Even after an 11-5 season, the Seattle Seahawks still have plenty of holes to fill. The team needs some immediate help from the 2020 NFL Draft.
The Seattle Seahawks own six selections in the 2020 NFL Draft. The team picks at 27th overall, the same as they did in 2018, and holds two picks in the second round. With three picks in the first 64 selections, the Seahawks need some instant impact players.
While the Seahawks went 11-5 in 2019 and made it to the Divisional Round, the team still needs a lot of help. Besides not looking like a legitimate Super Bowl contender, Seattle will lose several starters and rotational players in free agency. With key contracts expiring in 2021, the team’s window of opportunity could come crashing down soon.
Seattle should address positions where depth and offseason turnover pose issues with their limited selections in the 2020 NFL Draft. While the team may not land a superstar, at least they can fill season-threatening holes.
5. Interior offensive line
The Seahawks rely on Russell Wilson‘s Houdini-esque scrambling to make up for the team’s lackluster offensive line. Only left tackle Duane Brown, who the Seahawks traded for in the middle of the 2017 season, brings some stability to the unit. The other linemen are mostly interchangeable, as Seattle showed when they replaced J.R. Sweezy with Mike Iupati for the past season.
Seattle could lose several important interior linemen this spring. Iupati, who started 15 games for the Seahawks in 2019, will enter free agency again. The team’s backup center, Joey Hunt, also needs a new contract. Hunt started eight games in place of the injured Justin Britt this past season.
Pete Carroll’s squad should look toward the future as well. Britt’s current contract ends after the 2020 season. D.J. Fluker, the team’s starting right guard, also enters free agency after this coming season. Even the extremely underwhelming Ethan Pocic needs a new deal if he wants to stay with the Seahawks after 2020.
The best offensive linemen in the draft all play at the tackle positions, which means the Seahawks should get a clear shot at any guards they like in the first or possibly even the second round.
4. Wide receiver
The Seahawks could survive with Tyler Lockett and D.K. Metcalf leading the way, but Wilson could benefit from some added receiving threats. Josh Gordon never panned out last season and the Jaron Brown signing in 2018 failed miserably. It’s time for Seattle to try their luck in the draft once again.
David Moore served as Seattle’s fourth-leading receiver in 2019, trailing Lockett, Metcalf, and Jacob Hollister. Moore is a pending restricted free agent (RFA), which means the Seahawks can easily retain him. However, even if the team brings Moore back, the Seahawks need more receiving threats.
This year’s receiver class is insanely deep. As many as six or even seven wide receivers could go in the first 32 picks. If the young prospects live up to their hype, then this should be the best wide receiver draft class since 2014. While the Seahawks won’t land one of the premium prospects, quality receivers will still be available when Seattle picks at 59 and 64.
Chase Claypool, KJ Hamler, K.J. Hill, Van Jefferson, Denzel Mims and Michael Pittman Jr. could all be on the board when Seattle reaches their second pick. The Seahawks might even get someone like Lynn Bowden Jr. or Kalija Lipscomb with their 123rd pick (fourth round). No matter the case, adding more pass-catchers appears highly necessary.
3. Cornerback
After two mediocre seasons, Shaquill Griffin finally delivered on his athletic promise. In 14 games, the UCF product defended 13 passes. He did not record an interception but still set a new benchmark for his career. Griffin made his first Pro Bowl appearance, replacing New Orleans’ Marshon Lattimore.
More from NFL Spin Zone
- Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
- Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
- Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
- Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
- Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens
While Griffin elevated his play this past season, the Seahawks still need another quality cornerback. Seattle might not use a first-round pick on a corner, but the team should still expend a selection on a corner. The secondary is flawed.
Tre Flowers played safety at Oklahoma State. When the Seahawks selected him in the fifth round of the 2018 draft, they moved Flowers to cornerback. While Flowers emerged as a surprising contributor, teams began targeting him last year. Next to the emerging Griffin, Flowers became a liability.
Besides worrying about Flowers’ development, the Seahawks also need to take a long look at their cornerback depth. Akeem King, Neiko Thorpe and Kalan Reed will all enter free agency this spring. Fellow cornerback, Jeremy Boykins, is an exclusive rights free agent (ERFA).
If the Seahawks don’t re-sign any of those corners, Brian Allen, Flowers and Griffin would be the only remaining cornerbacks on the roster.
If the Seahawks chase a corner in the first round, they could land Trevon Diggs, Jaylon Johnson or A.J. Terrell. Finding a corner in the later rounds will be difficult, but this is the franchise that took Richard Sherman in the fifth round nine years ago.
2. Defensive end
While the Seahawks will pursue Jadeveon Clowney and try to retain the former Pro Bowler, there’s a chance Clowney leaves Seattle high and dry. Clowney only played like a true Pro Bowl-caliber defender in only four or five games in 2019, but his potential far surpasses that of any other defensive end available to Seattle.
Besides Clowney, the Seahawks could lose Ezekiel Ansah, Branden Jackson and Quinton Jefferson in free agency. If all four defensive ends leave, then the Seahawks need to rebuild their defensive end depth from scratch. The team’s only defensive ends under contract for 2020 are L.J. Collier, Rasheem Green and Shakir Soto.
Seattle drafted Collier with the 29th overall pick in 2019. The TCU product played sparingly and never made a start. Even when he got snaps, the rookie never made an impact. Collier finished his rookie season with only three tackles.
Seattle’s 28 sacks in 2019 tied for the second-fewest in the NFL and four of the team’s top six sacks leaders will enter free agency this spring. The Seahawks desperately need at least one new edge rusher.
Even if Collier develops into a regular starter, which seems extremely unlikely right now, Seattle still needs a rotational defensive end to fill Jefferson’s production.
1. Offensive tackle
Again, Brown is the only offensive lineman holding Seattle’s front together. Brown recently made his fourth Pro Bowl in 2017. The Associated Press also selected the left tackle as a Second Team All-Pro in 2018. Two years remain on the 34-year-old’s current contract.
While Brown locks down the left tackle position for the near future, Seattle needs a new right tackle. Germain Ifedi started at that position for the past several seasons, but he will enter free agency this spring. While Seattle had the option to keep Ifedi for another season, the team declined his fifth-year option.
Seattle drafted Ifedi with the 31st pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. While the Texas A&M product developed each season, he never lived up to his draft pedigree. Ultimately, the Seahawks made the right move when they declined Ifedi’s $10.35 million fifth-year option.
However, the Seahawks still need a new right tackle. Preferably, Seattle will find a player who can protect Wilson as he enters his age-31 season and beyond. While the team almost always prioritizes run blocking when looking for linemen, Wilson can only scramble around for so long. Eventually, his legs will go with age.
Of the top four offensive linemen in the draft, all of which are tackles, two play right tackle. Alabama’s Jedrick Wills Jr. and Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs will both go in the top 15 if not the top ten picks. There’s no way either one of them will fall to the Seahawks. Finding a quality right tackle could prove difficult for Seattle.