The 5 Most Important Players for the Seahawks to Watch At the Combine

Just kidding. The Seahawks don't stand a chance of drafting Ndamukong Suh with any of their draft picks.

This slideshow is designed to highlight five players that the Seattle Seahawks should pay attention to heading into the NFL combine. These are five players that the Seahawks have a better than remote possibility drafting with any of their first three picks (6, 14, and 40th overall). That being said, I have purposefully omitted Ndamukong Suh, Gerald McCoy, and Eric Berry because I don't believe any stand a chance of falling to the Seahawks at No. 6 though if any of those three miraculously fall to No. 6 and the Seahawks don't take one of them I will give up any hope I have for the Pete Carroll/John Schneider Era before it even begins.

(Note that these five guys are in no particular order)

So without further ado, here we go...

1. Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia Tech

One of the biggest holes during the Seahawks 2009 campaign was its anemic pass rush. Game after game the Seahawks were picked apart by opposing quarterbacks through the air. Matt Schaub, Old Man Warner, Old Man Favre, and even Alex Smith made the Seahawks look like a JV high school team on defense (side note: had Vernon Davis caught that pass in the end zone from Alex Smith, the Seahawks would have lost the home game against the 49ers, too).

Now there are two ways to help improve the passing defense from last year: upgrade the secondary and upgrade the pass rush. At the No. 6 pick, there isn't the value at the secondary position in my opinion (given that I have already assumed Eric Berry will be gone) so I turn to the pass rush.

Jason Pierre-Paul from South Florida will also get a lot of hype and he is probably a better pure pass-rusher than Morgan and my guess is he will absolutely crush the NFL Combine. However, the reason I want the Seahawks to seriously consider Morgan over Paul is twofold:

1. Polished. Morgan is more polished and a better rush-defender (as well as great against the pass). Given that Old Man Warner has now retired and Mike Singletary will eventually remember that he has a terrible QB and great run game, the Seahawks need to not only rush the passer but also contain the run and I think Morgan does this better than Pierre-Paul.

2. Experience. Morgan has seen action at the D-1 level since being a true freshman in 2007 (he didn't start until his sophomore season) whereas Pierre-Paul was a JuCo transfer and had only one season (albeit a good one) at the FBS level. Because of this I think Morgan is the better choice.

2. Earl Thomas, S, Texas

Having addressed the pass rush, the Seahawks would be wise to take a serious look at Safety Earl Thomas from Texas.

I used to be very high on Taylor Mays and still wouldn't be totally upset if the Seahawks went his direction instead of Thomas come draft day. Mays is sure to light up the combine and will have scouts drooling over his blend of size and speed. But I think his instincts are not NFL-caliber and he has a huge problem with missing tackles by failing to wrap up, but instead attempting the highlight reel hit. While great for a Youtube video I think this will become a huge liability at the next level where the receivers are bigger, faster, stronger, and more elusive. This is why I think Earl Thomas is the guy to watch at the combine. He has much better instincts than Taylor Mays and if he puts up some respectable numbers are the combine I think he could be a good decision at No. 14. When you look at good teams, nearly all of them have impressive safeties anchoring the back of their defense (Troy Polomalu, Ed Reed, Bob Sanders, Darren Sharper, etc.) and the Seahawks severely lack that type of play-maker in the secondary (especially if the Seahawks choose to release Grant given his bloated contract and an uncapped year).

3. C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson

If only the Seahawks problems were only on the defensive side of the ball...

As pathetic as the defense looked in 2009, the offense looked equally sad. Some point blame to the playcalling of Knapp but it's clear the problems went much further than that. The Seahawks desperately need playmakers on offense. No one on the field in 2009 had that home run threat that gave D-coordinators fits.

I really like Justin Forsett and I think he really impressed last year, especially in pass protection, but he is not the answer at running back. Spiller gives the offense a much needed spark and blinding speed, not to mention a huge contribution on special teams (could you imagine what it would be like if the Seahawks started with *ahem* good field position). Additionally, Spiller would allow the Seahawks to continue to use Forsett in a complementary position which I think is what suits Forsett's style best (I don't think he has the capability to be an every-down back but is excellent in 3rd down situations). For those reasons I could see the Seahawks taking Spiller at No. 14 as a much needed spark to this offense.

4. Charles Brown, OT, USC

A lot of you have probably been wondering why I haven't featured an offensive lineman yet given our obvious need and here's why:

Alex Gibbs.

The man is the archetect of the Zone Blocking System and knows his talent. Historically Alex Gibbs' teams don't spend high draft picks on lineman because the zone-blocking scheme covets a different type of player. I don't surmise to say I'm an expert on the ZBS but from everything that I have read about Charles Brown is that he's the type of lineman that Alex Gibbs likes: smaller, more athletic, mobile. Left Tackle is clearly a need. Sean Locklear hasn't shown to be the long-term solution and even if Big Walt doesn't retire he hasn't played since 2008 (I don't envision him playing another snap but given he is the best Seahawk at his position ever, I am inclined to give him that chance).

That said, the biggest question mark for Charles Brown at the combine will be his size. Brown is a converted Tight End and is listed around 285 lbs which is very small for an NFL tackle. If Brown has been able to add a little bit of weight in the offseason, I could see Brown being an ideal pick for Gibbs at number 40.

5. Dez Bryant, WR, Oklahoma St.

Ok, I'm going to take some heat for this one and I understand why. Initially I also thought of Sam Bradford here but opted against it figuring someone else will address QB. The reason I think the Seahawks should look at Bryant is based more on value than on need.

I personally think the Seahawks have a solid receiving corps but Deion Branch will probably be gone this year (he's not worthy what we're paying him) and Nate Burleson has been injury prone in Seattle. That being said, I still think there are more important positions to fill. The reason I include Bryant here is because what the receiving corps does lack is playmakers. Just like with Spiller, the Seahawks need that home run threat that Bryant can provide. We all know that the draft can be crazy (especially with the Raiders drafting before the Seahawks draft at No. 14) and if the Seahawks want a playmaker on offense Bryant and Spiller are the two guys. If Spiller doesn't fall to Seahawks but Bryant does (most experts think the other way, but look what happened to Crabtree last year) I think Bryant would be a good pick at No. 14 because he clearly is the best WR in the draft and adds valuable size and ability to a WR corps that doesn't have that "IT" factor.