RENTON, WA — Available when the Seahawks made the No. 5 pick in this year’s NFL Draft, Jalen Carter and Tyree Wilson are there to help fill an urgent need for impact players along Seattle’s defensive line.
But in addition to concerns about Wilson’s foot and Carter’s legal issues, the Seahawks haven’t had any players ranked nearly as high as Devon Witherspoon. With Will Anderson Jr. already gone and no real desire to take a quarterback at such a high level, the Illinois cornerback was the easy choice.
When the Seahawks got back on the clock in the 20th, they had a pick of the seven lead five defensemen who would walk off the plate over the final six selections of the first round. But they were pleasantly surprised that Jaxon Smith-Njigba was still there and felt the Ohio State wide receiver was too good to miss.
And those decisions embodied the overriding theme of the weekend draft for general manager John Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll, especially during the first three rounds. Instead of being drafted with the biggest roster deficiency in mind — a tempting strategy that could lead to an expensive whiff like LJ Collier in 2019 — they stuck to their board and picked better players in less important positions.
This sound approach earned the Seahawks high marks in the 10-member draft class, even though they didn’t take out linebackers and linebackers early or as often as many expected.
“We really felt like we took the best cornerback and the best receiver in the draft,” Schneider told KJR-FM Sports Radio 93.3. “So obviously we felt very good about that.”
The Seahawks have their biggest minor league since the Legion of Boom days after they added Witherspoon and veteran Julian Love to a group that already had Pro Bowlers Quandre Diggs, Jamal Adams and Tariq Woolen. With Smith-Njigba joining Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf, they may have the NFL’s best trio of wide receivers. And there’s no question they’ve narrowed the wide gap between them and the San Francisco 49ers, who edged them by 46 points in a three-game sweep last year.
But the biggest difference between the top-division rivals was their leading seven on every defense, and after the Seahawks shuffled six of their 10 linebackers and linebackers who played at least 375 snaps last season, it’s worth taking a look at where This fix. I left them in those positions.
defense line
Departure: Al Woods (cut), Shelby Harris (cut), Quinton Jefferson (cut), Bona Ford (not re-signed), LJ Collier (not re-signed).
Extras: Dre’Mont Jones (UA), Jarran Reed (UFA), Cameron Young (Fourth Round), Mike Morris (Fifth Round), Robert Cooper (UDFA), Jordan Ferguson (UDFA), Jonah Tavai (UDFA), Ifeanyi Maijeh (UDFA )
Returnees: Miles Adams, Brian Moon
This was the hotbed of retooling up front, and with good reason — the Seahawks had one of the worst defenses in the NFL last season and lacked a legitimate rushing threat from the inside.
They made Jones the biggest free agent team of the Schneider/Carroll era with the expectation that he would be one of those types of players. Reid isn’t an obvious upgrade over Harris who’s only a year younger, but the Seahawks brought him back for nearly half the price.
With only four defensive players on their roster heading into the draft — and one of them, Mone, is coming off an injury that was expected to keep him out of the start of the season — the Seahawks by design couldn’t wait until Day 3 to address the situation. This is how the plate went down, with players who thought they had a chance at being drafted earlier than they expected.
That led them past Young (No. 123 overall) and Morris (No. 151).
Young, a starting nose tackle for Seattle, is a precocious tackler whose play recalled former Seahawk Ahtyba Rubin. At 6-foot-3, 304 pounds, Young isn’t as heavy as Woods, but Carroll described him as just as stout of a player as he was in college football last season.
“When he puts his hands on people, they don’t move,” Schneider said.
Morris will be part of the rotation at defensive end. After playing all over Michigan’s defensive front and then battling a severe ankle sprain late last season, he pared himself down with an eye toward testing well in the combine. But then he took a backup in anticipation of D-line play in the NFL. The 6-foot-5 Morris sent the Seahawks a video on the third day of the draft showing him tipping the scales at 295 pounds, 20 more than he weighed at the combine.
“He’s a big guy,” Schneider said. “He’s tall and plays hard.”
The Seahawks had seven defensive players who played at least 149 snaps last season. Excluding the UDFAs, they only have five that will be ready by week one. So they can use at least one of the veterans. But with cash and cap restrictions, don’t expect anything more than adding a minimum salary. Woods and Ford signed elsewhere last week, so they’re not playing for a comeback.
outer back
Departure: Bruce Irvin (unsigned) and Daryl Johnson (unsigned)
Extras: Derek Hall (2nd round pick), MG Anderson (UDFA)
Returnees: Oceana Nwosu, Darrell Taylor, Boy Muffy, Tyrek Smith, Alton Robinson, Joshua Onogio
The Seahawks had good depth here, but they needed another start vs. Nwosu. Hall, who was selected with the first two draft picks in the second round in Seattle (#37), will compete with Taylor and Maffei for the position.
Hall was one of the most athletic edge defenders in this year’s class with a 4.55 40-yard dash and a 10-foot-7-inch wide jump. He was also a team leader and, as Schneider put it, “the alpha dog” at Auburn. According to the Seahawks website, the team gave him a mark in the first round.
“He’s gritty, he’s penetrating, he gets really down, and he’s really fast,” Carroll said. “…speed and power are really his strengths, and he goes after the ball really well.”
The 35-year-old Irvin is tipped to continue his career after an overworked start to play a key role in his return to Seattle last season, but he’s an emergency option, unlike the one the Seahawks plan to bring back.
inside back
Departure: Cody Barton (not re-signed), Tanner Moses (not re-signed), Colin Gilaspia (unsigned)
Extras: Bobby Wagner, Devin Bush, Patrick O’Connell (UDFA), Cam Bright (UDFA), Michael Ayers (UDFA), Lamont Bishop (UDFA)
Returnees: Jordyn Brooks, Nick Bellor, John Rattigan, Pia Jones, Chris Jarrett
The Seahawks are better at inside linebacker – even if he’s older – with the 32-year-old Wagner returning to the fold to primarily replace Barton.
The team has indicated that Brooks will continue to be the centerpiece of their defense once he is healthy, meaning Wagner will not be a choppy player. But it is not clear when Brooks will return from tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in January. So far, Wagner and Bosh will be the starters, with Jamaal Adams transitioning from strong safety to playing linebacker in certain packages.
With the Seahawks turning down Brooks’ fifth-year option for 2024, and Wagner and Bush both on one-year deals, the top three inside players are set to become free agents after this season. That made it worth noting that they didn’t draft any long-term replacement options.