Bruce Irvin: Seattle Seahawks, Pete Carroll Make Savvy Move for Underrated Stud

Pete Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks deserve credit for their bold decision to take Bruce Irvin with the No. 15 pick of the 2012 NFL Draft.

Most folks were shocked when the Seahawks selected Irvin—and not in a good way. 

Steve Kelley of the Seattle Times says that the Seahawks took the riskiest player available at his position and that "They had their pick of pass rushers, and they chose the most obscure and the most controversial. Bruce Irvin better be good."

NFL.com's Mike Mayock had Irvin rated as a mid-second round pick (41st overall), and Bleacher Report's Matt Miller had Irvin rated as his 99th-overall player on his big board as as 3-4 outside linebacker.

But there is another side to this story. 

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com reports that there were at least seven teams that rated Irvin in the top 15 on their draft board.

Irvin has something you can't teach: raw speed.

Per Carroll via his Twitter account:

"

So fired up to have Bruce Irvin on the Seahawks! Speed, motor, height... Perfect for our system! #12thMan will love him coming off the edge!

"

"— Pete Carroll (@PeteCarroll) April 27, 2012"

He wowed scouts at the NFL Scouting Combine when he ran a 4.50-second 40-yard dash time (h/t CBSSports.com).

Irvin joins a Seahawks defense that is being built around young, speedy players like Kam Chancellor and Earl Thomas. He is a raw player that may only play half the time for his first year or two, but the San Francisco 49ers did the same thing with Aldon Smith last year with spectacular results.

Irvin responded to the criticism about his raw abilities, via the Seattle Times: "I've heard I'm a one-trick pony. But the crazy thing is I got 23 sacks in two years (at West Virginia) and I've never been coached. If I get a little coaching, just imagine what I can do." 

As the NFL continues to evolve into a passing league the value of speed-rushers will continue to soar. Irvin's ceiling is sky-high. He has the rare ability to hunt quarterbacks on a regular basis, and the during his time at West Virginia he faced some elite talent .

The Seahawks are well aware that Irvin has had his fair share of off-the-field issues—the latest coming only last month (h/t MetroNews)—but Pete Carroll has recruited him since his days at USC and is confident that his best days are ahead of him.

Per Seahawks.com:

"

The fact that I’ve known him for so long and have background with the kid, I know what he’s been through, I feel we’ve got a guy we’ve had interest in – in a lot of areas.

"

Carroll and the Seahawks made a savvy, calculated move taking him this high in the draft. We won't know until later this year whether or not it pays off the way they hope it does.

The best thing you can do at this point is trust that the guys making these decisions are better at evaluating personnel than the rest of us and give them the benefit of the doubt.

I, for one, applaud Carroll for this gutsy move. He believes in the decision wholeheartedly and isn't afraid of what anyone else thinks about it.

Follow @JesseReed78