Must draft players

I'm curious on some of your opinions on guys who, were they still available at our pick (#32 of course) we would have no choice but to take them. I'm talking guys like Mike Evans or Marquise Lee who some mock's have shown falling down the board. Who's on that list?

I doubt I'll spend much time on the draft next year, but I usually don't start to look seriously at the prospects until about a month from now when the college football season is basically over. So I don't know a whole lot right now, but some players I like:

Will Sutton. I've heard he has issues against the run, but he destroyed UW's running game and buried the (at the time) top rusher in college football. Good pass rusher. Spark plug kinda guy. Elite prospect? Maybe not. But pretty solid. What's not to like?

Pretty much every receiver in this draft. Lee, Evans, Watkins, I even like Coleman if we're talking late 2nd round to late 3rd round.

One guy to keep an eye on is Kevin Smith from UW (#8). He's kind of like UW's Doug Baldwin- he's barely played because he's missed so many seasons from injury- but when he has played he's shown a knack for getting open and he has great hands. He's hardly an elite prospect but he definitely has NFL type tools. He is a pretty good bet to go undrafted, and local guys don't count against our team visit count. That plus Seattle loves grabbing UDFA WRs, especially guys that are from the West Coast.

I'm hardly a UW homer and I just want Seattle to draft the best, most under-rated players, but a couple more UW gems that could be late round steals are Sean Parker and Danny Shelton. Parker is an undersized SS who is a complete football player. He reminds me a lot of Donald Butler, a LB from UW who went to the Chargers in the 3rd round a few years ago and has had a nice NFL career. He would be good competition for Jeron Johnson, perhaps even an upgrade. Shelton is one of the more under-the-radar DTs in college football. He's a second or third round talent that might slip into the late rounds. I would not be opposed to getting Keith Price in UDFA, but there are plenty of other QBs I'd prefer, even though I think Price is a pretty interesting QB prospect.

ASJ at #32 would be quite nice, but TE is such a low impact position. 1st round TEs have become uncommon.

I love CJ Mosely from Alabama, but is he fast enough for Pete?

I like Anthony Barr from UCLA, but he seems to be strictly a 3-4 OLB to me, and that's not really an area we need help at.

Keep in mind I have barely been paying attention to college football this year, outside of UW. I'm sure Rob would have some great suggestions.

I'll exclude the typical top 10 kind of guys. Although to be fair, it seems there is a lot of flux in the 5-15 range.

Guys I'd think we would take even despite having a deal on the table to move down:

1. Cyrus Kouandijo
2. Cameron Erving
3. Sammy Watkins
4. Rashede Hageman


Those are the guys I think we would scrap a deal on the books. Which is what I would presume would be the scenario of "we'd have no choice but to take". Similar to when Earl Thomas dropped to us at #14 in 2010. We may target some of the players projected to go around 32, but I couldn't say if we'd opt for them instead of making a deal if it's available.

Add Allen Robinson and Cyril Richardson to that list. Especially Robinson. He would be the big target to replace Sidney Rice should they part ways.

Based on what I've seen so far, these are my favourite prospects:

Mike Evans - WR, Texas A&M
Greg Robinson - T, Auburn
Cyrus Kouandjio - T, Alabama
Zack Martin - T, Notre Dame
Sammy Watkins - WR, Clemson
Odell Beckham Jr - WR, LSU
Eric Ebron - TE, North Carolina

I could've listed about 6-7 different offensive tackles to be fair. I'm a huge believer in Kouandjio.

Still way too early though.

If one of the following players is available when we select late in the 1st round, then IMO we have to draft them.

1. Minnesota (DT) Re’Shede Hageman 6-6 311 lbs.: Opinions of Hageman are all over the place, from top-10 to early 2nd round. IMO he is a top-10 talent, so if he is available when we select then he is a must draft.

2. Michigan (OT) Taylor Lewan 6-7 315 lbs.: Lewan's draft stock seems to have taken a bit of a negative hit. A handful of other OT's have come out of nowhere and are being projected as 1st round prospects, which may very well push Lewan down towards the bottom of the 1st round.

3. Nebraska (DE/OLB) Randy Gregory 6-6 255 lbs.: Gregory, if he enters the draft will be the 2nd best pass rushing prospect in the draft.

Hmmm good for thought!!

I was thinking Cameron Erving, but Rang has him going #7 and Brugler at #17.. they may have to go for one of the guards expected to go low first, high second - Cyril Richardson or Zack Martin

I think the seahawks are stacked across the board so they should move up or make a splash in the first round again this year by taking a Bruce Irvin type pick my top 5 are:

1) Rashede Hagemen DT- i think his size plus his athletic ability and upside is perfect for what the seahawks need.
2)Aaron Donald DT - would be like a Bruce Irvin in the first round. he's a tweener but he can add muscle and good weight but he has the quick first step that you can't teach and he's physical at the point of attack perfect match w/ Michael Bennett on the money down.
3) Mike Evans - he's what Russell Wilson could use in the arsenal a tall red zone jump ball WR that adapts well in the scramble drill.
4) Kony Ealy DE- he's a possible 5-tech/3-tech in nickel or a jason jones type of player that can rush the passer from a few spots.
5) Cameron Erving OT-he has the athletic ability and we have the best OL coach/teacher in the game in my opinion so he would be a perfect RT for the future.

Lynch Mob":1tbdasjp said:

I think the seahawks are stacked across the board so they should move up or make a splash in the first round

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There is a significant danger in taking that stance. Particularly as our roster continues to mature and we start having to pick and choose which players get their second contracts with us.

Besides making sure you pay superstar money to really important and viable superstars -- Seattle is going to have to avoid paying expensive contracts to good, but not great players. When we had no talent and no players worthy of superstar money, we could afford to give bloated contracts to the likes of Bryant, Mebane, Miller, Rice, Giacomini, McQuistan and even Robinson.

Seattle is going to need to get to a point where we can afford to not resign good players, because we have other good/cheap options to reload. There are a lot of players I could identify on this roster that would qualify in the immediate to near future: KJ Wright, James Carpenter, Doug Baldwin, Brandon Browner, Walter Thurmond, Tony McDaniel, JR Sweezy. Not to mention McQuistan and Giacomini who would be working on their 3rd contracts after this season.

That's nine players that are in that good/very good, but not necessarily great strata. Guys that, if you resign them, makes it difficult to keep mega stars.

It's easy to look at the roster right now and say "There is little room for new talent". But if you assume that some of the talent we have is not going to be there, then it's much easier to see how we might want to upgrade from the backups currently on this team.

Here is the list of cheap UFAs we have -- maybe half of them don't get their second contracts:

Brandon Browner
Lemuel Jeanpierre
Jeron Johnson
Chris Maragos
Anthony McCoy
Clinton McDonald
Mike Morgan
Walter Thurmond

And here's the list of expensive UFAs who probably should see some reloading or will be signed away by other teams:

O'Brien Schofield
Paul McQuistan
Breno Giacomini
Tony McDaniel

The guys we would really like to resign but will require cap savings elsewhere:

Doug Baldwin
Golden Tate
Michael Bennett
Steven Hauschka

So you can see, there are 16 potential open spots on this roster come next year. In order to keep the guys we really want, we're going to have to let a lot of the guys we like but don't love go. You can't replace that talent without picks.

There are going to be open positions on this team. More than can be filled in a single draft. Some of these positions are starters on this squad. Seattle, if they want to keep the winning formula constant -- will need to have a lot of draft picks at their disposal.

IF ASJ is on the board when we pick, I will be beyond stunned if we don't grab him. I will be bummed if we don't grab him. Imagine ASJ with some NFL coaching. To Sark's credit, he's got ASJ doing some dirty work in the trenches. That will pay off in spades down the road. Only a handful of players I like more than Zach and I sincerely believe ASJ will be a bigger, more dangerous Zach Miller. We will always have need for a bigger, better Zach Miller, so I'd call it a player of need as well as BPA (if he falls to us...which I doubt).

Way premature of me as he is only a freshman this year, but cb Vernon Hargreaves III at Florida is a stud. He's already a stud, and his potential is through the roof. Its probably blasphemy for me to say, but I'm talking deion sanders/champ bailey type potential. *Maybe* I'm going to far with that one, but the kid is a stud

Definitely a guy to keep your eye out on during his collegiate career

theENGLISHseahawk":1zpczzwb said:

Based on what I've seen so far, these are my favourite prospects:

Mike Evans - WR, Texas A&M
Greg Robinson - T, Auburn
Cyrus Kouandjio - T, Alabama
Zack Martin - T, Notre Dame
Sammy Watkins - WR, Clemson
Odell Beckham Jr - WR, LSU
Eric Ebron - TE, North Carolina

I could've listed about 6-7 different offensive tackles to be fair. I'm a huge believer in Kouandjio.

Still way too early though.

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Bolded are a few of my favorites as well. I like Zack Martin for his versatility and would probably prefer him at guard with the ability to kick out to RT if need be. Kouandjio's athleticism would be amazing opposite of Okung. I don't know why he's not at the top of most people's tackle rankings....I like him better than Lewan and Matthews honestly. Other players I'd be happy to have on the Hawks are;

Ra'Shede Hageman, 5-Tech/UT - I think he runs fast at the combine. Ideally, he'd replace Red Bryant with the ability to rush the QB from the interior.

Brandin Cooks, WR - Not one of my favorite prospects really. I do think if he slips and we don't retain Golden Tate that his style of play would be pretty similar in the Hawks offense. He would provide a bit better speed while being a little smaller and not as physical. Whenever I watch him I see Tate.
Other WR's I Like - Davante Adams & Jaelen Strong. Adams doesn't have elite size or speed, but he does have an elite vertical and good hands. Unsure he declares, but with Carr probably declaring, Adams would be wise to do the same IMO. Strong has the height I like, but is a bit on the skinny side (similar build to Rice). I think he'd have an easier time adding weight without it effecting him like it would Rice though. He's made some amazing grabs and would be an awesome weapon for Wilson.

Justin Gilbert, CB - Have been high on him since early last year. Not the biggest CB, but he's pretty good in all aspects.
Other CB's I wouldn't mind - Ifo Ekpre-Olomu & Darqueze Dennard

Khalil Mack, LEO/LB - It's hard to explain how I feel about Mack. I just feel he's versatile and could play a few positions on our defense and would be a toy basically to experiment with. I don't know if he could play MLB, but if he showed he could, he could push Wagner over to WLB (Don't get me wrong, I like Wags at MLB). He could play either weak or strong side IMO as well. LEO I'm unsure about.
Other LB's I wouldn't mind - C.J. Mosley & Vic Beasley (Also a LEO prospect)

Stephon Tuitt, 5-Tech/UT - Really curious to see how he performs at the combine. I'd like to see him around 300-305lbs when he runs. Would use him similarly to what I said about Ra'Shede Hageman.

Antonio "Tiny" Richardson, OG/OT - Not one of my favorite prospects. He's alright as a RT, but if I were drafting him, it'd be to play him at guard [versatility factor]. A lot of people are high on Gabe Jackson and Cyril Richardson, but I don't really like either of them that much for Seattle [I like Jackson better than Cyril though]. Given the choice of these 3, if the RT position is already addressed, I'd pull the trigger on Tiny and plug him in at Guard. Say we got lucky and snagged Cyrus Kouandjio at the end of the 1st [by some miracle] and then Richardson happened to be there at the end of the 2nd....Snag him as well, plug him in at LG with Carpenter/Bailey/Sweezy competing for RG. Okung goes down (which he does every year), Kouandjio kicks over to LT, Richardson moves to RT and our guard depth moves one of the other 3 guards we have into the game. Would be a wonderful situation for this team that would provide little drop off in protection for Wilson.
Other O-Linemen I like - Billy Turner, Xavier Su'a-Filo, A.J. Cann, Cedric Ogbuehi, Brandon Scherff (explained below) and Le'Raven Clark (doubt he declares)

And some lesser known players I really like or will be paying close attention to...
Aaron Donald, UT - Known, but I'm going to educate myself on him a bit more.
Shilique Calhoun, LEO - Have seen enough that I like his style of play. Want to see more
Brandon Scherff, OT/OG - Strong guy who is another versatile prospect IMO. I really want versatile linemen so depth isn't an issue going forward. A "roll up your sleeves and get dirty" type of guy who plays with a bit of a mean streak.
Shawn Oakman, 5-tech/UT - At 6'8"-6'9" 280-290lbs, he's a big dude that can still add more weight. An interesting prospect. Hasn't done a ton on the field yet, but I'll be paying attention to him when I'm watching Baylor play. Dude is ripped and could still probably add 20 pounds of good weight. Have seen him throw around a couple LT's like it was nothing, throwing one backwards 5 yards into the backfield.
Jonathan Dowling, FS - Decent size [6'2" 205] and good hands. Haven't seen enough to be confident in his coverage though. Hard to find a lot of film on players from Western Kentucky.
Howard Jones, LEO/SS - Plays DE for Shepherd. VERY undersized at 230-235lbs, but he's also very quick. Online 40 times say he runs in the 4.36-4.38 range, but I'm not buying that. What I AM buying is the possibility of being a high 4.4-low 4.5's guy at his current weight. Curious if he's ever been asked to play in coverage and if he could transition to SS and backup Kam. He's a 6th-UDFA prospect right now IMO.
Caraun Reid, UT - Doesn't get a lot of hype since he plays at Princeton. Obviously he's intelligent, but he also is fast for a 305lb guy. Will run in the 4.8-4.9 range I bet.
L'Damian Washington, WR - This is a wildcard type of pick. Not much hype on him and projected to be a late round pick [5th-7th Range]. He does have good speed though [High 4.3's-Low 4.4's] and good size in the 6'4" 200-205 range. Might be a project possibility for the CB position? "I'll be monitoring the situation closely"....lol

Sorry for going off a bit, but since I don't post much, I thought I'd include some other players I'm watching so others could check them out if interested and voice their opinions as well.

1. TE-Jace Amaro / TE-Austin Sefarian Jenkins
2. WR-Brandon Coleman / WR-Kelvin Benjamin / WR - Donte Moncrief
3. DE-Aaron Lynch / DT-George Uko / DE-Henry Anderson
4. DB-Quandre Diggs / DB-Antone Exum / CB-Stanley Jean-Baptiste
5. LB-Ronald Powell / LB-Demarcus Lawrence / LB-Denicos Allen

After the last few days I wonder if they would look at someone like Darqueze Denard and maybe trading back to grab him.

Aaron Donald DT PITT
dude might break the TFL record he has 26 the record is 32 and he has two games left all this while moving around on the inside, exactly what the seahawks need. He knows how to split the gaps in the O-line which can't be taught in my opinion and makes plays in the backfield only Michael Bennett does this on the team if he goes down or somthing we need a player like Aaron Donald. I hope Donald goes under the radar and falls to the seahawks on draft day I would take a 1st round flyer on him.

EverydayImRusselin":3nh7kezn said:

After the last few days I wonder if they would look at someone like Darqueze Denard and maybe trading back to grab him.

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I agree that CB has to be a much bigger need going into the draft. Browner may never suit up for the Seahawks again and after WTIII 2nd drug failure may not be offered a contract after the season from the Seahawks.

I think rounds 2-4 would probably make the most sense/value of getting a quality CB. I like Denard as well. His style of play fits the Seahawks, and he is good in man press coverage. I like Nebraska CB Stanley Jean-Baptiste but I know other aren't as high on him as I am. SJB at 6-3 220 has great size and he is good in man press coverage.

cover-2":3r0hspt3 said:

EverydayImRusselin":3r0hspt3 said:

After the last few days I wonder if they would look at someone like Darqueze Denard and maybe trading back to grab him.

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I agree that CB has to be a much bigger need going into the draft. Browner may never suit up for the Seahawks again and after WTIII 2nd drug failure may not be offered a contract after the season from the Seahawks.

I think rounds 2-4 would probably make the most sense/value of getting a quality CB. I like Denard as well. His style of play fits the Seahawks, and he is good in man press coverage. I like Nebraska CB Stanley Jean-Baptiste but I know other aren't as high on him as I am. SJB at 6-3 220 has great size and he is good in man press coverage.

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I looked at nfldraftscout.com and they have Denard rated as #63 overall. If we could trade back from our first rd spot and maybe pick up another pick we could grab him with some ease I think. I haven't watched any tape on him, but whenever I watch MSU, he's always jumping off the screen.

EverydayImRusselin":1kdinjah said:

After the last few days I wonder if they would look at someone like Darqueze Denard and maybe trading back to grab him.

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I doubt the last couple days mean much. I didn't expect them to resign both Thurmond/Browner. With the strong possibility they resigned neither.

Thurmond seemed the most likely, but realistically his availability would always be a huge question mark. I tend to think they'll elevate the projects they have been grooming and replace the void at the bottom. Meaning late day 3 pick.

Attyla the Hawk":2wyfa819 said:

EverydayImRusselin":2wyfa819 said:

After the last few days I wonder if they would look at someone like Darqueze Denard and maybe trading back to grab him.

Click to expand...

I doubt the last couple days mean much. I didn't expect them to resign both Thurmond/Browner. With the strong possibility they resigned neither.

Thurmond seemed the most likely, but realistically his availability would always be a huge question mark. I tend to think they'll elevate the projects they have been grooming and replace the void at the bottom. Meaning late day 3 pick.

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Don't you think they also need to prepare for the possibility Sherman wants too much $$ to stay? If he asked for a Revis deal, I think he'd get it from someone, just not us. I think they might try to resign Thurmond now that he should be available for a good price, maybe just a 1 yr $2m kind of deal. JS has had some pretty outstanding luck in the late picks though, so it wouldn't surprise m if they do wait.