Draft Preview: Seattle Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks were one of the best teams in the 2019 season as they just missed out on another NFC championship appearance. They were led by quarterback Russel Wilson who had a somewhat MVP caliber season as he threw for  4,110 yards and 31 touchdowns with a QB rating of 106.3 along with Wilson contribution rookie D.K Metcalf showed out as he had an impressive rookie campaign. The Seahawks would go on to lose starting running back Chris Carson week 16 as he suffered a fractured hip which was season-ending. The Seahawks were already struggling as Carson was the only healthy running back active as the backup Rashad Penny was out for the year with his own injury. The third-stringer was inactive for week 17 leaving Seattle with no active running back so Seattle went out and brought Marshawn Lynch out of retirement and signed him for the remainder of the year. Wilson would lead Seattle to an 11-5 record giving them their first consecutive season of double-digit wins since the 2015-16 season. The Seahawks would go on to barely beat the Philadelphia Eagles 17-9 who were without starting QB Carson Wentz for the whole game. The Seahawks would go on to lose to the Green Bay Packers the following week 28-23 in the NFC Divisional Round. Seattle has a few major holes to fill in their team that they must address before being capable of winning the Superbowl with 8 total draft picks this year they can look to do something. Here are some positions the Seahawks could look to address in the draft.

Defensive end 

The Seahawks are one of the best teams in the NFL the thing that separates them from great teams like the 49ers and Patriots is their weak pass rushing. Seattle ranked 2nd to dead last for the most sacks with 28 just 5 more than the league’s worst Miami Dolphins. The Seahawks tried to address their pass-rushing by going out and trading for 3x pro bowler Jadeveon Clowney weeks before the start of the 2019 season. Clowney had a down year with the Seahawks when it came to sacks as he recorded just 3 sacks after having 9 sacks the previous years. Despite the low sacks Clowney did record 4 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries, 1 defensive touchdown, 1 interception, and 3 pass deflections. Clowney was on a 1-year deal as he was franchised by the Texans before being traded and the Seahawks could desperately need his help for more than one year. Clowney is currently still a free agent and Seattle looks slimmer to sign him as the days go by but there is still a chance Clowney returns to Seattle as he reduced his asking price to an annual salary of $17 Million. The Seahawks have added some solid additions to their d-line by adding Benson Mayowa who was a solid pass rusher for the Raiders last season and added former Seahawks Bruce Irvin who is coming off an 8.5 sacks season, a career-best. Mayowa and Irvin are currently Seattle’s best pass rushers on the team besides backup Rasheem Green who had 4 sacks and 3 forced fumbles leaving Seattle in desperate need of another decent pass rusher. A prospect to look out for is Terrell Lewis who is coming off a season where he was a key player in Alabama’s d-line. Lewis recorded 6 sacks and 2 pass deflections being one of the most dynamic pass rushers in the leagues as he displayed his impressive speed, strength, and moves to get past blockers. There is some concern with his past ACL injury that forced him to miss time in the 2018 season but besides that, he is a solid player anybody would want on their team. Lewis can be a rotational player and line up with Green as the team’s backups but he does have a solid chance of becoming a team starter if he shows up in training camp.

Offensive Tackle 

The Seahawks had struggles with their offensive line throughout the season as they gave up the 9th most sacks for the season with 48 sacks allowed and allowing Russell Wilson to get hit a total of 111 times. Seattle had eight different five-man starting rotations at the o-line with five different alignments in each of the last five games. Last season the only linemen to start all 18 games for the Seahawks was right guard Germain Ifedi who you think would be solid but when you look at his stats he gave up a team-high 6 sacks and had 13 penalties ranking 5th most by a right tackle. In the second half of the Divisional Round, the Seahawks depended on rookie Phill Haynes to be their starting left guard who hadn’t played a single snap in his career and you can imagine a rookie being called up for the first time in a playoff game doesn’t end well. The Seahawks did lose center Justin Britt early in the season to an ACL injury which ultimately affected them later on in the season. The Seahawks have done what they could in adding talent to their o-line by adding four linemen in the off-season although none are big-name signing they do add depth to a team that suffered from injuries last season. Seattle could look to add a set of fresh legs in their line during the draft as many of the current linemen are veterans but many still capable of playing. A prospect to look out for is Matt Peart, a lineman who has been consistent for Connecticut during his time there. Peart was a 4-year starter for Connecticut and is familiar with the role of becoming a leader as he was often a team captain for them. Peart showed out at the combine as he put on a semi-fast time and also displayed his impressive skill-set at the Senior Bowl. Peart has the ability to become a starter in the NFL but could take the backseat for a year and learn his ways around the NFL and with Seattle’s deep depth that will be a perfect spot for him.

Running Back

Starting running back Chris Carson was having a great sophomore year as he recorded 1,230 rushing yards on 278 carries and had 7 touchdowns. The Seahawks took a huge blow when they lost Carson week 16 as he fractured his hip putting him on IR. A hip injury isn’t something you want to see as that injury has ended some players’ careers or players who suffered a hip injury never come back the same. The Seahawks did lose backup Rashaad Penny for the year as earlier in the season he also went down with an injury. The Seahawks were forced to go out and sign former running back Marshawn Lynch who at the time was retired and hadn’t played a snap in some time. With the starting running back and backup both coming off season-ending injuries the Seahawks could look to add a running back who can be a rotational piece. A prospect to look out for is Cam  Akers, a 5’10 217 lbs running back who was a starter for Florida State. Akers recorded 1,144 rushing yards, 14 touchdowns, and averaged 5.0 yards per carry. Akers showed great speed and athleticism last season and also displayed his great receiving skills as he had 225 receiving yards and caught 4 touchdowns. Akers can be a mini-starter for Seattle while Carson comes back from his injury and could still provide a key piece to the Seahawks run game when Carson comes back fully healthy. With his impressive running skills and receiving skills Aker’s versatility would make a huge impact in Seattle’s run game and passing game.