2020 NFL Draft: Why UW’s Nick Harris is a good fit for Seahawks

The Seattle Seahawks are expected to overhaul their offensive line in 2020, and drafting UW center Nick Harris would be a great start.

The Seattle Seahawks are heading into the offseason with a potentially massive overhaul of their offensive line in store.

Starting left guard Mike Iupati and right tackle Germain Ifedi are both unrestricted free agents, along with backup tackle George Fant. Center Joey Hunt is a restricted free agent, and both center Justin Britt and right guard D.J. Fluker are potential cut candidates.

This almost certainly means 1-2 starters will be new in 2020, and the team will have to choose whether to pursue veterans on the open market, or to try to find replacements via the NFL draft.

One of my personal favorite targets, should they choose to explore upgrading via the draft, is University of Washington center Nick Harris.

Harris brings versatility as both a center and a guard, and scouts have praised him for his work in run protection, particularly when getting to the second level, as well as his high football IQ .

He seems to be an ideal fit for the offensive package the Seahawks currently employ, and under the tutelage of Mike Solari it’s easy to imagine him turning into a very solid NFL starter.

Most current mock drafts have him in the second or third round range, and if that holds up it would behoove the Seahawks to strongly consider him.

With Ethan Pocic, Phil Haynes and Jamarco Jones alongside Harris, the Seahawks could potentially put together a young, strong, cohesive offensive line in the next year or two.

[lawrence-related id=56214]

2020 Senior Bowl: 3 OL prospects for the Eagles to watch

Tremayne Anchrum among 3 OL for Eagles to watch at 2020 Senior Bowl

The Philadelphia Eagles are coming off a 2019 season where they had the NFL’s highest-graded offensive line and three of their linemen rated in the top-10 of the league.

Even with so many accolades, Jason Peters is a year older, Jason Kelce has pondered retirement at center, while Brandon Brooks will have a lengthy rehab for his shoulder injury.

With Carson Wentz, the Eagles’ highest priority, here are three offensive line prospects for the Eagles to watch at the Senior Bowl.

***

1. Nick Harris, center, Washington

Could the Eagles be in the market for a center? Kelce signed a new deal last year, but he’s talked about the effort it takes to play week in and week out.

Harris is generally considered a likely mid-round pick and could be an interesting option for the Eagles in the later rounds.

Pages: 123

3 PAC-12 players the Seahawks could target in the NFL draft

Here is a look at three PAC-12 players – a center, tight end and edge rusher – the Seattle Seahawks could target in the 2020 NFL Draft.

The Seattle Seahawks, particularly in recent years, have taken a lot of talent from local schools in the NFL draft.

Will Dissly came to the Seahawks via the University of Washington in 2018, and a quartet of draft picks from the PAC-12 joined Seattle last year: Ugo Amadi (Oregon) Ben Burr-Kirven (Washington) as well as Marquise Blair and Cody Barton from Utah.

While that may be coincidental more than anything else, it could also be thanks to Seattle’s alignment with many of the offensive and defensive schemes being run by PAC-12 schools – and could point to more PAC-12 players joining the team in 2020.

While there are literally dozens of PAC-12 players who are draft eligible and, at least on paper, decent fits for this Seattle team, here are three who seem like arguably the best fits at this stage of the draft process.

Pages: 1234

2020 Senior Bowl: Winners, losers from Day 2 practices

Draft Wire’s Gavino Borquez gives his winners and losers from Day 2 of Senior Bowl practices.

Plenty of performances stood out on Day 2 of the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama.

Who impressed? Who disappointed?

Here are my picks for the the biggest winners and losers from Wednesday’s on-field action:

Winner – Jordan Love | QB | Utah State

It was Justin Herbert that had the best day out of all quarterbacks on Day 1, but Love had the slight leg up today. Herbert still had a great day, but Love was fantastic. He made a lot of magnificent passes, showing his super quick, a live arm and beautiful ball placement throughout the entire duration of the practice. He had the type of the day that many believe he is the type of player that could sneak into the top-10.

Pages: 123456789

2020 NFL draft: Why Jets will have tough time addressing biggest need in Round 1

The Jets find themselves in an undesirable situation with the No. 11 pick and needing offensive line help in April’s draft.

While a 6-2 finish to the Jets’ season shows the franchise is headed in the right direction, the hot streak came with consequences.

Gang Green has the 11th overall pick in April’s draft. With the Jets needing to undergo a full rebuild on the offensive line, picking outside of the top-10 is less than ideal when it comes to this draft class.

Finding a franchise tackle remains a top priority for the Jets. With that said, there seems to be a consensus that three tackles will be selected in front of the Jets. Georgia’s Andrew Thomas, Iowa’s Tristan Wirfs and Alabama’s Jedrick Wills Jr. seem destined to go in front of New York.

Wirfs has yet to declare for the draft, while first-round prospect Alex Leatherwood announced his attention to return to the University of Alabama.

The Giants, Dolphins, Chargers, Cardinals and Browns all need considerable help on the offensive line. The Jets have to cross their fingers and hope that there is a run on talented receivers and potential franchise quarterbacks before the team’s pick.

Potential players available for the Jets picking at No. 11 could be Iowa edge rusher A.J. Epenesa, Penn State edge rusher Yetur Gross-Matos, Stanford CB Paulson Adebo, Alabama CB Trevon Diggs, Alabama WR Henry Ruggs III and Clemson WR Tee Higgins.

In a pipe dream scenario the two most dynamic wide receivers in the class, Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy or Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb, could fall to the Jets, but neither option seems plausible at this point in time. Even if that were the case, while the Jets need receiver help, the line is still the biggest issue.

The Jets may not be able to address the tackle position in the first round and they have to accept that. However, that should not prevent New York from attempting to fix the interior of the offensive line.

Wisconsin IOL Tyler Biadasz, Washington IOL Nick Harris and Oklahoma IOL Creed Humphrey all could be had in the latter portion of the first round if the Jets decide to trade back.

This draft is deep with wide receivers and cornerbacks and the Jets desperately need to add more talent on both sides of the football, especially on Joe Douglas’ first go around.

Whether it’s staying put or trading back, the Jets have to come away with offensive line help on Day 1 of the 2020 NFL draft. They have their work cut out for them this offseason and everyone in the organization knows that New York will only go as far as its play in the trenches.

Actually addressing those holes will be easier said than done, though. Especially in the draft.

Looking at Draft Wire’s 3-round mock draft for Chargers

The Chargers take a quarterback, center and linebacker in Draft Wire’s latest three-round mock draft.

With the Chargers essentially out of playoff contention, the fanbase’s attention has shifted towards the future and what the team could do to build up an already talented roster for next year.

With that, we will continue to throw in mock drafts here and there throughout the duration of the regular season to show the direction they could go. Once the season is over, all of our attention will shift solely to free agency and the draft.

Draft Wire’s Luke Easterling put out his latest three-round mock draft. Let’s take a look and see what he believes Los Angeles will do when April rolls around.

Round 1, No. 10, QB Justin Herbert, Oregon

Philip Rivers is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2019 season, and it’s uncertain whether or not he will be back. Whether or not he is back for Year 17, the Chargers can’t waste anymore time to find his potential replacement, especially if they will be picking in the top-15.

The team has certainly been doing their homework on him. Earlier this season, there were three scouts in attendance for the matchup between Oregon and USC. When you have that many scouts at a game, it’s clear that they’re zeroing in on a specific prospect.

Herbert, the 6-foot-6 and 237 pounder, has everything that the Bolts will covet in their next signal-caller — arm talent, mobility, experience, football intelligence and production. While there are areas that need to be addressed to his game, including his decision-making, he is a guy with high upside.

It wouldn’t be the most sexy selection in eyes of the fans, but it’s a pick that the organization would make given their philosophy, need and most importantly, because he checks off on nearly all of the boxes when it comes to evaluating players at the position.

Here is what Easterling had to say about Herbert going to L.A.

Philip Rivers is at the end of a Hall of Fame career, and it’s time for the Bolts to find his long-term replacement. Herbert could have been a high draft pick last year, but he returned to school to polish his game. He’s done just that, and should be plenty worthy of a top-10 pick.

Pages: 123

4 Apple Cup participants the Seahawks could target in the NFL draft

The Seattle Seahawks will certainly have scouts at the 2020 Apple Cup on Friday. Here are four players they could potentially draft.

The Apple Cup – the annual game between the University of Washington and Washington State University – is set to kick off at 1:00 p.m. on Friday.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll wouldn’t offer a prediction on the game itself, but he expects a good game between the two 6-5 teams.

“I wouldn’t know how to call that one,” Carroll said on Wednesday. “It’s going to be a really good game. I really don’t care who wins. I just hope it’s a really good game and they have a lot of fun.”

Recently, the Seahawks have shown a keen interest in drafting and signing local talent, which makes this game even more interesting for Seahawks fans – regardless of if they have a rooting interest in either squad.

Will Dissly and Ben Burr-Kirven are two recent draft picks out of the University of Washington, while recent players Darrell Daniels and Shalom Luani were both Washington State Cougars.

Although draft season is still a ways away, here is a look at four players who will play in the Apple Cup who could find their way into the blue and green next season.

Pages: 12345