Robert Cooper, Florida State
DT Ifeanyi Maijeh, Rutgers
Add a DE from Middle Tennessee St.
Had to give him a bonus to come and try to break into that RB room!
Smith is also a returner!
Another CB
LB Patrick O’Connell
O’Connell is a fun guy to watch. High revving motor. Hope he makes it as a special teamer.
Cool! Dudes from my hometown!
I was hoping we’d get Gindorff as a UDFA. I took him in plenty mocks with pick at the end of the 7th I aquired in trades.At 6’6 263 he’s a great blocker who can also catch.
Plays with an aggressive nature in the run game. If not for his injuries I would think he gets drafted. Very fun to watch play. Can easily see him protected on the practice squad this season.
Matt Landers is a cool pick up, could be a solid DK backup.
Thank you, Rob, for the amazing coverage this draft. This is the most fun this site has been since the early years of the PCJS era and that to me is indicative that the Seahaws have hope again! Go Hawks!
Thank you 👍
The amount of times the site crashed on me actually made me smile.
A great sign that you have a continuously growing fanbase.
With this draft, all I ask….is that Pete keeps an ear piece in during games and makes decisions from an ‘eye in the sky’. He means everything to this franchise. Just not during game action-
They need 1 or 2 QB Udfas to hold all the clipboards
I hear Whitehurst is available
Fantastic Job, Rob! A+ to you!
I loved all of the selections except RB Z.C. so I give us an A-. Getting value with Kenny McIntosh solidifies my take on it being unnecessary to grab Z.C. who is going to take over the Travis Homer role. Another stout DT in rd 2 and it’s an A+. I bet Z.C. isn’t that excited and didn’t sound like it on the call where PC mentions special teams.
I’d rather have even taken a LB at #52. The swiss army knife from Arkansas, Drew Sanders or the kid from Wazzu, Henley, and yes, both went in round 3 but would’ve felt better about them.
McIntosh is a rarity who plays much quicker and even faster than his 4.62 combine 40. He’s a football player. I LOVED that value! I thought he was a 4th rounder but then I don’t research. He just felt like a 4th based on his production vs SEC caliber teams.
I don’t know much about DE Mike Morris but during the call to him, they told him to keep eating those calories.
Great draft for us and quality work by you.
Fair enough but I believe you will likely change your mind on Z.C. I’ve watched a lot of his games the past 2 seasons and the dude is a beast and makes great decisions and has wonderful vision and balance.
I would go with an A. If they had the opportunity to draft AR instead of Witherspoon that would have gotten the + for me. And I really like Witherspoon. But back to back A drafts-great job Hawks. They did not waste their R.W. capital at all.
I just don’t think Z.C. will be on the field that much to really make much of an impact and don’t see much difference between Z.C. and McIntosh.
I always go with the SEC baller and reason I was surprised we took Penny over a Beast mode clone in Nick Chubb. Yes, Chubb was the man. PC/JS aren’t perfect and I don’t expect them to be but Ika, Sanders or Henley impacts more in 2023 and more importantly in 2024 when we have no real LB’s on the roster. Ika stuffing the run rotationally would’ve been a coup, too.
I have no issue with ZC, the player, just that it was a luxory wasted selection on a team that still needs young Linebackers and DT’s and they had a chance to get one but went with a Travis Homer replacement in the 2nd rd when McIntosh may end up being the better player anyway. After using a 2nd on K9 which I loved because I was front and center watching him slice and dice Michigan.
All in all, it was another FANTASTIC draft, so having an issue with 1 selection is pointless but they just can’t help themselves with RB’s.
I understand your point but I have to push back about Siaki Ika. If we look at the player — the size is the best thing about him. He struggled against the run this last season and was already a limited pass-rusher. There is nothing special about him athletically. He has ok arm length.
In my opinion, this is not someone you should target in the 2nd or even the 3rd round. You want him to play Nose and be a run-stopper only. Wouldn’t that be questionable for an early round pick? Especially since most NTs in the league weren’t high picks. We aren’t talking about Jordan Davis special. He didn’t have Danny Shelton’s production.
You might be right about Z.C but I think he’s going to see the field a lot. There are 17 games with two Thursday night games. To expect Walker to last the season is fool’s gold. Where I fully expect Z.C to make an impact is on 3rd downs. I don’t think they anticipated McIntosh to last until the 7th round so now they have 2 capable back ups.
So all in all, I don’t mind you saying we should draft a DT but not Ika in my opinion. I don’t think he was worth a 2nd.
Charbonnet wouldn’t have been my pick, but I like it. We have had so many times where our RB1 went out for a few games (or more) and our running game folded on the back of having no options. We had no depth, and if Charbonnet gives us a second potential stud at the most injury prone position in the game, I can live with that.
This, this and this
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE the Charbonnet pick, but Byron Young would’ve been pretty cool instead or maybe a TE. I know it would have been a bit early for him, but they might’ve done that and got Tank Grigbsy or Tyjay Spears later instead. Overall I’m not complaining one bit. I love everything about this draft. A+ from me!
We are a running team. What part of ‘running’ don’t you get?
Don’t get confused here, we are a DEFENSIVE team and need to be a RUN STOPPING team, to force teams into our newly found strength, elite corners and young pass rushers. That is the name of the game. Very simple concept. If you can’t stop the run, your D flexibility is out the window.
When you give up the 3rd most rushing yards per game in the NFL, it’s a priority.
When you don’t have a real dominant NT to take on double teams, it’s an issue.
When you have 2 LB’s on 1 yr deals that are question marks for 2024 and you don’t really address it in the draft, it’s an issue.
When the team you’re trying to catch in your division, 9ers, rush for 189, 170 and 181 yards in 3 games totally demoralizing your squad and you don’t focus on a DT or young LB’s with a 2nd rd selection, but opt for a luxury RB in Rd2, it’s going to be an issue. RB’s are a dime a dozen and nothing ZC does screams impact player for 2023/24. I’ve watched plenty of tape vs garbage pac 12 D’s and was like meh? really?
I give PC/JS an A- for a fantastic draft but ZC in round 2 with options to plug our weakest link, Run Defense, where we got shreded numerous times in 2022 and is demoralizing,
could haunt us not only in 2023 but in 2024.
Charbonnet complements Walker so well. For the homerun ability Walker brings, he also had the worst success rate and was stuffed at the second highest rate in the NFL last year. I think he can improve on that, but Charbonnet was 3rd in the nation in success rate – he always takes what he’s given and keeps the chains moving. Also consider that in the game Walker missed last year (and RB is a position that gets banged up) they lost to Carolina and the RBs had 10 carries for 28 yards. A player like Charbonnet can help you win those games in addition to a regular rotation with Walker to keep him fresh late in games when you need to grind out the clock. The RB position is set for the next 3-4 years without needing to spend money or high draft picks. That’s a win.
Probably the most satisfied I’ve felt after a SEA draft that I’ve felt in the last five years. Even last year, it took some games to see what they had accomplished. This year, the process is so obviously good that I think we can celebrate the good work, and the results will follow.
Also, on the strength of this draft, I’d expect the national media will generally project the Seahawks as a wildcard-quality team. Excellent balance of addressing short- and long-term needs.
Big thanks to Rob and SDB for a second off-season of A+ analysis and coverage.
Derick Hall was a name I was passably aware of in January, saw him on the first big board, watched and he instantly became my preferred plan B if Anderson was gone in mock drafts. I even drew a chuckle out of Corbin Smith when I got that question through…
Which brings me to my other favorite. Cameron Young, Senior bowl coverage here is what attracted me to him, and I really did view him as a complete run stuffing monster, who could also get after the QB with hurries (not sacks).
More than anything, every choice and prospect I felt informed and just thoroughly enjoyed this off-season, although I stayed far away from the Carter nonsense.
If Adams comes back this secendary is absolutely scary. I mean, it’s scary now without him and having two lockdown corners. With these new weapons on offense, and if Geno can learn from the end of last year and not regress, watch out…
Ugh, didn’t mean to reply to you
This site needs an edit button.
It was crushing to watch Indy draft Richardson. But after watching Witherspoon, Njigba, Hall, and Charbonnet highlights, I can say this looks like a fantastic draft for Seattle–even if they did miss out on both Byron Young’s.
I’m a Montana native, born in Kalispell, and I have to say it’s great to see two Bobcats and one Griz get a shot to make the team. And LB Patrick O’Connell is from Kalispell, and a lifetime Seahawks fan like me. So I’m really happy to see my state well represented on my Seahawks!
I hear what you’re saying. I was glad to see the Seahawks draft three players from my adopted home state Mississippi. Hall is from Gulfport, Young is from Franklin Co. (one of the least populated counties in the State) & Reed is from Olive Branch which happens to be K.J. Wright’s hometown. Good luck to these three and all the players!
Cool!
Hard to be anything but truly content after this draft. Only makes you wonder, wtf were they doing for 5yrs with a prime RW making ridiculous draft disasters?!
I happen to think the worst stat from last year was giving up 13 20yd TD passes, most in league. Far worse than the porous run D. Obviously part of that is not pressuring the QB on pass plays, but now we have a respectable stable of edge rushers, weve improved the LB corps and the secondary should be vastly better with Witherspoon. Toss in the interior line improvements and this D is more than respectable.
Hard not to be excited for next year, no reason this team wont be competitive every week. We have some horses. Geno has a year under his belt, some cash and still needs to prove himself, hes not getting fat off the land.
On Offense, good lord, what a bag of talent. My only concern there is playcalling, but ill leve the X’s and O’s for October, its April, lets enjoy the roster for a bit.
The peacock will also return to give us three more games before he’s sidelined for another season… BEST IN THE NATION!
Prez
what a joke
Geno has 10 years under his belt.
I’ll stop cluttering with tweets and just post the updated UDFA list so far, now ordered by position:
Defense
DL Jonah Tavai, San Diego State
DT Robert Cooper, Florida State
DT Ifeanyi Maijeh, Rutgers
DE Jordan Ferguson, Middle Tenn. St.
DE M.J. Anderson, Iowa State
LB Patrick O’Connell, Montana
LB Michael Ayers, Ashland
LB Cam Bright, Washington
LB/S Jonathan Sutherland, Penn State
S Ty Okada, Montana St.
S Christian Young, Arizona
DB Mo Osling III, UCLA
DB Arquon Bush, Cincinnati
DB Lance Boykin, Coastal Carolina
CB James Campbell, Montana St.
Offense
WR Jake Bobo, UCLA
WR Tyjon Lindsey, Oregon State
WR Matt Landers, Arkansas
TE Noah Gindorff, North Dakota State
RB Chris Smith, Louisiana
Special Teams
LS Chris Stoll, Penn State
Tom Pelissero
@TomPelissero
Former East Carolina QB Holton Ahlers is signing with the #Seahawks, per source.
Nice. Was on our interest list having met with us. The list helped a lot more this year I feel. They really wanted to make sure on character.
He’s a very interesting prospect, I think he has a legit shot to at least backup Geno. He’s a lefty so Abe Lucas will be put to work on his blindside.
Predicted he’d be the QB we’d come away with in the pre-draft thread with Rob’s big board!!!! I said a 7th but I’ll take him as an UDFA!! I also said he’d lead us to a Super Bowl in 2025 so hopefully I’m close on that one too. Absolutely LOVE this signing and I think he’s going to end up the steal of the entire 2023 draft.
I saw that!! Awesome call bro!! U absolutely Nailed it!
NCHawk – Well done! Seriously, well done!
Best LB of he UDFA group?
WR John Hall, Northwood
WR CJ Johnson, East Carolina
RB Marcus Cooper, Incarnate Word
For all those waiting for an emotional call, here you go!
Seahawks RB Kenny McIntosh Gets The Draft Call At No. 237 Overall
https://youtu.be/3ER_lj8Z-yY
And same in the call with media, wow!
Here’s the link to the audio:
https://www.seahawks.com/video/rb-kenny-mcintosh-meets-with-media-after-being-picked-no-237-overall-in-the-2023
Thanks for posting this brother. Made my day. Players come from all different kinds of places. Kenny absolutely knows that he wants to play in the NFL and understandably was a little bit let down that he didn’t get drafted earlier. As described by his coaches, he runs like a MAMF anyway. Now he will be running loose with a chip on his shoulder as well. Good luck NFL as we run the rock down your throat
Wow. Quite a moment. I have to say I love our coaches and all of them seem so aware of the humanity of the situation. This one was more poignant than most. I’m hoping for the best for this kid. Our RB room is stacked with young talent!
The amount of commercials to actual feed needs to change-
Rob wasn’t the only one who had McIntosh graded a LOT higher:
And here’s the Kirby Smart clip Rob mentioned: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/x-17mRnoSbo
Cigar postgame celebration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xJP8vrZTHA
McIntosh seems, character wise, a bit like Marshawn–Love it!
I had McIntosh higher than ZC, too. When you make moves vs SEC, I give it more credence than making moves vs Colorado, ASU and Oregon State.
We aren’t going to give 2nd contracts out to both K9 and ZC, maybe neither, so what’s the purpose of drafting another RB in Rd 2 that is just a Travis Homer replacement?
That’s the issue and reason ZC was the worst Hawk selection in the draft. IKA, Sanders or Henley would fit what the D is trying to accomplish and still has holes. STOP THE RUN!!
Our Pass D is shored up and pass rush looks to be vastly improved but DT & LB speed is STILL missing and we chose another 2nd rd RB when you can’t win if you can’t stop the RUN.
Except Ika is actually not very good against the run.
Full roundup of RW trade:
https://twitter.com/tomrollman/status/1652101720422633472/photo/1
And let’s not forget the massive salary relief. I would say we won this trade. I wish Russ the best in Denver
Massive W on the Wilson trade, but also massive L on the Adams trade and contract…sorta cancels it out and leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I think we are still net positive but imagine not trading their picks for Jamal plus the extra cap room..we would be a completely different team without the Jamal trade
Thank you Rob for all your work!
MJ Anderson DE Iowa State could be a steal!
https://youtu.be/KS2Ewh8ZODA
Rob, apologies for the clutter, but this one is an important tidbit to re-post from last thread while you were probably working on the recap:
Rapoport said we considered trading back from #5 to gain more ammo to go after a QB next year and “still no franchise QB” despite Geno:
https://twitter.com/RapSheet/status/1652419991830921222
That supports your hunch that they might have their sights on someone next year. (and what you’ve been saying all along that Geno is not the long-term solution)
Yep, been saying for months that would be my plan B if no QB was there. However after watching everything I can on Witherspoon and his interviews, not gonna lie I understand why they stayed put. We can still swing a trade next year if need be, but it’ll have to come out of future draft capital. Still doable, but more costly.
I don’t think they could find a good trade package. Levis fell. Carter fell. Wilson wasn’t a must have for a lot of teams.
It was just a really bad draft and position to try and trade down.
The only thing that might help is trading a player. I have no idea who, but it’s about the only thing left to try.
Possibility. They did say Witherspoon was one of two players they stay for though, and I bet Detroit at the least would’ve LOVED to move up just one spot.
If they had found a package like Arizona got, they would bags traded down in a heartbeat, but it is what it is, didn’t materialize so they took the best guy on their board.
I think that might be the only way, trading away someone like DK Metcalf, to get up to a position to take a QB next year. It would have to be in #1 or #2 slot.
Thanks, I’ll do a piece on this tomorrow or Monday
We all got played by Indianapolis. They had everyone confident they’d take Levis so that nobody (including Seattle) would trade ahead of them for Richardson.
I loved the players they drafted, but I’m haunted by this vision of Seattle in 1-2 years having a contending roster but being held back by the QB, and we’ll have to decide if we want to cycle through journeyman QBs like the Colts did, or trade a massive haul to move up for one. Because if our roster is good enough to pick in the 20s but clearly have a gaping wide hole at QB, you can’t both be super picky about your QB qualities (like John has obviously been) and expect to get one at 20. We are going to be put in a tough position. Pay the iron price indeed.
Unbelievable that we came out of the Russ trade without a QBOTF in any way. I heard somebody say that we should just take shots on round three guys every year until we get lucky again, but we’re not even doing that. How am I both so happy and so frustrated about the same draft class.
I can’t speak for John but I don’t see him beating the Texans offer to AZ
Agree. That was an aggressive overpay by Houston.
But then Seattle’s got to take some shots on other guys in the draft.
If your QB strategy is to win the late round QB lottery, you at least have to buy some tickets.
my guess is nobody wanted to trade up and also didnt want to get burned by Schneider for futures (except Denver 3rd next year) the fact the draft had the most trades and Schneider had limited trades probably reveals league is weary doing business with Seahawks… when JS calls you hang up lol
loved the overall draft and hope to see 4 to 5 starters from this draft (Weatherspoon Njigba Oluwatimi Young Bradford) and the rest contributing in situational snaps
what’s crazy is that i can see all 10 picks making contributions they all seem very hungry and determined which adds to the Seahawks culture
After the initial letdown because of no QB you just have to accept that they didn’t rate Levis and move on. And what a way to move on. 2 years ago this roster was a wasteland and they now have solid, even elite position groups: WR, RB, Edge, CB and maybe even OL now.
Including the long snapper UDFA, they could have over 9 starters (especially if Olu and Bradford ball out) in these two drafts playing this year.
That is astounding.
I actually think this is still the building up phase of the rebuild. You now have a young Oline core, a young CB core, a young Edge/Dline core, a young RB core.
With another draft next season, they can continue to build with another young WR to combine with a JSN and prime DK. You pick up your next safety tandem. You continue to add to the DTs. This can also be done through FAs.
Next year might be the year they pull the trigger to move up for the QB they want. You never know. Tyler Van Dyke might make his way back into the first round. Others might emerge. It’s been a long time but finally the Seahawks feel like a team that is being built through young core position groups.
The Seahawks obviously viewed Drew Lock equal to or greater than Will Levis. Probably thinking, we’ve already got this guy on our roster.
Or the Hawks could think that while Levis is better than Lock, the difference between the two is still not worth drafting in the 1st or trading up in the 2nd to draft.
We can guess but the only thing we know is that the Hawks chose to not draft Levis in the 1st or the 2nd.
The thing that I like about the Charbonnet pick and RBs being drafted high in general is that it makes the team fun to watch. I get doing whatever with short passes is efficient but nothing made me happier last year than when Walker broke it for a 74 yd TD against the Chargers for example.
Those 2 picks (Walker, Charbonnet, McIntosh) are going to make this team’s running game and offense super fun to watch for the next few years at least
It looks like from this year’s draft class, there could be 3-5 starters. Witherspoon, JNS, and Cameron Young are likely. Derick Hall and Anthony Bradford could become starters depending on outcome of camp competition.
Also, in nickel situations Jerrick Reed could be the third safety if Julian Love plays nickel and Jamal couldn’t play.
Not sure if it counts as “starting” but by the end of the year I think we’ll see Charbonnet and Walker going 50/50
50/50 rarely works. I CLEARLY remember why we were able to trade for Beast Mode because I had directv and all-22.
Beast was splitting time with Fred Jackson and could never get it going because he’d play a series for a couple of carries and then come out.
Beast NEVER got it going and was expendable. We were blessed to snag him and once he started getting 20+ carries, the verocity and talent came out.
8-12 carries is often worthless to a RB. No groove. I’m not a fan of 1a and 1 b. A clear 1 and 2 is the only way to go.
I think Walker is still the top RB and Charbonnet and McIntosh his backups. I could see a 60/40 or 70/30 split with the other two RBs splitting their share of the “40” or “30” split. But the benefit is that if Walker has to miss games, Charbonnet and McIntosh are huge upgrades of DJ and whatever street level FA backs that they would sign. I was hoping that the Hawks would draft two RBs in this draft and so am very happy with these picks.
#Tank4Caleb
They won’t want that personality and headache. And he’s a system qb.
I literally can not see a reason we would tank. Geno played well and that defense was hot garbage and still the result was 9 wins.
If geno holds firm and the defense tightens even with the harder schedule and the general league wide weirdness every year….nine wins is the base line.
Re: Williams. I seriously can not find the QB from his (riley’s) system that I’d want on the team.
When Williams drags that team to contention and maybe wins I’ll consider it. But when my nearest team the lowly Beavers almost beat you….pass.
Until we have our franchise qb we are not going anywhere. Geno is a great bridge and ok for now but he is not long term solution. Caleb is a generational talent I have a higher grade on then Lawrence he makes us instant SB contender probably in his 2nd year.
I agree with you on Geno. As far as in concerned they aren’t winning it all with him.
But Pete will NEVER tank and try not to rob it all. And he is a system qb where ever guy has been a giant head case and hasn’t worked out.
He’s a complete tool. He fails the character test. It’s about the biggest takeaway from him because he makes it his most obvious trait.
Karlos. I’m totally sorry here. Probably all the draft over use of terms.
No one is a generational talent in college. To be a generational talent you either need to redefine the position you play, or be the best at your position, and ideally both.
To be a generational talent at qb would mean that Williams WHILE mahomes is still playing mind you would have to be bryter than Mahomes.
The chiefs qb is from when he started in 2018 through present day….the best qb of his generation. Wins, rings, stats. The whole package.
There’s nothing unique about Williams. He’s like every modern college star. Great Stats. There’s no real grit. Passes come put Bing, bang, boom where they need to be. It’s the 7 on 7 camps and the madden-ification of the qb position.
Small…6’1″ 218lb….so that’s his college listing. Guessing it’s more like 6 foot flat. 208 lbs.
Nothing exciting nor generationally unique about that…
See murrray, Mayfield, hurts, Tua, young
When I mean generational I mean best QB prospects in over ten years. At the moment we will never be a true contender as we are too good to not draft high enough to get a great qb and not good enough to win it all .
Hell no, give it all you got, you won’t win a Super Bowl but you will set a winning culture. You don’t need to get #1 pick for a QB that will get you there.
Woolen on mystery island locking down one side, Witherspoon on Dr Moreau’s island locking down the other, Adams, Diggs, Love roaming the middle, who are you throwing to? I mean, seriously? Pick your poison and fast, cos we got some edge rushers closing in…
I do worry about the run defense, it was truly atrocious last year, but we can easily go one on one on the outside now and load the box.
Sigh. You throw at Jamal. At least until he gets injured again. He can’t cover anyone.
I like our players on D, but our staff seems hopelessly incompetent, and I think Desai was the best defensive coach we had–and he left ASAP.
Adams will play hybrid LB. Diggs and love will be safeties
Honestly, anything we get from Adams at this point is a bonus/salvage. And when a one time all pro, two time 2nd all pro, who barely sees the field is your weakest link….eh. It’s not so bad.
You’ll be lucky to see Adams underperform for 6 games next season. Then he can FINALLY be released and the worst trade in franchise history can become that, history.
We could not set the edge last year against the run – Dre’Mont and Jarran will both be an upgrade. Our LBs were making tackles too late and missing too many. Wagner at least is an upgrade in that respect. Missed tackles was also an issue at Edge for Irvin. And both Taylor and Mafe were weak against the run. I think Hall takes the starting job and is an upgrade. Both Coby and Michael Jackson were below average in run support. Witherspoon and Jordan Love are strong upgrades.
The remaining question is DT. Cam is a run-stuffer. Can the bring Al Woods back as part of a rotation?
Seattle got gashed by the run in several games last year. I think this squad is at least a League-average run defense.
All good points. For next year, I don’t expect a top 10 defense though. Just give me a middle of the road defense that’s not a liability and where Geno doesn’t have to put up 30-40 points a game. But if he wants to, he’s more than welcome to, and it’s going to be a lot harder for passing teams to catch up.
And thats what Derrick Hall and Morris are good at. I guess they complement our other DEs, which are mostly pass rushers with little skill setting the edge (looking at you Darrell Taylor).
You know another way to have better run defense? Control the clock with a great running game of your own. Or better yet…be up by a ton and teams have to pass against you.
Rob, thank you so much for your hard work and passion for the Seahawks and helping so many fans such as myself engage with the draft with so much more information and interest, especially as I don’t watch or follow college football.
This year studied the prospects more than ever before with help of Lindy’s Draft magazine and especially this fantastic blog. Rob, your knowledge, judgement, and thorough coverage is phenomenal.
I think this off season and draft was special because of optimism and hope restored with last years excellent Seahawks draft with all the rookie stars and contributors. And then having high #5 pick from Broncos made this years draft especially interesting.
Although I hoped our Hawks would pick Stroud or Richardson as a QB for future, I see the type of team being built with productived players, quality prospects, and high character players. Seeing how the roster is being built is interesting to study. The Hawks are a great organization to cheer for. !!!
Thanks for covering the draft Rob! This is still the best place to go for news related to the Seahawks and honestly, I’m not sure how much I’d want to follow them if you have this up. Just want you to know how much I appreciate what you do.
Jerrod Clark signed with the Chargers.
Thanks for all the work Rob! Hope you can get some sleep someday.
A++ for Rob Staton! Incredible coverage this year. Head and shoulders above the rest of the gibberish out there.
You’ve done a great job over the years projecting whom the Seahawks might take. You hit on a few they wound up drafting this year too. Curious what adjustments you’ll make to your formula going forward considering how they deployed their picks this year? It seems some of the emphasis on traits and size is being overshadowed by character and productivity.
I endorse that approach but unicorns like Ade Ade, should they develop, might be more vastly more valuable than lesser specimens. I wonder where the team draws that line now?
It’s obvious John Schneider is finally in charge. That’s such a good and comforting thing to know!
It isn’t though. We don’t know who has the more influence over picks or the final say. You’d think it would be the HC. But who knows.
It doesn’t have to be a competition.
How about they work as a team and are finally on the right track?
Who cares as long as they keep knocking it out the park.
No. It’s pretty clear they’ve gone in a different direction and I’m thankful.
My favorite part of the draft: Knowing they were going BPA. A CB at #5 isn’t something I like unless he’s clearly the best/safest player available. I watched the Rose Bowl a couple years ago and WOW! with our newest WR! I remember thinking that guy is going to dominate the NFL one day. After that game I never thought we’d pick high enough to get a talent like that. Then the Charbonnet pick. LOVE it! What I may love most… going into ’24 with all of our picks AND an extra 3rd rounder.
Would have loved Richardson but it didn’t happen and I can’t fault them for that.
It feels good to know the Carroll way is no longer a thing. They obviously have a good working relationship and I admire that but it’s clear JS is now in control and I LOVE IT!!!
Glad to hear you’re bullish on Seattle again! I’m pretty pleased with the draft, other than being unable to get Richardson.
And the best thing is, there’s no way PC can argue with the results!
Thanks for your work Rob. This was great.
I still think the Seahawks underachieved this weekend. They got good value on day 3 but I am not a fan of the value on days 1 and 2.
A+ to you Rob. B- to the Seahawks. I think they’ll regret passing on Levis/the earlier Centers/McDonald. I would rather have had McDonald at 5 and Brents at 37 than the two guys they got. They also could have taken Levis at 20 and either of the Tennessee receivers where they took Charbonnet (who is a fine player).
This feels more like the 2018 draft than the 2022 draft for me.
So the Hawks should have massively overreached just how 99% of the fanbase hates? To each their own and you deserve your opinion, but everyone else would have grabbed their pitch forks for that massive over reach.
Time will tell on all the players the Hawks drafted and passed on.
Regarding Levis, not only did the Hawks pass on him at 5 and 20 but also every other team in the league, including several that needed a QB. I was hoping for Levis also but clearly, there was something about him that gave all the teams pause so I can’t blame the Hawks on passing on him.
You wanted the TN receivers but our running game is so critical to our offense functioning well that I value Charbonnet more than those TN receivers. And if JSN turns out to be as good as projected (prior to his hamstring injury), picking those TN receivers would probably have been redundant. We will see.
I’ll say this. BPA isn’t actually real. You’re always reaching in some ways.
I think the relative value of McDonald and Brents is better than Witherspoon and Hall. I also think a trade down from 5 and the guard from Northwestern would have been better.
I think we’ll be fortunate to have a league average center. JSN probably will be better than both Tennessee receivers, but it won’t matter if the line falters with poor center play.
I understand on Levis, but I suspect as far as the Hawks go that Pete is in a bit of a win now mode. I also think sometimes players fall and then just keep falling because they had already fallen a little (…DK…Abe Lucas…Woolen).
I like Charbonnet. Of the players on day 1 and 2 I like him the best. I’m not hanging it on him. I just think the relative value of the group is 2018 level – not the worst draft but left wanting.
A league average centre is all we want. Not every player has to go to the Pro Bowl.
I don’t think it’s at all the case that BPA isn’t real, just that you grade those players differently than JS did. That’s fair and only time will tell. I myself agree with JS’ evaluation.
McDonald might be great and they probably would have loved to get him at 20, but I’m not sure his personality is in line with what they were looking for this draft. (Not that it’s bad, just kind of… bubbly?) Brents is a huge project still and the league is moving away from that type of CB without good recovery speed that is limited to zone coverage.
Levis is already in the roster under the moniker, “Drew Lock.”
Levis has upside. Lock can’t even start. Comparing them is….kind of like comparing a Labrador and a cat. Only one is an actual dog.
This year has been the most fun I’ve had leading up to and including the draft in a long time. When Seattle took Witherspoon and JSN I was kinda in shock for a bit because I really liked Levis but I trust the process here. They got such good players that by the time I let myself breathe I was getting more pumped. Your coverage has been phenomenal and helped me keep a cooler head when I got a little wound up after R1
i wanted to join the chorus of thank yous for your astute draft coverage . . . i referenced your big board throughout the draft!
Both PC and JS said toughness was the watchword that ran through all of their picks this year.
But I think versatility is a close second.
This draft makes both the offense and defense far more versatile. Hopefully that means in creating problems for other teams and not just being able to keep up with other teams.
On Offense
They now have 3 viable running backs, 3 viable wide receivers, 3 viable tight ends and the makings of a very good offensive line.
The quarterback no longer has to pull a rabbit out of a hat and make things happen for the offense to function.
Imagine the combinations they can run out if and when they properly integrate everyone.
-You’ve got your standard 11 Personnel. 1 RB, 1 TE, 3 WR. All 3 RBs can run or catch passes and all 3 TEs can block in the run game or run routes. Somebody is going to have a mismatch on every snap.
-Your 12 Personnel. 1 RB, 2 TE, 2 WR. Unlimited flexibility.
-How about 13 Personnel? 1 RB, 3 TE. With Cross-Lewis-Brown/Olawatimi-Haynes/Bradford-Lucas flanked by Parkinson and Fant with Dissly as a FB/upback? Here we come. Try and stop us.
-Or how about something completely new? 22 Personnel? 2 RB, 2 TE, 1 WR. A play to force slower LBs onto the field.
6’1″ 222 Zach Charbonnet as a lead fullback for Walker or McIntosh
Or the 2 TE’s chip and release
Or McIntosh motions out to the slot and draws a LB in coverage
Or Dareke Young with a fly sweep
The versatility might allow Dee Eskridge to focus on being a returner and give him a nice limited package of plays in the offense to focus on. No more dipsy doodling at the line of scrimmage. Let’s have him to what he is good at: quick slants that get the ball in his hands, winning contested catches downfield, and using his shifty speed to create YAC.
On Defense
First and foremost, they can stop relying on super-obvious blitzes to get a pass rush. They have enough depth to regularly get pressure in their standard packages. Jamal Adams is no longer your pass rush. He’s what makes the pass rush lethal.
They have enough safeties and nickels to help Bobby Wagner do what he does best: attack the line of scrimmage. When he’s targeted in coverage, that’s a problem. He’s more of a blitzer and a run stopper than a coverage LB, always has been. The Rams used him that way and he had a career-low number of targets in the passing game. And a 90.7 PFF grade. Coincidence? I think not.
They can play it heavy or light on the defense. With say Young-Morris-Reed-Jones they can brute strength the DL. Or they can flank two interior players with a fresh rotation of edges/LEOs/OLBs all throughout the game.
They can lighten up and have 1LB/5DBs and with Diggs-Woolen-Adams-Bryant-Witherspoon on the field as tough as nails in the run game, they won’t lose anything in the size department.
They can ‘OK who’s our blitzer today?’ with Woolen, Wagner, Adams, Bryant, and Devin Bush. Maybe even send Quandre Diggs for a surprise.
Julian Love is so versatile they can disguise their coverages. Who has the deep middle? Is he blitzing out of the nickel spot and Diggs has his back?
If they can get it to work, they’ll be able to play any team. Big-bodied muscle runners, lightning quick gadget offenses and teams with excellent tight ends.
Thanks man!
Good points, the depth is crazy. They really came out of this draft addressing every possible need on the roster with high value draft picks. Not a single reach. From second corner, 2nd and 3rd RB, all the way to fourth safety, we’re covered. The only position that maybe could have been addressed was depth at LB but it looks like they brought in many LBs in UDFA.
This offense has so much talent that even Geno can’t screw it up.
Never say never. He has been known to make some pretty shitty decisions on where to throw the ball……..however, the level of weaponry for him is very high.
They gave him the deal that they did so I don’t think they are expecting too much from him for too long. About the last hole on the roster, but to me it was always the biggest.
No excuses now about lacking talent on either side, especially the defense. If the offense sucks for a half or a full game, they could put it on Geno at times. But if the defense sucks, this is 1000% on coaching.
Rob, let me say thank you for the incredible coverage of the draft. Best place to talk Seahawks, ridiculous amount of study of players that showed in the way the draft went. Better get some sleep now before you start watching tape for next year’s QBs.
I’m not sure we’ll get many starters in this year’s draft, but we shouldn’t expect it. For sure we’ll have many of the young players contribute, and many develop into starters. I’m positive about the general trend. We addressed D without ignoring the O. We couldn’t get the QB we wanted so we stacked weapons. The team is looking much better and we’re ahead the Rams and the Cards so getting to the playoffs should be possible.
And one more thing. Boy it sucks to be DJ Dallas right now.
Re:DJ
Could be, but let him fairly compete for a place at the table like everyone else.
This is the way, right?
Yup. DJ had 3 seasons to prove himself. He’s in a walk year. It’s straight business.
Mike Morris weighing in at 295. Looks like he’ll play the Dre’Mont role of 5T outside on running downs and kick inside on passing downs. Trying to make sense of our front 7 is tough.
I really wanted a qb out of this draft but the price to trade up was more than iron apparently and Levis obviously didn’t entice them. However the quality acquired from this draft cannot be denied and this is a solid roster. PCJS have had their fair share of terrible drafts but these last 2, ooh boy.
I just can’t get past geno as the qb. I doubted him last year and he absolutely proved me wrong. I certainly hope he does again this year, with more weapons at his disposal the potential is there. When I get worked up about this, I remember that the contender in the division has Purdy, lance, and darnold at the same position.
Rob, I’ve been following your website since its inception in 2008. Can’t thank you enough for all of the countless hours you’ve put into this. Much appreciated.
Seahawks twitter in a nutshell right here
🤦 🤦
The words of a pro-carter stumper on Sunday afternoon
I’m not sure I understand: isn’t he saying that a guy like McIntosh with his passion is actually another reason AGAINST taking a guy like Carter who has none?
Maybe I lack context (and, honestly, Carter who? at this point…)
I “think” cha’s point is that with all the reports about how Carter was lazy, not motivated, out of shape etc, leading up to the draft, people still ignored them and yet, somehow after seeing the passion in McIntosh’s press conference people suddenly understood why Carter wouldn’t be a good character fit for the Hawks?
People had a massive blindspot with Carter. The desire to get a game-wrecking DT overtook all notion of critical thinking. All of the character flags were excused away — from the questionable work ethic and application, the numerous reports on his practise habits, the dreadful conditioning at the end of the season and then the legal issues. There were so many people who barely even acknowledged the concerns. It was simply — ‘I don’t care, draft him anyway’. Most of the media wrongly characterised Pete Carroll as being someone willing to take on any chance. Wrong. But we pointed all of this out.
I tried my best to steer people. I’ve heard stuff from legit people, multiple sources, about the way he conducted himself at Georgia and how the coaches viewed him that I didn’t spell out because I never felt it was appropriate to go into details and I (wrongly) assumed that the way I wrote about the story would be convincing. A lot of the stuff is out there now and people have reported about the practise habits and the coaching feedback but some of the finer details aren’t out there and I’m not going to go into it because there’s no point now. As Todd McShay put it, ‘are you going to want to bring this player into your locker room?’ So many people ignored all of this.
They were never going to take him. It’s why I said i was 99.5% certain they wouldn’t. And if I’d been wrong, I knew I would never hear the end of it. That’s how certain I was. I ended up getting a load of shit off people who didn’t have a clue about this topic. As far as I can tell none of them have eaten any crow, BTW.
I hope in future as a fan base we can look at these things properly and not be lusting over positions and idealistic visions of players who don’t put the effort in.
and finally Rob
this should be the last you talk of Carter being drafted as a Seahawk
fantastic draft analysis as always
excited for your future studio and website improvements
I think, in fairness to Brian, whilst he was in favour of Carter, he is conceding the point that character was obviously a big emphasis for them this year and Carter was never an option.
But yeah let’s stop talking about him, Phillidelphia is the perfect landing spot for him and I hope he can make good on his potential (but not against Seattle).
I got bored so I decided to make a random 53 man roster based off the draft, and UDFA signings. I decided to bring back Al Woods too.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1V8ROM97fZxuUUxwHa_R3iiW6aih9GGLNwmAmSbTkUQ8/edit?usp=sharing
What an amazing wrap up to an amazing draft season. Thank you Rob for all of your work and insight.
Defenses are really going to have to game plan for how to deal with Seattle’s offense. And defensively, once Witherspoon gets his feet under him, teams won’t be able to avoid Woolen’s side and just throw at the weak link.
There is still work to do, especially on the DL, but I am convinced we have a significantly better roster than last year.
Hoping the talent influx on the DL and adding a coach in BT Jordan who has become really popular among players across the league can develop them well.
Agree, secondary will be no excuse now. On the contrary, they should be expecting several coverage sacks per game.
I’m actually excited about the UDFA QB from ECU Holton Ahlers. The guy can ball the only reason he went to a small school instead of a part give was to stay close to school. He actually has done good tape against good schools. Had he gone power 5 he would of been drafted in the first 3 rounds. GB and Buffalo wanted him
Rob, thanks yet again for another tremendous year of draft coverage. I have learned much from your insights.
I agree that the Seahawks picked well, but I have to ask this- did the Seahawks (and all the other teams except the Titans) over analyze Will Levis and miss a great player? I watched his highlights again today and was just as impressed as I was all of the many months leading to the draft. Have you had a chance to go back over the tape and try to see what the NFL saw as lacking? Very curious to hear your thoughts.
Thanks again for all your great work!
His decision making is a real weakness, too many turnovers and bad sacks. And I’m guessing there’s truth to the rumor that he bombed his interviews
Thanks for your reply. I am curious to see how he does in Tennessee and how quickly they put him on field.
I had heard that it was his medicals. Apparently, his turf toe hadn’t really healed and people were worried that he’d either have surgery this offseason or play through next season and then have to have surgery.
Yes, I know, it’s Cringe Jerrah and all…but what a cool moment for that family. (Both vids are good)
https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/1652517494295257089
Watched it live yesterday, but yesterday’s presser is up on YT now:
Seahawks 2023 NFL Draft Day 3 Press Conference
https://youtu.be/6CW5nNYWETo
Lots of good stuff in there:
– Focus on toughness and physicality in this draft (hammer symbol they add to player cards on their board; just about every player we drafted had one). “Grown men” came up again.
– 9/10 from power conferences, played against better competition, “probably” a part of it.
– They have several boards: front board (our type of guys), general board (talent but not necessarily our type of competitor), medical board (can’t take them), UDFA board.
– Interest in bringing back Al Woods, Poona, Shelby.
– Mike Morris tried losing weight to test better because he had a high ankle sprain. He’s just kind of figuring out “I’m a big person, I’m a DE”. They got a video from him this morning standing on the scale at 295 as per their request to him a while back.
– Cam Young at NT: stout, he puts his hands on people and they don’t move.
– Anthony Bradford can get you out of a pinch at Tackle as well if needed. Has overcome family adversity.
– Jerrick Reed plays the game like he’s mad at somebody. JS seriously had to ask him if he was ok. They were hoping to get him later/UDFA, but he started visiting teams so they drafted him to make sure and get him.
– McIntosh’s emotional reaction a great example of how much it means to our guys. Has happened with several over the years. Shows you who they are, what’s important to them, and why we’re so attracted to them.
– PC: This isn’t a rebuild, we’re really going for it.
– PC: We did not draft for need, we drafted the guys that we wanted. It’s my job to make this a competitive opportunity for each one of these guys so they can show where they fit and who they are. Develop them early to see if they can become regulars and solidify our roster.
– On adding another QB, mentioned UDFA and that they will continue to watch other teams’ waivers.
– On JSN, Ohio State had a couple WRs that were really good players transfer away when he was just a freshman, so that’s telling.
– Olu has run all the schemes we do at Michigan. Ready to compete for the job.
– A great TE class, they had a couple identified, but like the QBs it just didn’t come to them this year.
A really important one for confirming our reading the tea leaves (18:51 mark):
– When talking about their communication with Geno and Drew, they told them: “We have never drafted this high. There’s a chance we could take a QB. And we’ve got to be ready if that player comes to us.”
So there was AT LEAST one QB they would have drafted at 5 had he fallen to them. “That player” could be interpreted as just one, but PC mentioned sometime before the draft there were two they liked. It’s possible Richardson/Stroud might have been 1A/1B and Anderson/Spoon 2A/2B.
Rob, how about if we make a collage like this (from Seahawks website) after each draft and have it be the SDB header image for the following year?
https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/private/t_editorial_landscape_12_desktop/f_auto/seahawks/nwbhroitfp57kjdjespy.jpg
I would love to — but the way this site was designed, it’s so complex to change the banner
It’s why web designers run a mile from me!
Is the web design something AI could do?
Hate to say it and it’s your time and money my man but I’ve Got A Feeling (underrated Beatles song btw) you may well have to get a whole new site created.
Hey Rob, obviously you have a big following here in Seattle, and I’ve heard we may know a thing out Two about technology😉
You should create a post regarding what you/people you have talked to, believe the challenges would be to move to a modern design. I don’t see why you couldn’t migrate existing content, index it all, make it searchable etc. I would bet one of your readers could find some solutions that wouldn’t cost a fortune.
Agree! This is more than doable, especially given you’re willing to invest with a professional.
Can you keep the old site as an archived site/link with comments disabled, and then do a whole new one from scratch? I don’t see how you can move all the older decade plus amount of data into a new format. Seems impossible.
That is absolutely one of the thoughts I had as the “cheapest option”
Heck, you could literally just archive the site every year so the main site is seahawksdraftblog and then put the old site as seahawksdraftblog22/23/24 etc with links to the old sites on the main site. Honestly having back links between the sites when you are referencing content actually would be a good thing from an seo perspective I believe
Just looking at the main page source, there are references to wordpress 6.2 which is a modern version of the wordpress platform. I’m not super familiar with wordpress however.
That’s the conclusion many others have come to
Or that it will take time and they want compensating for the mammoth task
There are tools that are pretty cheap that you can use to copy the site to essentially a dev env, then you can just do the easy “upgrade everything button” and if it breaks everything then just restore it and go a different route. I would think that would be the easiest way to test.
I’ll look through my email tomorrow to find the tool that we used to use for that.
Longtime lurker and blog follower here
The website looks to be in general WP.
It’s not that difficult to create a staging site, import the base content and then make the design work however you want it to work, all behind a privacy screen. You could make it more mobile-friendly for starters. 🙂
You can see my email. If you ever wanted to even discuss it, just let me know. There are many of us who would be interested just as a show of support for the blog and work that you do.
Thank you for the excellent coverage!
Thank you
Yes take him up on that. 😉
Essentially what I said above but it sounds like he actually knows WordPress lol
Rob, I’m not a developer but I am a graphic designer with web and UX/UI experience. I’d be happy to help out if I could.
I’m pretty sure I could manage to swap out the banner.
Perhaps the reason they say it’s complicated is that it used to rotate through images using Adobe Flash, which is now obsolete and unsupported by most browsers for security reasons.
But to swap it out for a static image should really be no big deal.
Looks awesome.
I’m pumped about this RB group! Probably the best trio the team ever had.
I’d use K9 on 1&10 or 2nd and more than 10; Charbonnet on 2&10 or fewer yards and short yardage; and McIntosh on 3rd and more than 4 and maybe some 2nd and 10s.
He has good hands and pretty good runner too.
I’m happy with the WR group too. I hope they start JSN in the slot, then next year put him outside and Lockett in the slot.
Not sure how the secondary will shape up, but maybe Adams SS, Diggs FS, Love big nickel, Woolen outside, Witherspoon outside and some previous guy for slot who wins the competition.
It feels like a good group. My wishlist for next year: QB!!!!, LB, OC, OG, DT, S, DE
I feel if we can get good-great players for those position then it’s up to experience but it could be an SB-ready team (maybe in year 2 or 3). Not sure if it can be done in 1 year (because of the QB and where we’ll likely pick). But apart from QB it is not that hard to do. Good OC can be drafted in R2/3, OG too. DE and DT around round 1-3, S R2/3, LB R2/3, so we wouldn’t need really high picks for those positions. You can also get not elite, but pretty good DT/DE/LB/OG/S in FA (feels like OC is more rare. You can get serviceable often but good or great rarely).
So if they can get a good/great QB who’s just a bit better at least than Geno and younger, we’ll be on the right track
The 86 Seahawks say hold on with the best trio ever talk.
Very complimentary runners. Neither can match Walker’s speed, but they are BIG backs. Charb is a monster and McIntosh can catch. I saw a play action pass where Charb just flattened a blitzing middle linebacker. It was hilarious. Can’t wait to see them in action.
Qb has to be THE target next draft. I just don’t know who… It’s not a great class, just deep.
Top 2 should be elite, at least equivalent to this year’s. Likely more day two caliber prospects also depending on how guys like Rattler and VanDyke continue to develop/rebound from down years
I don’t believe that. Williams is in a system that no one has panned out, and that includes 2 #1 picks. All have bee headaches, including him.
Maye, who knows? For us to get him, he would have to have a bad year and drop. Then you are looking at Levis: one good year and one bad year (I believe Levis had enough extenuating circumstances that it isn’t that simple, but Maye would have to have a bad year).
Then it’s a bunch of blah guys, system qb’s, and guys like Rattler and Nix that haven’t been able to put it together ( and are turnover prone which is a no-no for Pete).
Van Dyke is my one guy. He SHOULD be there because his coach will not make him look good at all. HIs numbers will be horrible.
I’m worried that will not be an underwhelming class and our biggest problem doesn’t get fixed.
Gotta say I don’t buy “system” arguments at all. Everyone used to say a Tedford QB couldn’t succeed until Rodgers, who dropped in part because of that, tore up the league.
Final UDFA and Minicamp list I could come up with. Let me know if you find any I missed.
Lots of guys with draftable grades for sure. Any in particular we like? Maybe one of the 7 LBs sticks?
Defense
DT Jonah Tavai, San Diego State
DT Robert Cooper, Florida State
DT Ifeanyi Maijeh, Rutgers
DE Jordan Ferguson, Middle Tenn. St.
DE M.J. Anderson, Iowa State
LB Patrick O’Connell, Montana
LB Michael Ayers, Ashland
LB Cam Bright, Washington
LB/S Jonathan Sutherland, Penn State
S Ty Okada, Montana St.
S Christian Young, Arizona
S Mo Osling III, UCLA
CB Arquon Bush, Cincinnati
CB Lance Boykin, Coastal Carolina
CB James Campbell, Montana St.
Offense
QB Holton Ahlers, East Carolina
WR CJ Johnson, East Carolina
WR John Hall, Northwood
WR Jake Bobo, UCLA
WR Tyjon Lindsey, Oregon State
WR Matt Landers, Arkansas
TE Noah Gindorff, North Dakota State
FB/TE Griffin Hebert, Louisiana Tech
RB Chris Smith, Louisiana
RB Marcus Cooper, Incarnate Word
OL Kendall Randolph, Alabama
Special Teams
LS Chris Stoll, Penn State
Mini-camp invites:
LB Callahan O’Reilly, Montana St.
LB Bo Bauer, Notre Dame
LB Robert Barnes, Colorado
S Hunter Nichols, San Diego
OG Demetris Harris, South Florida
OG Josh Lugg, Notre Dame
OT Josh Mote, LA Tech
RB Shaun Shivers, Indiana
LS Robert Soderholm III, Virginia Military Institute
Thanks, Sea Mode, much appreciated
👍
You a beast for doing all that seamode. I hope one of those LBs shine and make it on the 53
Thx
I think it would just be an A grade for me. What they did was add good players, with high character, that can come in and compete at multiple different spots across the team. Should get multiple starters from this group that raises the floor of the team considerably.
The reason I wouldn’t go A+ is that, whilst I thought all their picks were solid, I don’t think there’s anything as exciting as grabbing a starting RT in the 3rd, or the sizzling upside of a Woolen in the 5th. Had they gotten a QB of the future, or been the team to steal Ade Ade it would have been an A+ for me.
We might get even 7 starters from this draft, not sure about Morris, Reed and McIntosh but the others could get there.
Those three are quality depth. I’d even say that if Morris, Reed or McIntosh are starting, something very wrong, probably injury related, happened with the starter. So let’s hope they are just depth
I enjoyed Robs trade down mock where the Seahawks ended up with two picks in the third round. We really could have used them to fill out the holes. Don’t get me wrong – I love the picks, but in todays injury prone league they need to double up the way they did on running back. I don’t think anyone would say they couldn’t have used another decent quality defensive tackle.
Listening to Kenny McIntosh talk about how he feels like he has something to prove and all that passion, lets go! That’s the type of guy you want to get late in the draft, people that are hungry! Very hyped about the coming season.
For me it’s John saying “you’re too talented to be sitting here right now” his response “I know that man” HAHA gets me! Love it! Our RB room is FIRE right now! Best RB group we may have every had.
just the right amount of cockyness, sounds like a true baller.
Would love for you to do a draft live stream next year. NFL network’s coverage has been rubbish without Mike Mayock
That’s the plan for next year
Sweet!!
https://media.tenor.com/mqAXKprU0qEAAAAC/seann-william-scott-yes.gif
I said the same thing to my friends. Without Mayock, the rest of the guys are so stale. Before it seemed like they could feed off of Mayocks analysis and Rich Eisen was pretty funny. Now, theres virtually no analysis or banter and the amount of commercials is insane.
The question if this was an A+ draft hinges upon next seasons QB play and Witherspoons ability to play CB in the NFL.
It’s notable that he has short arms and small hands. The uptempo style he plays has never been a big plus on this blog and his tackling ability vs the run is offset by bring unable to play zone coverage. So I wonder what has changed. Witherspoon might have to kick inside.
I really love the low profile DL picks. Mike Morris will push Dremont Jones to the utmost. Love Bradford and McIntosh.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTa-T3m5jds
As an avid golfer, new life goal: Play golf with Derick Hall.
Also, had to chuckle at the title of that video – “Road to the Pros” – Something tells me they won’t be making that series on Carter.
Awesome vid. Thanks for posting it. I love his personality. Going to be a huge hit in the locker room.
I had also forgotten about his truck at the Senior Bowl, and that’s what JS mentioned on the draft call.
https://twitter.com/JimNagy_SB/status/1652096613307883526
There are only three Jimmy John’s in Mobile. That one is either in Springhill or on Airport Blvd. Both are near the University of South Alabama.
I want to see one of those on JC 🤣
I bet they had one planned and he couldn’t be arsed to turn up…
🤣
Why didn’t they do this all along? Chewing gum and saying ‘always comPETE’ kinda went south for a long stretch.
They were in a “win now” mode. Warranted or not.
Interesting that Schneider said they don’t need to make any moves to sign their draft class, because unless OTC is wrong about the numbers, I don’t see how? Per OTC, they don’t have enough to just sign Witherspoon atm, so not sure what’s going on there.
I guess JS was just giving a no answer to the reporter, since we don’t need cap space *right now* because the draft picks usually sign before training camp and not all at the same time.
That was interesting to me too.
My guess is either
a) he was just ducking the question in the moment, or
b) they have a plan to open cap space and just haven’t filed or executed it yet.
PLEASE let that plan be cutting Jamal Adams.
Hey, a guy can dream.
It can’t be Fant after that draft, right?
Wouldn’t they have taken one in the draft if it was?
Rob, thank you for the work. Special thank you to Mrs Staton for sacrificing for the team.
Rob, for what its worth. Colin Cowherd speaking about the “drop” of Will Levis. He said he was told that some teams were turned off by his interviews and “gun show”. He interviewed as cocky and not just confident and then the gun show selfies spooked them as very “me first”.
I can understand the cockiness being a turnoff , even though people say all QBs are like that. Maybe just better than hiding it than Levis. The selfies I don’t get. If teams are turned off by that, they are going to start having trouble fielding a team. That is the younger generation in a nut shell. Besides, how dare he take pride in all the hard work?
Colin cowherd dyeing his hair Ron popeil black/brown when he went to fox thinks taking pictures of yourself getting ripped is a bad look….okay.
How’s cowherd feel about Addison basically going full Dave Chappelle “I’m rich! B–ch!”….good, better, or best look compared to getting to the gym.
You could tell something was going on when they complained about how muscular he looked. What’s really bothering you??? Apparently, it was confidence from some one THEY didn’t think should be cocky.
It wasn’t just selfies. Nor “cockiness”. In interviews it came off as beyond confidence, but “look at me”. Neither Stroud, Bryce Young, nor AR came actoss that way.
Selfies of you with friends working out or with friends hanging out is one thing. Selfies of biceps is a turnoff to some GMs apparently. Perhaps John Schneider too?
I think we’re over thinking this
I think he fell because Indy preferred Richardson and then none of the subsequent teams wanted him in the teens. After that, it’s a long drop until Tennessee moved up
The team draft grades are my favorite clickbait trash pieces of the year. No team gets lower than a B grade and top rated teams have multiple top round picks. Descriptions read something like “team needed x position coming in and filled it”. Or someone so was a reach based on a so called draft analyst board I glanced at.
Rob- thank you for clear honest assessments of players and the draft throughout the entire year. You get an A+ as well for nailing player eval and understanding Seahawk profiles. Best Seahawks blog and not even close.
PFF was hilarios on ZC.” Great player, good value, bad pick because we know better”
Every teams a winner before preseason. I loved the way Walter’s downgraded the Seahawks because they wouldn’t pick Jalen Carter and they though Charbonney wasn’t needed that high when they had Walker already.
Walter’s a joke
Rob, thanks again for the awesome work!
Did you scout any of the DT/NT we signed as UDFA? I’m specially intrigued if Tavai or Cooper have the potential to make the roster and save us the trouble of resigning Al Woods.
M.J. Anderson also seems like a good prospect that fell through the cracks and had our higher signing bonus for UDFA, if I’m not mistaken.
ROB – THANK YOU once again. Smash up job all year and especially leading up to the draft. Richardson would have been the prize pick if he had lasted – Irsay quoted that he called AR about 3 hours before the draft and asked him if anyone else was calling him or interested. AR said one other team was, but they hadn’t called him that day yet. Safe to say it was Seattle.
Will be looking forward to more down the road – cheers mate!
Thank you, and thanks for all the kind words from everyone
I’ve got a big works event on today but when I get home, I’ll be watching some 2024 QB’s…
2024 QB’s – oh man. If you can envision any scenario that we would have a reasonable shot at one without going 2-15…..I’ll buy you a pint at the Slug & Lettuce
If there ends up being a middle class, QB-needy teams might feel like they don’t have to use their top pick or overpay to move up to the very top because there are still viable options in the mid rounds.
BTW, Rob if you haven’t already noticed IND is throwing A Richardson immediately into the line of fire.
They don’t really have a choice now
They’ll have to go through the growing pains. In fairness it worked for Buffalo and Josh Allen
I sincerely hope they don’t ruin this kid by rushing him in as a starter but I got a bad feeling……
Oh and while I’m on the subject, fuck the colts!
A redshirt year would have been nice for him, but this is a good spot for him with Shane Steichen, who helped maximise Jalen Hurts and had Justin Herbert playing much better than expected year 1 with the Chargers.
I totally get the disappointment, but I’m excited to cheer for him on an out of conference team, and to draft him in fantasy.
too late for that check the news
It wasn’t Seattle. They haven’t drafted a QB in many years.
Not only did Rob hit it out of the park this year, what’s gratifying to me, as a fan and for him, is that his hard work has been focused on a team that has clearly adopted an approach to player analysis and drafting that makes sense to him. Not a lot of “what are they doing?” any more now. That could have been pretty depressing–it was to me–and the growth in approach that we’ve seen must make it more gratifying to him. It also helped that we had 10 picks to play with, for sure, but it would have been quite possible to mess those up, no matter how many there were. And from everything we can tell now, we didn’t. Schneider and Pete are now hitting their strides, as team-builders rather than trying to hang on to what was and reach to fill perceived gaps. When we get to the mountain top again, they will have both learned lessons from the failure of that approach.
Thanks for everything, Rob. It was a great weekend on here. Will you have the time to do a brief review of the UDFA class? I know you had Bobo on your horizontal board as a mid rounder. Curious to hear your thoughts on who you think has a realistic chance to crack the roster and who are prime practice squad candidates.
I would also like to see a quick blurb based off the notes you had for guys with draftable grades on your horizontal board.
I don’t tend to review the UDFA’s — because so many are cut after rookie mini-camp. It ends up being a futile exercise.
Quote from airway on Richardson playing week 1 as the starter:
“I think it’s important. You get better by playing. I mean, practice and preseason games and watching in a quarterback room, that’s great. But, man, I’ll tell you, he’d get better by playing, and it’s something that it is really important.”
Sigh…
See my post above. Sadly I think they’re gonna ruin this kid by rushing him. As much as I despise the colts, I truly hope that doesn’t happen.
I agree.
The whole situation is so frustrating, as I truly believe that The Seahawks are the ideal team for Richardson to maximize his career.
And that he was picked *one* spot ahead of us, in an anomaly year where we are picking at 5!
Throw in how close we were to picking at 4 or even 3, and it makes the situation even more irritating.
Since it is highly unlikely that we will ever be both drafting that high, *and* have the draft capital to move up, if needed (without completely selling our souls like the 49ers did), it seems we are going to have to be lucky in finding a QB who isn’t projected very high, and then developing him.
All that said, I am very happy with the draft class this year, and am anticipating an exciting 2023 season!
100% agree with you on everything you said. Hopefully there’s a QB available in say the mid-teens next year that the league isn’t high on and we are able to draft him after a small move up and he develops into a very good player. Van Dyke maybe? I have full faith Cristobal will keep him “down” so maybe after a year of sitting and learning he could be a stud. Only problem is did he get ruined by Mario.
Brock Purdy last pick last year
Cuts both ways, you need to take snaps to get better, but it ruins prospects to have to carry the franchise. Indy is not an awful team. That said, QB has been their downfall, so they are dumping on the kid.
Coaching, locker room, and reasonable expectations … that this is a building year not a W/L column year and it could work out. But seriouslt, he should be clipboard for at least tge first handful of games. A full year would be great, but we are not talkibg about somebody who has a million snaps under the belt as he watches at first (ala Rodgers eg)
This isnt just a good SEA draft blog, it’s a great NFL draft blog. Rob has earned the standing of a Jeramiah or a Kiper or a Pauline on the national NFL draft stage, not just a single team venue.
Agree so much with this, thanks Rob!!
Case in point in case no one noticed: Robs horizontal board pretty much predicted how players went.
It’s interesting to see how this nil money has changed these kids. They are all sporting expensive hardware, playing expensive past time sports, buying expensive cars…. All while in college. You can see how it makes the evaluation for drive and grit harder, and, I think it ruins some of these kids for the work it takes to get to the nfl. That being said, they do deserve to be able to make money in college, I just wish it was setup to go into a trust or something.. or went on credit that they get after they graduate.
The other thing it does is it makes it even harder for these athletes at smaller schools without the nil to compete. These kids making all this money are able to go to these specialized performance programs etc. In that video for Derek, those coaches and Derek said he got faster at that program. It wasn’t free, so he was able to raise his draft stock relative to others that didn’t have the opportunity
The old NCAA system where athletes didn’t get payed was bizarre for a non american like myself. I’m from Brazil and we have 16 year old soccer players getting sold to big europeans clubs and making millions before they can drive. Yes, some get lost because of the influx of money, but we should’t be protecting athletes from their own success.
Not to get too political, but it’s specailly confusing that most people that defend the old NCAA system in America are conservatives, that theoretically should believe in captalism, personal freedom and responsability.
Interesting, and good points.
You’re very observant
One part of the counterpoint is that students are already major benefactors of an education, health care, training, tutoring, and job opportunities post college…at major expense to the colleges.
Yeah spread over the entirety of all of college athletics.
However. Georgia reported a plus 203 million budget in 2021 and a 169 million in expenses. So +30 million in profit.
Plus there’s currently no Healthcare for players post college.
If there wasn’t a multi billion dollar TV deal for college games and tge bowl games were how they were for the majority of footballs history I’d lean your idea. But it’s just not that way any longer.
Although correct, education and health care shouldn’t be behind a paywall. Equal access raises up everyone in your society/community.
The old NCAA system blows my mind (Scottish). A bunch of education institutions making huge amounts of profits from entertainment
It’s funny just how often the world and the people in it work entirely opposite of how they theoretically should.
Well the good thing is we’ll be able to see how they handle the money before we draft them. Could certainly weed out those are here for a paycheck, and those who love the game.
Fwiw Mel Kiper gave one of his 2 ‘A’ grades to Seattle. The other went to Philly.
I watched ESPN exclusively this year cuz no Mike Mayock on NFLN and I don’t like Jeremiah (sadly I missed the dog pissing on him tho). I thought Mel was very good this year. He did well presenting upside and areas of weakness for each prospect. As for grades, an A is nice but you never know about a draft until these guys suit up and play in the NFL. But if you grade based on board rankings and slot taken, etc. as Rob does then grading is worthwhile.
Well, he did say it was in part because he owed JS for last year’s draft! 😁
Thinking more about the mentality of the guys they drafted, I think this: The Seahawks are now re-setting properly, looking at the guys to create a culture in the locker room from their roots.
They lost it when they moved on from players like Sherman, Baldwin, etc. There was a void there.
They attempted to restore it in one fell swoop with a massive trade for Jamal Adams. Pete Carroll pointed to Adams as the guy who would help the team get its equilibrium back.
Talking about the trade in August 2020, Pete not only is saying these words, but he is defending the sky-high price they paid for Adams. He’s a bit defensive about this trade when he says this:
Has Adams managed to learn it? Has he been a leader in the locker room for the Seahawks? I can’t think of a single player who was asked in a press conference about the leadership of the team and pointed to Adams or so much as referenced his name.
Sure, people talk about the energy he brings. You can see it from the nosebleed seats. But it has rarely been described in words as leadership.
And unfortunately it often translates to out-of-position plays and dumb mistakes on defense that hurt the team on the field. For instance, on the backbreaking Derrick Henry run in the Tennessee game, Carroll explained Adams being out of position as being ‘too jacked and pumped to make the play’ and it opened up a massive opportunity that Henry exploited.
This offseason, the Seahawks directly pointed to Wagner and Reed as bringing that mentality back to the team. By omission they are admitting that Adams has failed to deliver that mentality, and they need to fill that role.
They are finally recognizing that the Adams trade was a failure on the human level. You cannot just buy a competitive cultural foundation.
And even if you could, why would you invest so heavily in a player I said this about in July 2020:
https://seahawksdraftblog.com/how-the-seahawks-can-justify-the-jamal-adams-trade#comment-515949
The proof is in the pudding the last two years. They have paid tons of money, tons of premium draft picks, and gotten a pretty meager return both on the defense and in the locker room.
Good on them for understanding it, noticing it, desiring to reestablish it, and making solid, laudable moves to get started on the ground floor again.
I went to the Minnesota game a couple of years ago and there was no leadership from him whatsoever. He was basically a loner. Nobody talked to him and he didn’t go up to others with any kind of regularity unlike all the other “better” players. That trade was just as bad as the Russell Wilson trade for the Broncos.
I’ve heard that from a few people at games. And if you bring it up to certain other pages, it’s just like saying that they were going to pass on Jalen Carter. OFFENDED.
He’S oUr DeFeNsIvE lEaDeR!!
I sat 10 rows behind the Steelers bench in the Pittsburgh game.
The camera never caught how many times Adams turned to the Steeler sideline and jawed at the team. I was not pleased at the way he represented the Seahawks in that game, let alone the face doink and the ‘best in the nation’ stuff.
Well said and I couldn’t agree more.
For anyone that needs a refresher on hawk trades over the years:
https://www.si.com/nfl/seahawks/news/seattle-seahawks-john-schneider-bobby-wagner-nfl-draft-day-trades-ranked
This was a good read.
Thank you cha for the complete summation on why this guy should’ve never been traded for in the first place, should’ve never received a huge contract and should now be cut post June 1 (which is VERY unlikely to happen). What a great post! Unequivocally the worst trade in franchise history and top 5 worst in NFL history. To put the finishing touches on getting the culture right as they have been doing in the last 2 drafts, this guy needs to be gone 6/1 pure and simple.
And btw, the empty trash talking should come as no surprise. He twatter trash talked the Rams when they lost AFTER kicking our ass with a broken thumbed Goff in a WC playoff game at home. Dude is a shit football player and a POS as a teammate, competitor and any other non-playing metric you’d like to consider.
“:prez” God what a joke.
A couple of things are made excruciatingly clear…
1. That trade was *all* Pete.
We can argue about compensation, but JS was given a mandate, and he fulfilled it, at extreme cost.
2. The tired narrative about how the Seahawks are “quick to recognize mistakes and cut bait on players, no matter their status”, should be forever put to rest.
Pete wanted to *will* the Adams move to be a success. He heard the criticism and his ego wouldn’t allow cutting bait on Adams when it was already clear that he wasn’t the player they hoped they were getting…and in *no way* was he worth re-setting the safety market for.
Ironically, the safety market has re-set at a much lower level since we signed Adams, which further emphasizes how ludicrous that contract was.
I think he’s still trying to “will” the trade to be a success for the ego reason you mentioned. And I agree it was all Pete. I’ve always thought so.
How did they miss that bad on the evaluation of who he was in the locker room, though? Must have gotten a bit stuck on what was said of him in college and not paid enough attention to what happened in NY.
I think it was clearlt desperation. They sat on Clowney, had no backup plan and tried desperately to create a pass rush with a box safety. As for his supposed “leadership”, feels like Pete trying to add to the justification for the trade.
Just watched some Jake Bobo highlights and I think he could be a tight end.He’s tall and catches in tight spaces. 2 cents.
For an UDFA Holton Ahlers actually looks promising. I hope he makes it to the preseason so we can watch him play a little.
My first view of him. I see slow and lumbering. Big windup (slow release) and lefthanded. I am not a fan of lefthanded QB’s unless the entire offense is designed around it. And they better be elite (Steve young and Mike Vick) He is there to throw to the other UDFA WRs. My guess is they will bring in at least one more.
He is interesting, checkout this article
https://www.si.com/.amp/nfl/2023/04/13/2023-nfl-draft-sleeper-quarterback-holton-ahlers
Essentially he is just learning the trade still and seems to be growing quickly into it. With the right env, who knows
Here’s the question Rob. If I had 2 picks in my draft and Seattle got them in UDFA is that a win for me?
Bobo and Ahlers?
Robert Cooper NT and Christen Young S
What makes a system offense? And why do ppl think that Michael Penix is currently a system offense QB?
When multiple players can run the same offense and flourish. We’ll see what happens with Penix but Kalen DeBoer’s system has worked very well for its QBs.
Thank you
Seahawks collecting left handed QBs.
You can also look to what Penix has been with and without Deboer, it’s a drastic difference.
I would also add systems where they are only needed to make one read or two at most and never have to audible. You cannot do that in the NFL and creates a steep learning curve.
Another theme: Hawks are building on the edges with early picks in the draft:
2 starting tackles
2 starting corners
2 pass rushers
2 running backs
1 WR (note DK still only 25)
Character, toughness at premium positions on rookie deals.
They have veterans at safety, linebackers, IDL, IOL, TE, and QB
Set the team up for solid run in 2023, but more development at key positions to get QBOTF in 2024.
I’m sure the 2013 experience isn’t lost on the FO- and they know the locker room, and skill at outside positions are key to supporting development of a young QB and set them up for another SB run.
My favorite draft pick in Kenny in 7th. He was damn good in CFPlayoffs. What led to his slide?
Most likely his 40 time.
Rob, I just wanted to personally thank you for all the hard work, time and effort you put into your blog. The regular contributors like Cha, SeaMode and many, many others that are level headed and add their own valuable content without belittling other’s opinions, is what makes this site so special.
The blog is by far my favorite place to come for viable and valuable Hawk information. Many of the other sites have a tid bit here and there, but simply do not compare. It is awesome to have a place to come, just about daily, to find new content and refreshing takes. I find leading up to the draft the blog finds its fair share of trolls, but you and the community tend to hit them once and move on, recognizing you can’t fix stupid or change some minds with the logical presentation of facts.
It is all refreshing on top of incredible content. Thank you! Hope you get at least a little rest here in the coming weeks. Really excited to see how this team grows and what they do next. They really feel like they are building something now, again.
PS, I think there could be a high $ job for you on the Colts scouting staff. I know you thought Levis was their guy but you had AR so much higher than most of the so called experts. He was the guy I wanted most in this draft and I would never have come to that conclusion on my own without reading and then watching him, due to the content of this blog. Kudos! Hebegbs.
You have said it better than I can. Rob – you’ve done a tremendous job discussing options for the Seahawks and the draft coverage was out of this world. Thanks.
Thank you! I really appreciate those words
Haven’t seen Edgar on here at all since the draft ended!! 😂
Right here my friend:)
This is the best Seahawk site. I’ve searched and tried them all. Thank you Rob….you are far and beyond any other-
Agreed! Nobody does it better!
I’ll join the legions saying thank you to Rob, and the other knowledgeable and positive posters on this site, for making so many people more aware of the draft and the deeper insights into the Seahawks.
On another note, I know Pete can be hyperbolic, but I have found that when he makes player comps he’s usually fairly accurate, his saying Witherspoon reminded him of Troy Polamula made me feel even better about the draft. Troy was hard hitting like Rob has said, but to me more importantly he was highly productive, one of the most fun players to watch play football, always around the actio making plays. (I had hoped Earl Thomas could be like Troy, and he sometimes wss.The Seahawk’s D backfield should be fun to watch this year. Woolen and Love with Witherspoon playing behind Bobbie Wagner and Bush should make life hard for most offensive coordinators and quarterbacks.
Cue the Carly Simon James Bond theme.
Yes, makes me feel sad for the rest…
I’ve been thinking about Levis’s drop. Could it be that teams outside of the top 10 didn’t seriously scout him because everyone thought he’d be gone by then, so when his fall started teams didn’t know for sure and just stuck to the guys they were already looking at? Obviously Tennessee wasted no time trading up (for very little I’d add) and grabbing him on day 2. His fall is a lot like Rodgers and his career could have a similar start where he can come in and breath a bit without a ton of pressure to carry the team. However his fall came about I’m still feeling like a lot of teams will regret not stopping it.
I like Levis.
His whole off season has been pretty weird:
-too muscular? Too selfish for taking selfish?
– a ton of confirmation bias from folks that didn’t like him for whatever reason….”see the whole league knows something, i knew it”….what the? The whole league including our own team misses. All the time. Every round.
Maybe he just truly sucks. I never saw it watching games. Make too many bad decisions? I guess. I’ll skip writing out tge incredibly long list of qbs who did that in college.
As a fan of his I wouldn’t bet against who gutted it out for no reason other than the team in college and who looked a ton better with the tiniest drop of weapons added to the mix.
Also as I’m typing this….pretty cool that three bigger names all joined the sane division in one draft. And they go against Lawrence. Could be pretty interesting times for a while.
On Maggie and Perloff, the hosts referenced Jim Nagy’s assessment of Will Levis; apparently, Nagy said Levis has very poor game feel, as if Levis never played pickup football as a youth. Levis skipping the Senior Bowl also seems to have been received poorly by league evaluators; I guess many felt that he was healthy enough to have at least participated in some capacity.
Also, arrogance (i.e., openly expressing superiority) and cockiness (i.e., openly expressing confidence) aren’t really synonymous terms, particularly not when applied to leadership; if it’s true that Levis is arrogant behind the scenes, then his teammates will struggle to vibe with him on and off the field (as with Zach Wilson in New York).
For those wondering about the signing of UDFA quarterback Holton Ahlers here is a highlight reel.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFlG-EyDrpI
Watched the video and came away liking Ahlers. Hawks also signed his favorite wr CJ Johnson. Hope we are on to something.
That’s interesting!
I know it is highlights, but that QB looked good. I had to check the playback speed as the throws looked really fast.
I was more impressed about the things he did to get ready for his final season.
He worked on strengthening his arm and improving his accuracy. Like last the 49rs 7th round pick Brock Purdy, Ahlers also started a professional-level arm care and training program right before his senior season. Seemed to have definitely improved his game.
Then preparing for the draft with QB country.
This is a guy who knows what things he needs to work on, and then goes out and does it.
Easily fits everything the Seahawks say their looking for in their players. Team player who’s tough and plays through injury. Excited for the kid and glad we grabbed him as a UDFA. Equally excited about Gindorff, loved watching him play. If not for his injuries I think he gets drafted.
that’s what I liked about him, and it shows how raw he is, so he could totally be someone you put on the practice squad and see with the kid can do with a professional team behind him.
He has some pop in his arm but that is one funky delivery. looks like hes throwing a shot put.
It’s not classic, but I also didn’t see a slow, lumbering release, either. Now as a runner, he’s no AR, but who is?
Hard to hate pretty accurate 60 yard shot puts.
Personally I didn’t think that at all, but is a little long with his release.
However, he’s been working on that & could see the improvement from 2021 to 2022.
Is he perfect? No
That & injuries is why he was a UDFA.
Still he know his weaknesses & is working to fix them. Add in his traits & toughness; & it’s easy to see why they like him. A leader mentality & a will come in to camp ready to work.
Just wondering about JS comment that there were 2 players he wouldn’t have moved off of #5, DW being one of them. Assuming Anderson was the other if available. I’m also assuming he was not referencing Stroud or AR. Had either one fallen to #5, I can’t imagine JS moving that pick in that scenario. Am I incorrect in assuming this?
And add this from JS in yesterday’s presser, in the context of what they said to Geno and Lock in FA:
(I posted notes on the presser up above:
https://seahawksdraftblog.com/the-seahawks-had-a-second-consecutive-a-draft#comment-762935 )
Originally, I also thought the two players were Witherspoon and Will Anderson, but now I’m wondering what if it were just one of the QBs and Witherspoon. It seems crazy to think, but what if they didn’t rate Anderson as highly for some reason? There were some who thought his college dominance would not carry over at the same level in the NFL. Could the two players have been Witherspoon and Anthony Richardson? Witherspoon and Stroud?
I did find it interesting watching the war room feed that there wasn’t any reaction at all when Richardson went off the board right before them at #4. Either they knew IND was locked on him for a while now and there was no chance, or they weren’t really up for a project like that. There wasn’t so much of a glance or an “oh well” shrug that I could detect.
Seems crazy to even type that they might not have been interested in Anderson or Richardson, but they do march to the beat of their own drum sometimes in player evaluations. I could honestly have seen them liking Witherspoon and Stroud.
I just can’t get over what coup getting K9, Charbonnet this year, and McIntosh was. Incredible maneuvering over the past two years to completely remake the RB room from one that was a bit plodding to one that should be feared.
Incredible
BPA will do that for you!
We went from being one Walker injury away from Dallas starting to having 3 rb’s better than him. Maybe we have to see with McIntosh, But 2 for sure. Our RB room went from a serious weak spot to overwhelming strength. And that’s exactly what you need for a Pete led team. Just think of how many years we’ve been stuck late in the season signing random dudes off the street to play meaningful snaps. I get all the people who hate seeing back to back 2nd rounders spent on a position they think is pointless. But one, they’re entirely wrong in their positional evaluation. But more importantly, RB is damned important for this team. Solidifying it, and making it a massive strength is one of the best things we could’ve done this off-season. And to think we drastically improved our WR corps as well, and added a couple young pieces to the OL. Lot of talk about how we’ve bolstered the D. But if Geno can do just what he did last year, he has a lot more supporting pieces. Exciting times.
+1
The added value here is taking pressure off of Geno. Geno regresses a bit? Fine. We have 3 capable backs now that are able to help shoulder the load and a fantastic receiver core to help make him look good.
I mean, who doesn’t want to see Alex Collins starting for us one more time ?!
Maybe that rookie guard and the center will help the running game too. They got some pieces to play with now.
💯
Interesting, just saw this on Wikipedia:
The following is the breakdown of the 259 players selected by position:
36 cornerbacks
33 wide receivers
30 linebackers
22 defensive ends
21 defensive tackles
20 safeties
19 offensive tackles
18 running backs
15 offensive guards
15 tight ends
14 quarterbacks
9 centers
3 kickers
3 punters
1 fullback
I thought this was an interesting way to breakdown picks also: https://twitter.com/sharpfootball/status/1652758550853087233?s=46&t=cOHU3a7sncZq-_1QP4M1Og
Premium positions early and often.
Welp, that wraps up another draft class. Pretty good ending I think. Sucks to not have a long term solution at quarterback, but if they are able to figure that out in the next couple of years, then that QB is going to be walking into a perfect situation. Plenty of young talent and building blocks for the future.
Not dismissing the need for a long term QB. But the last time we got it right, we built the core of the team prior to getting the QB. Yes, we lucked out getting one in the 3rd round. But when he arrived, the core building blocks were in place. I feel like that’s what the team has done with these last two drafts. If this class if what we think it looks like, a new qb coming in a year or two is going to have a lot to work with. And a lot to protect him.
Not dismissing the need for a long term QB. But the last time we got it right, we built the core of the team prior to getting the QB. Yes, we lucked out getting one in the 3rd round. But when he arrived, the core building blocks were in place. I feel like that’s what the team has done with these last two drafts. If this class if what we think it looks like, a new qb coming in a year or two is going to have a lot to work with. And a lot to protect him.
Thought experiment:
I know there would be cap ramifications, as you need cheap players to fill out the roster. But I was wondering if it might be better to trade all one’s draft picks in one single year for that one missing piece (QB, particularly) instead of trading away multiple R1 and R2 picks in subsequent years.
Just take the draft capital hit in one year and keep all your future picks intact.
Hindsight, obviously, but imagine if we had traded our entire 2014 draft class for R1P13 to get Aaron Donald and filled the holes with cheap veterans and UDFA. Would we really have been that worse off…?
Paul Richardson | Round 2, Pick 45. WR, Colorado
Justin Britt | Round 2, Pick 64. T, Missouri
Cassius Marsh | Round 4, Pick 108. DE, UCLA
Kevin Norwood | Round 4, Pick 123
Kevin Pierre-Louis | Round 4, Pick 132
Jimmy Staten | Round 5, Pick 172
Garrett Scott | Round 6, Pick 199
Eric Pinkins | Round 6, Pick 208
In a normal year, you should be able to get #1 or #2 overall if you offered all your native picks in each round. Get the franchise QB and start preparing for next year’s draft.
Apologies for my crazy 1am musings…
I think it would be totally worth it.
Franchise qb on a 5 year rookie contract in exchange or maybe two starters?
Aka the Ricky Williams move…I mean if the QB ends up being legit then it’s worth it imo. But if they bust then you look really stupid. High rush high reward, i don’t think JS would be the type to do that but for the right qb I wouldn’t be opposed. Assume we have a stacked roster from our last 2 or 3 drafts and I could see the sense.
I thought once the draft was over , everyone would calm down and see that we had a really good draft class. Adam from SeaHawkers podcast keeps complaining about our draft and basically wanted the Seahawks to draft for need instead of BPA. It’s frustrating 🤦🏽♂️
Kind of of where i am Seahawkward.
Pete Prisco gave us a B+.
I was hoping for another F.
You mean Pete Prickso right?
This isn’t very new or all that surprising.
The Colts put out over $200k guaranteed last year for Jack Coan and an OT they really wanted in UDFA.
Every year the chase is on for UDFA’s and teams get carried away.
Maybe he just means more teams are doing it now?
And now Jack Coan has been invited to our rookie minicamp…
No Coan left unturned…
(I’ll see myself out.)
LOL
I think they had Coan in for a workout last year too. A few weeks into the season if I recall.
Just looking through PFN’s simulator so see how the rankings look, and there are some intriguing QBs to keep on our watch list:
Caleb Williams USC
Drake Maye UNC
Quinn Ewers TEX
Michael Penix: UW
Bo Nix ORE
Cameron Ward WSU
Kyle McCord OSU
KJ Jefferson ARK
Cameron Rising UTAH
Tyler Van Dyke MIA
Certainly a larger group to keep an eye on than last year. Should be very interesting to see how this all shakes up.
Personally, my thoughts are it’s a very average looking list
I am keen to dig into Ewers who I haven’t really watched yet
Watching his game vs Washington was interesting since Bijan sat out that game to prepare for the draft, so Ewers had to make due without. His receivers didn’t help with several drops and wrong routes. Most of those bad routes and drops came on deep routes. There were tons of short receiver routs and screens with several big YAC plays. Mostly it seemed like he was relying heavily on mid range slant and in routes over the middle. Nothing particularly special about that, but it will be interesting to see how he grows considering he was just a RS freshman last year
I agree with Rob. Our Qbof is most likely not there next year. Maybe 2025?
Joe Milton at Tennessee I’m excited to see what he can do, how far can he rise. Perhaps he can rise above Tennessee’s “system” with the tools he has.
Hunter Dekkers at Iowa St could be a riser too. We shall see. Pedigree, size, and talent if he improves and declares.
Liked what I saw from Milton. He can get some serious arc on his throws
As mentioned below, Joe Milton could be added.
I would say Jordan Davis (FSU) might be an interesting one too.
Jordan Travis*****
Georgia DL on the brain
That has more to do with actual money rather than cap space though right? I think trading further draft capital to save a few 100k is penny pinching rather than trying to put up the best product which is really what drives in the money.
This was meant to be a reply to Sea Mode’s comment referencing Zierlein.
Correct, it has nothing to do with the cap since the top 51 cutoff (players that count against the cap) is around $900k.
Just wanted to say thank you again to everyone who has posted really nice comments about the blog and the draft coverage
This community is the best
<3
Thank you, Rob, for making this the best year ever (and shout outs to Curtis, Robbie and Adam). It only took 13 years for the Hawks to adopt the BPA strategy you’ve always advocated for – now we’re two years into a second golden age of this front office. Next step is for them to translate this on the field, especially for defense.
In a way, I’m excited we did not draft a QB – love to read your QB evals and looking forward to doing it all over again :D. This year was an immense amount of content from you – loved every word. I am, and many here, are spoiled since 2008.
I’m on the 2024 QB tape already… 🙂
Especially looking forward to Van Dyke’s breakdown.
Excerpt work Rob, well done all around. Hmm WR Matt Landers looks interesting: 6’4, 200 lbs, 4.37 40, 37 inch vert…
Watching his highlights, why wasn’t Landers drafted?
One year of production after two transfers and some on-field character concerns (disinterested blocking effort) and no special teams value. But his production last year was special and he has skills, so he has a chance. But I could see him lighting up pre-season but to struggle to hang on because of the lack of special teams value as the last receiver on the roster. But agreed about 2022 highlights.
Great draft overall. The Charbonnet pick is my only question mark. I think they might have pulled the trigger a little early on that one particularly because of the “upsets” that followed in the third round that caused them to drop out of the round entirely.
Who were those upsets I wonder? Maybe on of the Byron Young’s or Pickens. Ya ya Diaby?? Thoughts??
Probably Byron Young would be my guess. Fit them down to a tee. Might’ve been a ‘must have’ even.
But I don’t think the Charbonnet pick has any impact on that
That’s my thought as well. It just feels like there were more running backs available than there were defensive linemen. (And I kind of wanted Abenikanda. Seems more explosive to me somehow.)
We will see if they did enough to fix the defensive line. Here’s hoping!
It’s BPA though — not reaching for need, that’s the key. Clearly ZC was ahead of any DL at #52
I agree with Rob on Byron Young. It was almost certainly a DL because that was the context of the question in which JS first mentioned the upsets on day 2. And it had to be somewhat close to their pick otherwise it wouldn’t really be an “upset”.
And besides the fit Rob mentions, and very unscientifically, there’s also simply that twinkle in PC’s eyes in this picture that says it all… 🤩
https://twitter.com/Seahawks/status/1641134168871677953
Not the first time he’s been seen hovering around players they like with a little smile, glance, and pat on the shoulder 😉:
https://youtu.be/2dhJKGDxi_I?t=97
I think they was hoping to get Young or a Pickens at pick 83.
That was actually one of my favorite picks (Charbonnet). If that was the most disappointing thing about the draft (aside from Richardson not being available) then you know this was a good/great draft.
No question RB was a big need. I’m happy we got two of them.
I predict Charbonnet pick months ago, it is not only BPA but also a real need. It takes one Walker’s injury away to ruin half of their offense, and they are not taking any chances on lesser RB.
Same logic also applies to pick #20, except I have Jordan Addison instead of JSN.
It is combination of needs and BPA.
Jordan Addison over Jaxon Smith-Njigba? I’m curious what your reasoning is. JSN’s 3-cone:6.57 and Short Shuttle:3.93 are elite numbers that bely a somewhat average 40 time. Addison’s agility numbers did not approach Jaxon’s. I can understand being put off by JSN’s production this year, but just look back to the 2021 numbers for Ohio State and you will see that Smith-Njigba was the alpha.
Excellent work I meant, of course, damn autocorrect
I really hope they cut Jamal Adams. I know it’s a long shot but I don’t want has hollow swagger and poor play getting in the way of a new culture that will hopefully grow in the locker room. Adam’s character seems to fly in the face of what they’ve targeted these past two years.
💯
Too true.
I think the draft at least makes it an easier possibility. I think it makes sense to facilitate bringing in a dlineman.
Witherspoon can play slot and is very physical allowing Love to play more safety. And we got a back up safety in the draft. If we moved on from Adams, it’d be good to add one more guy, but the room would survive.
I imagine if he’s back healthy and in camp/preseason he may have trade value, so I almost expect any changes in Adams status to happen near the cut down date.
Whenever you’re done slacking off Rob… 😉
How ‘bout them 2024 QBs?
Whoops. Guess I needed to scroll up first.
I’m on it now
First impression of Quinn Ewers is… very mixed
I was just watching his spring game performance and his release certainly looks quicker
I thought that was a pretty meh display though
Agreed. I haven’t seen anything special from him so far. I’d like to see what he can do with a full season and see if he can step his game up with Arch Manning breathing down his neck.
There is one QB eligible for 2024 that I am very intrigued by
Not who most people would expect…
Article this week
possible to work out a deal with him to quit school, and sign him as a walk-on?
Serious….don’t know how else we can move into a position to get the future when we keep stacking these drafts and piling up wins into the 10-11 range.
@vichawkfan
Exactly. We won’t be in position to draft someone who is universally accepted as a top QB.
And we won’t have the extra draft capital to move up, either.
We are going to have to find a diamond later in the draft, and hope to develop them.
It’s a long shot, really.
Great work this year Rob. I have been following the blog since Pete’s first press conference as HC. Best Seahawks coverage and draft coverage out there. I want to get your thoughts on Riley Leonard, the QB at Duke. He is intriguing to me. Decent arm, athletic, and highly productive. Plus, he was a multisport athlete, which we know Pete will like.
I just can’t see John pushing in all the chips in a 49ers/Panthers type of deal to move up for a can’t miss QB. I don’t believe that’ll happen, so we’ve got to wait until someone catches John’s eye and the entire rest of the league misses it and he falls to us.
Any QB that will be available in our range is going to have some sort of massive flaw, which is why they’d still be there. We are going to need a QB, and soon. John has got to stop being so picky and start taking shots on guys.
I think JS would definitely do that… for the right player
He will be very careful about making sure it’s the right player though
I thinkJS would want to do it for the right guy.
Being *able* to do it is another matter.
You have to have the resources, be withon reach of the player (ie, not drafting too low), and a team who is willing to take your deal.
Don’t worry, Ahlers 2025!
My intrigue sits with Riley Leonard (cool intangibles) and Jordan Travis (top rated last year by PFF)
Dang…going to have to wait until the article but I think I have a guess. I’ll check back when the article is published.
Fascinating the the NFC is now completely devoid of ‘proven’ franchise QBs. (QBs that strike fear into your heart)
Really strange, right? There’s Jalen Hurts and now maybe Bryce Young and….that’s about it.
Yeah I think you’re underestimating Hurts
So no one is worried about Mahomes, Burrows, and Allen? How soon we forget.
He said NFC
be curious to see how Ahlers performs in preseason. Doesn’t hurt to develop at the practice squad if he can make it
https://www.si.com/.amp/nfl/2023/04/13/2023-nfl-draft-sleeper-quarterback-holton-ahlers
Interesting read
thx
Maybe destined for Minnesota lol
I wonder if he’s stayed off the radar because he’s left handed, or if it’s an athletic profile and competition level thing. Of course I went on the internet deep dive on why so few left handed players may it in the NFL. The reasons I found, most lefties are recruited by the MLB, plays tend to be drawn up for right hand QBs, WR seem to need a little adjustment period as the ball moves differently (like a fade to a draw in golf). Pretty cool they got his Wr from high school and college, CJ Johnson I believe. Watched the Birmingham bowl and those two where unstoppable, but competition level was cheeks of course.
His throwing range on tape was 30 yard throws. He isn’t the long range throwing machines that Stroud, Richardson, Levis, and Hooker are. That combined with a small college and not much national exposure.
His Pro-Day shows he’s already improved in that area. I’m guessing he’ll continue to do so. One things for sure he won’t be cut for lack of work ethic or desire to improve his game.
I was surprised with how good he looks. But you know highlight reels always look good. Anyway I’m an optomist, if Geno Smith can run the team then why not Ahlers?
If Ahlers and WR schoolmate CJ Johnson makes the practice squad i can see both grow together working on their game
Looking forward to see Ahlers in preseason and see how his read progression and arm looks.
Just want to see if he can improve and learn and if the work ethic is there maybe they find a hidden gem.
I thought I saw some bombs on this highlight reel that someone posted above https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFlG-EyDrpI
He said he has been practicing to throw out to 50 yards. So he’s capable of it. I don’t want to get my hopes up about the backup to a backup, but I do have hope.
Mike Morris trained with Coach Jordan ..there’s his pick
Lombardi reviewing the draft said Morris>Mazi Smith
Do you have a link?
Sorry misremembered it was Emory Morris of CBS
https://youtu.be/t7NM4M94XiM
https://www.mlive.com/wolverines/2023/03/michigan-dl-mike-morris-trained-with-msu-coach-to-prep-for-nfl-combine.html
Thank you Rob for a great draft season. What a terrific year of coverage. It has been a blast to dream on the draft with so many picks this year. I really wanted AR but I’m not sure how you can be mad at this class. There is skill, talent and leadership abound. Rookie mini camp should be a blast before summer drags us down. Preseason games will be fun too.
I’m concerned about the Quarterback but we can always hope someone has a Burrow like rise this next year. Man do I wish TVD went to Alabama. I don’t really rate Penix. Hoping for a surprise.
“We can always hope someone has a Burrow like rise this next year.”
So, you expect Seattle to be drafting #1 overall next year?
If you like TVD you should be glad he stayed, his numbers will be shit and we can get him Day 3
Congrats Kraken fans!
FIRST EVER SERIES WIN!!!
On the road in game 7 vs. the champs. That’s huge!
Yes it is, very impressive
Made up my mind, let’s just keep building a strong team and let Geno cook until the new Manning gets available.
Sounds like the perfect way to be the Colts: don’t address qb seriously and fall by that mistake.
And sure, let’s plan ahead that far along.
But as Rob and others already mentioned, there just wasn’t any chance to get one of their QBs this year.
Maybe the Hawks were willing to trade up to three, but the offer the Cardinalds received was way better than anything the Seahawks could or should have paid.
Plus the possibility that the Cardinals didn’t want to trade with us at all.
I know there was no option this year. No matter what, they have only drafted one quarterback seriously in 12 years. Still the biggest hole.
It HAS to be addressed next year.
Totally agree!
But I remain optimistic for now.
Given John Schneider’s track record (willing to trade Russ for a project, Josh Allen and willing to draft Mahomes while Russ was still there), I’m pretty sure he’ll aggressively chase a QB.
And I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re willing to give up whatever it takes if they think a QB is worthy.
Be it Caleb Williams, Drake Maye or whoever else comes up.
I just can’t see it. I don’t think there’s any way he’ll trade the incredible amount of resources it’d take to jump up from the 20s (presumably) to the very top of the draft where they’d probably have to take Williams.
Yeah, maybe I phrased that one badly, I don’t think it’s likely either.
But if our rookies perform well and we have a solid foundation, that gives us the freedom to pursuit a quarterback.
Not necessarily one in the top 3, but someone that JS believes can be a foundation for years to come.
Well, would be nice to know if he is reporting this or speculating this. Definitely stated in an unequivocal way at least.
That’s a statement and BH is close to JS so I would take it as gospel
I have a headache now….
LOL
Further from BH in that thread: “ I think it would have been too hard to justify paying that kind of money ($31M+ GTD/$6M cap hit in Year 1) to a backup, given their cap/cash constraints right now. Not to mention the opportunity cost of not helping their defense with that pick. Not sure if they were factoring in Young there, since it was widely known that he was going No. 1 overall, and the draft basically started at No. 2. I think they could have done it at 20 if one of the top guys (other than Levis) fell, or if the right guy fell to them Day 2 or 3.“
I think that’s an assertion and one I disagree with
They clearly said they were willing to draft a QB and if you find one you like, that money is irrelevant
I think that’s the kind of thinking that had everyone in the media mocking Jalen Carter to Seattle
Agreed. On to the next crop of QBs…
What Brady reports can be/is true, but it doesn’t mean the Hawks would not have drafted Richardson if he was available. It just means he wasn’t an “untouchable pick”. In other words, if Anderson and Witherspoon are gone, then they either pick Richardson or auction off the pick to get a haul if they aren’t 100% on AR. If all 3 were there, so AR vs WA or DW, then the claim is they go defense and pass on AR and don’t even consider getting a ransom for him at their 5 slot. I find that scenario harder to accept. A huge ransom would trump any defensive player this year and if a huge offer is made for AR it would have to make them pause and wonder if they should just take the kid and see if they strike gold. I think 3 players were untouchables but they don’t want to admit AR was one of them….
Money is NEVER a factor in who a team drafts.
That’s a dumb line of thinking that just. will not. die.
One thing I continue to be impressed with is the draft process and discipline led by Schneider.
If you look around the league, so many teams have new GMs, new HCs and they aren’t on the same page. Look at Denver. George Paton is a conservative GM- he wants picks and loves trading back- his evals are great and find value deep in the draft. Sean Payton comes in and says F-them-picks- trades up (a terrible trade, but great for us) and trades for a player. This is total disfunction and Payton clearly is running the show.
By sticking to the playbook, Schneider wins the draft benefiting from other orgs disfunctions. You might argue we’ve had terrible drafts, but I’d also argue the process has been refined over the years between John’s team and Pete. Jodie being in the room to witness the process and provide feedback/input is also commendable.
They are clearly firing on all cylinders now.
John referenced in pressers how they had an idea where guys would go- they were surprised a few times, but clearly had a solid network to call on during the draft process. I’d like to believe that this network just comes from consistency and experience of his entire team. They’ve been doing this together for much longer than other teams front offices and the experience shows in the player selections that we all love.
This cohesion in the draft and what appears to be John more in control has me really optimistic about the future of the Seahawks- I hope he never leaves.
I liked the draft. I’d concur it’s an A+ effort. How it effects the team….I’d probably still give that a B.
Its still big time JAG defensive front until I see it. Apologies. Like the players but as I heard on draft day one “there must be a reason,” these players are falling.
I think last year and this year look promising. Of course we don’t know til we know.
I’m not quite there at anointing JS manager for life. I mean he took a player that was getting consistently ranked in the top 20 to number 2 overall by his peers and built the sloppiest do nothing team around him and it wasn’t that “you could argue” that they had bad drafts…..there is no argument.
And it wasn’t really for any reason besides out smarting themselves. Let’s never draft a center. Here’s three whiffs in one draft at safety when Buddha baker is up the road or tj watt. But it’s not just that. Here’s Christine Michael who doesn’t really care, has in college horrible ball skills but he’s explosive.
The bad trades.
It’s great that it’s either “keep it simple stupid,” or a bit of Occams razor going in finally.
Very happy to see solid if not game altering on draft day now.
Once again, I agree with you. A for the players, B or B+ for the difference it makes in what it does to our window AS OF RIGHT NOW.
John and Pete did what they could, but there is still their old messes to clean up that are big issues. Confidence-wise, they aren’t back to the earlier years with me. Not overly close either. They have done some good PR, they just aren’t fully back to my good graces yet.
For John, sooner or later I need to see him take that risk: get his guy. Trade up or take that chance on someone for the homerun. Otherwise they aren’t going to get anywhere. “Keep it simple stupid” is really what they did the last 2 years: let it fall, take the best player at that spot. The trades came to him. They still did their due diligence, but when they were on the clock for these last 2 years, they took the guy that makes sense. VERY weird complaint, but sooner or later they need to take the game-winning swing.
The fan base is happy after every draft but a lot of our long term happiness depends on whether the player stays healthy.
Consider the last attempt to find a third wide receiver in Eskridge, he gets a concussion right away and has never played that well in the pros. Now we move on to the next good receiver but he isn’t some big rugged guy, he’s a skinny fast receiver that could also get knocked out in the first season. Hamstring issues? As a defensive guy I’m going after his legs.
Likewise with Brooks being the next Bobby Wagner, but he has been derailed by injuries.
Running backs seem to get injured regularly with the Seahawks. Is three enough? Not on a bad year!
How about Adams, what if he had stayed healthy? I still don’t think any player other than a quarterback is worth two first round draft picks, but if he was healthy it would at least make me feel like we had a player to count on.
And then there are just the general whiffs like Collier. He’s not really that bad, he just isn’t that good either.
ANyway – just bitching a bit LOL
I put this community at a higher level than other Seahawk groups. Rob (and Curtis) help us understand the value of the player, the roster, and the cap. We understand the overall status of the beyond “oooh a new toy!”
I do feel like last year was a big of “screw it we’re taking the best guy, the rest of the roster be damned!’ The talent overall was just so bad that there were no conflictions with who was already on the team.
Eskridge was a need, Brooks was trying to be cute and get the next Bobby, Jamal was ALL PETE.
I’m glad someone else can still complain a bit hahaha!
I’m with all 3 of you. We’re seeing improvements in the process BUT as BK26 said, there’s messes still to be cleaned up. And when they are, for the love of God stop overpaying non-premium positions and stop overdrafting them or you’ll just create new messes.
“sooner or later they need to take the game-winning swing”
You mean besides trading away the franchise QB, a move for which he was crucified but turned out to be 100% correct?
“I’m not quite there at anointing JS manager for life.” –Peter
Who is?
“(The Denver-Seattle trade) is total disfunction and Payton clearly is running the show.”
I wouldn’t remotely label the trade as evidence of “total dysfunction”, nor of Sean Payton’s clear usurpation of George Paton’s authority. A pragmatic analyst should have expected the Broncos to tap into future stock a bit in order to get something out of this draft. Not surprising at all. Prior to Seattle going on the clock at #83, Denver had already swapped down 45 spots from #138 in order to go up and get Marvin Mims at the end of the second round, which left a massive 116-pick gap after their native third round pick. Then, when Seattle does go on the clock, Denver has a highly rated player still sitting there. Yes, the need to get meaningful value out of this year’s draft cost Denver a premium—especially if next year’s draft does turn out to be better than this year’s—but managing the ripple effects of prior trades (Sean Payton and Russell Wilson) isn’t easy. Denver could have just stuck with their picks and taken whomever happened to fall to them, but then they would have missed out on key targets and disrupted their roster cycling. This would have induced ripple effects of its own.
Ironic, since it was also Denver that gave us the Earl Thomas pick in the first place in 2010 in a weird trade for Alphonso Smith.
I’d be okay making more trades with Denver.
We also got Bruce Irvin and Jeremy Lane from them for……drum roll…….Brock Osweiler.
Denver comes to us to ask for their allowance when it comes to trades for the most part.
Payton is a good talent evaluator as we have seen with Saints. With low draft capital, he needed to make some moves for a must have player. in this case its a DB i am gonna keep an eye on how he does.
I find it interesting that Jim Isray stating they would have taken Levis if Richardson was gone
Fuck him and fuck the whole franchise
And their little pony to!
I certainly don’t absolve them of all prior sins for 2 good drafts on paper.
I also think they’ve learned quite a bit together, to our detriment as fans. Proof will be in the pudding, but I really like the entire orgs process the last year: Russ trade, 2022 draft, development exceeding expectations, FA prioritization and contracts, 2023 draft- so far so good.
Peter- reply fail
This is 100% my take and probably only my take, but now that the Russ trade was taken…it feels a little hollow.
Fully understand that they got good value and I don’t think that they received any bad players, just kind of meh looking at it all now. I thought it would be the difference in them catching up and replacing that elite talent that was gone, but they will have to do it with their own picks.
They didn’t really have a choice with the trade and with where they were picking, just idk what I expected.
I don’t think we can ignore the upgrade at QB we got by moving from Russ to Geno. QB play got dramatically better playing within the offense and executing it at a very high level and Geno was healthy. He’s younger and now has a full off-season knowing he’s the starter. It may only get better.
Russ’ massive contract is off the books and we gained the flexibility to draft a QBOTF in the coming years.
All that besides the bounty of very good players. Amazing deal and I’m very pleased with what they’ve done with it.
I would also argue that some bad things happened to support a superbowl run for Wilson. The Adams trade was the worst of it. The thinking being if we just had one more defensive stud like Earl Thomas was for them. But it didn’t pan out and the team didn’t get close to the Super Bowl. The next year Wilson gets traded.
Upgrade from the last year or so of Russ. Before that, no. And I wouldn’t say dramatically better. Maybe more efficient. Geno still had too many lucky plays as Rob as pointed out.
He’s still 32 going on 33. And I think he knew he was going to start last year. He himself isn’t going to get any better. Any improvements will come from the weapons around him. He is what he is.
And that is my point: good players. Nothing that tilts beyond that. The floor of the team was raised, not the overall ceiling
Love the team gave geno every chance to kick ass and take names.
Weapons. Oline. It all rules. I hope he takes advantage of it.
……but geno at the helm the team still lost to the raiders, Atlanta, Carolina, barely squeaked by an abysmal broncos needed a whole extra game to pull above .500.
I know people like Geno. Or love Geno. But for some of us when we look at it not emotionally the qb play was a paradox. It was in some ways better like Completion percent, using the’s TE’s more….but the worry is that somehow the other guy could still get us more wins with less weapons, no oline, and a nearly just as crappy defense on a consistently harder strength of schedule.
Russ never had a defense as bad as last year’s, and when he got close he didn’t win more games. And it’s no coincidence that post-trade our OL finally looked competent and Denver’s looked like trash.
I disagree on the defense part, it’s been pretty bad to mediocre for 5 straight years.
Defensive ranking by DVAO and the number of points per game given up.
2022, 21st , 23.6
2021, 21st , 22.9
2020, 16th , 23.2
2019, 21st , 24.9
2018, 17th , 21.7
2017, 13th , 20.8
2016, 5th , 18.3
Yeah, I strongly disagree on the defense too. Russ had some horrible defenses with still having peak Bobby.
And on the offensive line: imagine that, 2 top rookie tackles helped make the line better.
They got way too safe with Russ, always having him as the x factor that kept them in games. Geno is more consistent, but there is nothing elite that he is going to add. Geno can stay in the offense because otherwise he won’t succeed.
If Russ had been here spinning into 17 yard sacks everyone would be talking about how crazy it was to start two rookie tackles and Pete needs to go
This is completely true. I’ll totally buy that.
Would you prefer Germain Ifedi?
Didn’t realize/remember 2019 was that bad. Ok I take it back he got 11 wins with a comparably awful D
Again. I hope geno balls out. Would be great.
Check the defensive stats that GeoffU provided.
I mean the oline played better: a top ten tackle. A third round tackle that the whole blog rated higher and played higher than his third round ranking and a left guard who went from liability to strength at his second season at LG….come on…seriously.
He did objectively win more games…..people don’t want to hear it but he was better, for longer, regardless of team composition.
I’m not doing this forever and ever. Geno is fun. Played super solid. With plus moments. he’s the guy for right now so let’s hope he maximizes it.
Good post Peter. We are rolling with Geno and I am going to support him. He is a top 15 QB1 right now so it could be a lot worse. We’ll find our next QB1, but in the meantime, Geno is our guy.
Exactly. Seattle could be very fun next year.
The difference is Geno doesn’t tilt the field in the same way Russ did. Russ would take over games in the 4th quarter. If you were down a score, even if he’d played like crap all game, you always felt he’d turn it up a notch and find a way to a win. He lived for those moments. With Geno it’s a 50/50 shot. He could lead us to a win, or he could have a disastrous turnover. Geno is definitely more consistent I think, and keeps the offense more on schedule, and a big part of that is because he can use the whole field, whereas Russ always had trouble passing to the middle.
“The Russ trade…feels a little hollow…just kind of meh.” –BK26
The single most important aspect of the Russ trade is not of addition to the roster, but of addition by subtraction. He is the greatest Rule One violator of them all, and you just can’t build a team with that kind of NBA-style wannabe-GM personality eating away at the foundations of unity. I hate to apply the term “locker room cancer” to the most decorated player in franchise history, but, given the reports that this guy tried to get his coach and general manager fired, this label isn’t really unfair at all.
…As for the eight players acquired in the trade: That’s just gravy. And frankly it’s remarkable that the Hawks got anywhere near as much as they did, considering that the limitations in Russ’s play had been becoming increasingly evident for some time before the trade was consummated.
Well that is the thing that I am finding encouraging. Prior to last years draft, I was on the fire PC/JS bandwagon, now, not so much, I appreciate they have had a bit of self reflection and have changed their approach. I was super happy with last years draft and the same for this year.
Does anybody have a link or video – mark where Pete and John said that they liked a couple of QB’s in this draft. I wanted to watch it and here everything that they said.
It was Pete talking to Jeff Darlington the day before the draft
Thank you Rob!!!
ITS OFFICIAL seahawksdraftblog is the only place I can get
insightfull
brutally honest
smart
info on the Hawks I go soewhere with alot of bright lights and stuff and its so bad…really lazy and sad
thank you Rob… your on an Isaland all alone called Knowledge!
i
💯💯💯💯💯💯
Thank you 🙏🏻
pC made a very interesting comment on Whoterapoon, stating that he reminded him of Troy palomalu. That’s high praise coming from arguably one of the best DB coaches in the league for quite some time. I Am trying to figure out what he meant – looking at videos I think it’s a couple of things. First, his read of the game and anticipation – I’ve seen videos in slow motion in which he has already taken 1 step towards the ball while all the other players are still in formation, typically to absolutely destroy a screen play or some other gimmick…we desperately need this. Second is more obvious, how he throws himself at eqch play violently.
Think he talked about how it has to do with his competitive makeup: he’ll instinctively see and go for plays that most other guys just won’t.
Yes, his comment was all about this.
I searched on youtube on 3-4 dee and Bill Cowher mentions where he lined up Troy Polamalu as a SS
i suspect SS Adams in that same role and i can even see Weaherspoon slide in that area too to disguise coverage
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2OyihSDK1g&t=106s (1 min 42 seconds in)
Rob,
Did you read Peter King’s FMIA on PFT. It has great insights on draft day from different teams and his own botched mock.
Some observations:
– Raiders is toast. They draft need based with Mark Davis interference. I don’t think their GM and HC will be there for a while.
– Texans are getting better
– Cards GM is rookie and has no plan. HC is not seemed to be involved much, another rook. dark days ahead
– Peter King does not believe any team drafts BPA
– Colts: Chris B knocked it out on QB. he stated pretty much the same you wrote abt. He focused on what AR can be not what he was. Isray seemed interested in Levis and they were ready to pick him if AR is gone. at least Chris and new HC (who coached Jalen) is able to convince Isray..good for them.
It appeared once Levis started falling teams got scared and Tennesse tried trade with KC for R1-32 and could not.
BTW, Jets seem to be picking your picks, this and last draft. Does the coach read blog
Another observation, Stroud is not a sure bet. His answer to a question about S2 matched his S2 result 🙂
M Davis did a great job of driving the bus to LV. But, he is incompetent with respect to the football operation.
Now that the picks are in, its curious to consider what would have happened if we had pick 3-4, and/or if we missed the playoffs and picked 18.
AR-15 or Andersen over Witherspoon?
Kancey over JSN?
Mayer or Avila over Derrick hall?
Keanu Benton over Charbonet?
Well Anderson has been confirmed to be the other of the two players they weren’t moving for (witherspoon the other)
So, you’d have to ask yourself which of the two they’d want more. (Sure sounds like Richardson wouldn’t have been the choice unless both Witherspoon and Anderson were gone)
At 18, i think they still take JSN. I imagine the only other player in that range they would have liked was Mcdonald who went at 15.
honestly, even with slightly higher picks, I could see them just taking the players they did. Not sure much would have changed.
Who’s to say it would have been any different? Maybe they had Witherspoon higher than Anderson, just that those were the two they weren’t trading out for. If you take PC comments on Witherspoon, that is very high praise. And we don’t know they even liked Kancey. Or Mayer. I could only see them maybe changing the ZC pick if the D line player they mentioned being surprised about, was still available. We don’t know who that was tho.
What do you make of JS’s comments indicating that they were potentially targeting DT’s with the 52nd pick but the draft was “random” and they were picked earlier than JS expected, causing them to pivot (to Charbonnet)? There were two DT’s picked in the first round (Smith and Bresee), and one in the second before 52 (Benton). None of those should necessarily have been expected to be available at 52.
I think he meant DT’s at #83
My guess would be he was referring to Alabama’s Byron Young, who fit the scheme and personality of their picks to a tee
https://twitter.com/Seahawks/status/1641134168871677953
For grins, here’s PFN’s initial QB rankings for 2024 on the sim.
1. Caleb Williams QB USC
4. Drake Maye QB North Carolina
14. J.J. McCarthy QB Michigan
22. Quinn Ewers QB Texas
33. Michael Penix Jr. QB Washington
36. Bo Nix QB Oregon
38. Spencer Rattler QB South Carolina
52. Cameron Ward QB Washington State
54. Kyle McCord QB Ohio State
79. Jordan Travis QB Florida State
84. Jeff Sims QB Nebraska
94. D.J. Uiagalelei QB Oregon State
124. Jalon Daniels QB Kansas
134. Shedeur Sanders QB Colorado
138. Michael Pratt QB Tulane
155. K.J. Jefferson QB Arkansas
168. Riley Leonard QB Duke
183. Cameron Rising QB Utah
194. Graham Mertz QB Florida
212. Devin Leary QB Kentucky
222. Sam Hartman QB Notre Dame
228. Taulia Tagovailoa QB Maryland
236. Grayson McCall QB Coastal Carolina
263. Tyler Van Dyke QB Miami (FL)
270. Brennan Armstrong QB NC State
279. Tanner Mordecai QB Wisconsin
It keeps going…
“Mr. Stark, I don’t feel so good….”
(I’m way too bored at work today),
If Drew Lock should follow Geno’s pattern and do another one-year re-up in 2024, how many prospects on this list can legitimately lay claim to having greater long-term upside? And how high would Seattle need to be drafting to have a chance at said prospect(s)?
Rob is already working diligently to answer your questions. We’ve got 12 months to figure it out.
And a whole season of college football games for some QBs to be exposed and others to rise out of nowhere.
Either between physical skill and/or polish playing quarterback? I would say maybe most. I’m done with Lock, his career is what it is. Going with him is the team’s old way of doing things: “we’re smarter and can do anything.”
They signed him to a contract that basically guaranteed they had a backup. That is his contribution for this season. He should be an afterthought after this season.
They need to actually target the position for the first time since drafting Russ.
Are you seeing it clearly though? Wilson was a third round pick. Lock was a second.
Geno was a career backup. And so is Lock.
When we combine those things together it’s a success 100% of the time.
Thx for this!
i personally dont mind if Seahawks grab 2 QBs next draft like 9ers did with Lance and Purdy just to double down
Also i hope to see who the future MLB and Free Safety draft prospects will be
unsure where Cobe Bryant plays but maybe we see him as a back up Free Safety ?
i am liking what i am seeing with these 2 past drafts and seriously think this team has added some amazing core pieces!
Imagine not having your board set enough to know who you’re taking to the point where you have to debate it in the very first round. Please tell me this is just a way to make Jerrah feel like he’s calling the shots… (not that I care about the Cowboys at all or anything, but still)
https://youtu.be/uAl95Ucx2eg?t=2262
I thought that was a scary video
Two mins to go and you’re debating who to take??
26 years without even making a Conference championship game let alone a SuperBowl.
Brock Purdy has as many playoff wins as Tony Romo and Dak Prescott combined.
Yet the football establishment continues to act like this team matters and shove them down our throat in prime time week after week each season. When baby boomers and Gen Xers who were around when they were actually good die off, this team will be finally be seen as the nothing franchise they actually already are.
Needless to say, this video make me feel warm and fuzzy all over.
Nothing franchise is it.
That’s what I mean. I think the GM/HC know perfectly well who they are taking and it’s all just a little show for Jerry to give him some affirmation and “final say” on the pick.
At least Jody (and Paul before her) is just a spectator there to enjoy and feel part of it. In the 20 min. or so of war room footage I saw, she stayed out of it in the moments surrounding the pick. PC talked her up a little bit off and on, and only once they finished and there was calm JS came over, sat down next to her, and started pointing to their board and explaining (I imagine) what they were looking to do with their next pick.
Also, as much as I’d love to be a “fly on the wall” in our draft room, something about this video from the Cowboys, including the name of the guy they didn’t pick, somehow feels like a sort of betrayal of the “sacredness” of the draft. (not sure exactly how to put it). Maybe if they had ended up getting both of them it would have been cool to publish.
Then again, Jerry has published pictures of their draft board in the past, so I guess he doesn’t care about that in any way as long as he’s front and center…
Remember when he did it alone by himself from his yacht?
Um, yeah. Any other owners have radio shows on the flagship weekly, call themselves “GM”, etc.? Capt. Facelift loves him some cameras and microphones.
That looked like canned reality TV, like maybe it was one of several versions filmed ahead of time, with each version substituting in one of the names on their short list. That can’t truly be how they operate their board, can it?
I have seen this in board rooms before.
Everyone knows what the boss wants. But they want the boss to come to the decision and say it out loud.
The boss thinks there’s unanimity in the board room. But in actuality it’s everyone in there providing the boss with his own regurgitated thoughts about why they should decide the way he wants to go.
Yup, exactly.
And that in a nutshell is the Dallas Cowboys that Jerruh has built. Unquestionably he’s surrounded himself with yes men since Jimmah left with the exception of Parcells who grew tired of his shit fairly quickly. You always have an excellent way of summing things up and getting to the crux of the situation Curtis.
And those companies you’re talking about are likely crappy ones to work for and offer nothing in the way of innovation or exciting ideas and often are just K-Mart waiting to happen.
Are we in line to get any comp picks at all next year?
No.
https://overthecap.com/compensatory-picks
Didn’t think so. We need to get back to gaming this system again like SF, who are (unfortunately) set to have another haul of comp picks. Hopefully this will be another benefit of drafting well several years in a row.
Just like after the Adams’ trade we would be toast without the RW trade, they would be toast after the Lance trade without all those comp picks to aid their recovery.
Yeah. Clint Hurtt getting a HC job? I think that ship has sailed.
If only they did it for coordinator hires. Canales technically qualifies as a minority and was groomed under Pete for a decade, then gets a OC role in Tampa. If he goes on to be a HC they get a comp pick and Seattle wouldn’t. Lame.
Amazing how good the 49rs & Rams are at this. Feels like they get 3 to 4 every year.
So the 49rs will have a 1st, a 2nd, four 3rds, a 4th, a 5th, two 6ths, & a 7th. As usual the additional 3rd for losing Carthon to the Titans, on top of the other comps. Three 3rd round comps, 5 overall, SMH….
Deep playoff runs help to get your people seen & hired.
Breer confirms we ruined Detroit’s plans, just like we already pieced together here in the comments.
And can you imagine if they had actually taken him at #6, ahead of Bijan?
I think they got sniped with Witherspoon and Robinson. They probably had those 2 at the top of their boards.
Witherspoon, yes. But the article linked says they liked Gibbs even over Robinson and would have taken him at #6 if they hadn’t gotten an offer to trade down.
LB strength?
I know Bobby will help a lot with run D, but I’m very concerned with where we are with the Barton replacement. Bush seems to be vulnerable to getting washed out of plays and can’t shed blocks.
Who is our next best Linebacker?
Thanks.
I think they are banking on Bush filling in the first few weeks until Brooks get back. At least I think that’s the hope…I don’t know if that’s a good plan or not.
Any signed UDFAs that look like they could be at least decent?
“Bush seems to be vulnerable to getting washed out of plays and can’t shed blocks.”
But how is that any different than Barton, though?
My thoughts exactly. Bush at one point before injury had a standout season. Barton never showed that potential. Linebacker is at least equal to last year with a chance to be better.
And added the best LS in cfb last year. Should be another starter found in UDFA.
Yup, saw that.
It was absolutely hilarious to watch all the draft drama of other channels on draft day. So many Seahawks channels had spent all this time on 1 player in Jalen Carter and maybe lightly mentioning AR. If you went into their comments and suggested anybody else, you’d be crucified. ‘If Jalen Carter is there at 5, you take him, the best player in the draft!’. At the same time, they’d have an aneurysm if you had an opinion that Bijan was the best player in the draft.
The sheer amount of ‘copium’ afterwords was/is delicious.
I do wonder, though, why PHI felt they needed to trade up one spot to secure him. Who was the other team threatening to trade up for him?
Perhaps Chicago themselves? I’ve often wondered in these situations whether teams might be like, ‘He’s our guy, too, unless you’re willing to pay X amount.’
…Or maybe Chicago decided to blave?
Good interview with Chip Kelly about Zach and Jake Bobo.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c_HaMLGFxTo
Pete talking to Stacy and Bump about the new players…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahUC7jlRuY4
Good listen, thanks for the link.
👀 Gushed over AR when asked about what happened in front of them in the draft. Super happy for him.
“Anthony Richardson is a great prospect. […] We gave him tremendous consideration. He might be the best athlete that’s ever been drafted at that position, he’s arguably that, so we had to definitely consider that.”
Says they anticipated Young, Stroud, and Anderson to be off the board, so they knew Witherspoon was one of the very real possibilities.
Mentioned Bradford first as the guy he was most surprised was available. Then Charbonnet and McIntosh with their versatility as well.
Said you can see the OL as it will be for a while. Highlighted smarts and leadership at the center position.
Thanks Sea Mode. I’d like to take a moment to give you a shout out for all your posts giving us so much information throughout the year. Really appreciated my Bro!
Post draft strange effect is watching a lot of local blog type guys (not Rob) pulling out old tweets or clips that they talk about a player like Charbaneau as a good RB, and then try and tag that into a “I called it”.
It’s kinda pointless and strange/funny that their egos are so fragile.
Thanks for the excellent coverage again this year Rob. You put entire companies to shame with the quality of your work and we are spoiled to have you cover the team we love.
Just wanted to share some thoughts I had about our first round picks with the cool people here and wondering how they felt.
Prior to this draft, the highest pick PC/JS had ever spent on a DB were Earl Thomas(2010-1/14), Marquise Blair(2019-2/47), and Shaquill Griffin(2017-3/90). Ditto for WR, those were Paul Richardson(2014-2/45), D’Wayne Eskridge(2021-2/56), and Golden Tate(2010-2/60). JS said recently that was simply a reflection of their total boards any given year and I believe him on that front.
Therefore, the fact that we took both the 1st corner and wide receiver of the entire draft makes me believe these 2 players are the pick of the litter, the firebrands they wanted. Getting JSN not only makes the team lethal in 3-WR sets, but they can sufficiently rest Tyler and DK without a massive drop in talent on any given play. To be as productive as he was with the functional speed he has indicates NFL-level footwork, route running, and decision making.
Devon Witherspoon gets me a little more excited however. Earl was the only premium DB PC/JS has ever drafted IMO based on round and pick. Prior to this draft, all DB’s drafted are broken down:
x1 1st Rd Pick
x1 2nd Rd Pick
x2 3rd Rd Picks
x5 4th Rd Picks
x6 5th Rd Picks
x6 6th Rd Picks
x1 7th Rd Pick
Too lazy to look up UDFA’s, sorry
Before Earl became the protagonist of a future GTA game, he was the single high safety everyone aspired to be. Truly HoF level of play and it was a pleasure to watch him take another man’s soul if they dared to contest a ball around him. I’m not saying that any DB we ever had a shot at drafting but didn’t was bad, but Pete thought highly enough of Witherspoon that trading down was not an option if he was there at 5. Pete finally got a must-have protégé to instill all his earthly DB knowledge into. Having lockdown corners would also maybe give Pete the comfort of going back to single high safety and getting Jamal closer to the LoS to lay the wood and OCCASIONALLY blitzing.
Best case scenario, if we can find the right combination of solid, beefy boys to plug up the middle, we could have a truly elite secondary that will complement the deepest pass rushing rotation we’ve had in at least 6-7 years. On offense, they beefed up our interior O-line, 2 starting quality RB’s so we can stop calling Marshawn in December, and a long term 3rd receiver finally. We are at least 1 offseason(+QBotF) away from true, consistent contention, but I think this team is going to make some noise this year. The Pete Carroll, rah rah culture has always been the double edged sword of this team, but all the vets left are the ones who bought in and the last 2 draft classes has stocked the cupboards with good character, hard working men who are pissed for greatness.
I’m not the biggest fan of this NFL prospect influencer, but he makes some great points about both McIntosh and Charbonet and their place Styles. He believes McIntosh is every bit as good as Charbonet, and not sure if I disagree.
I’m not plugging that Top Billin’ guy in here, sorry