NFL Draft: Seattle Seahawks Team Draft Retrospective

This article is part of a series that looks at each NFL team’s recent draft history, with the hope of extracting information about the way they think and the players they value. The analysis is limited to the past five drafts in the interest of relevance, and the first three rounds because that’s where most impact players are taken.

This entry will focus on the Seattle Seahawks.

Draft History

In the past five years, the Seahawks have taken the following players in the early rounds. Their positions and the rounds in which they were drafted are listed next to their names.

2006:   Kelly Jennings, CB (1)

            Darryl Tapp, DE (2)

2007:   Josh Wilson, CB (2)

            Brandon Mebane, DT (3)

2008:   Lawrence Jackson, DE (1)

            John Carlson, TE (2)

2009:   Aaron Curry, LB (1)

            Max Unger, C (2)

            Deon Butler, WR (3)

2010:   Russell Okung, OT (1)

            Earl Thomas, S (1)

            Golden Tate, WR (2)

Breakdown by Position

Here is the number of players the Seahawks have drafted for each position:

Cornerback: two

Defensive end: two

Wide receiver: two

Center: one

Defensive tackle: one

Linebacker: one

Offensive tackle: one

Safety: one

Tight end: one

Impact

Kelly Jennings is a serviceable starting corner. Brandon Mebane is a very good run stuffing defensive tackle who can also disrupt the passing game. John Carlson is one of the better pass catching tight ends in the league. Max Unger is a solid interior lineman with some position versatility.

The real gems were the two first rounders from last year. Russell Okung sustained some injuries, but when he played, he looked very good. If he can stay healthy, he looks to be a legitimate franchise left tackle. Meanwhile, Earl Thomas had a terrific rookie year, contributing both against the run and in coverage, while picking off five passes.

The team still has a long way to go before it can return to its form from the first half of the decade, in which they went to the Super Bowl. But their first year under coach Pete Carroll was definitely a step in the right direction.

Trends

The Seahawks have taken no more than two players at any position over this span, so it’s hard to say they show favor to any particular area. They’ve simply addressed needs as they’ve come up.

It is worth noting that two of their three best picks came in the first round last year—their first under the current administration. Seahawks fans can take solace in the fact that the organization appears to be better run now than under the previous regime.

2011 Outlook

Seattle badly needs to find a successor for quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. While Hasselbeck was able to recapture some of his old magic in the playoff win over the Saints, he is quite injury prone at this stage of his career and rapidly nearing the end. Charlie Whitehurst doesn’t look like the answer, so Seattle will have to draft a replacement.

Jake Locker (Washington) has often been mocked to the Seahawks, and while he’s a tremendous athlete, his lack of accuracy and decision making skills bring into question whether he’s cut out to be a quarterback at the professional level. If the Seahawks think they can coach him up, they’ll take him and let him sit for a year and learn from Hasselbeck.

If not, the other first round option would be Ryan Mallett (Arkansas). Mallett’s got the accuracy and the big arm, but his lack of mobility would be a liability behind Seattle shaky pass protection. Other options include Christian Ponder (Florida State), Andy Dalton (TCU), and Colin Kaepernick (Nevada).

Speaking of pass protection, they need to upgrade the offensive line as well. Taking Okung last year was a good first step, but now they need to address right tackle and a couple of the interior line spots. If guard Mike Pouncey (Florida) somehow falls to them, he’d be hard to pass up. More realistically, they’d probably go for someone like Clint Boling (Georgia), Orlando Franklin (Miami), or Rodney Hudson (Florida State) in the second or third. Possible tackle targets include James Brewer (Indiana) and Joseph Barksdale (LSU).

Other than the aforementioned Earl Thomas, the secondary is also in need of upgrades. If they don’t like the quarterbacks available to them in the first, they could take a hard look at Jimmy Smith (Colorado), the talented but troubled cornerback. If he can get his act together, he has the tools to be an elite CB in this league. If the Seahawks are turned away, however, they still have quality options in the second round like Ras-I Dowling (Virginia) and Curtis Brown (Texas).