This past season Seattle ranked No. 25 in scoring defense, No. 21 in defensive DVOA, and No. 26 in EPA per play.
The Seahawks have a potent offense going into 2023, presumably led by established starting QB Geno Smith. However, if they’re going to get back to the Super Bowl anytime soon they’ll need to radically improve on defense, because the numbers aren’t pretty. This past season Seattle placed poorly in both traditional and modern metrics, ranking No. 25 in scoring defense, No. 21 in defensive DVOA and No. 26 in EPA allowed per play.
While we have seen worse in recent years, it’s still a far cry from the team’s absolute peak exactly eight years ago and they haven’t fielded anything close to a top-five defense since 2016. That has to be driving Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll absolutely bananas and nuts. (Carroll admitted it’s “killing him” to reporters in his end-of-season press conference.)
Schematic tweaks will have to be made as part of the improvement. However, recapturing that special Legion of Boom feeling will require some major personnel upgrades.
With that in mind, our latest seven-round 2023 mock draft is made up exclusively of defensive picks. Here’s how it played out.
Here’s a roundup of 10 recent projections for Seattle from mock drafts around the web.
The Seattle Seahawks have the second-most draft capital in the league this year, which should make for an exciting draft season.
Already armed with nine picks, including the fifth overall selection – Seattle has a chance to radically upgrade an already-improving roster with a young core. Let’s get to know some of the team’s other prospects. Here’s a roundup of 10 recent projections for Seattle from mock drafts around the web.
The Seahawks love the Senior Bowl just as much as your friendly neighborhood draft nerds.
The Seahawks love the Senior Bowl just as much as your friendly neighborhood draft nerds. Last year six of the nine players they drafted participated.
In our latest seven-round 2023 mock draft we went in with a simple plan: after taking the best player available at No. 5 overall we limited ourselves to picking prospects who are playing in this year’s Senior Bowl – a strategy that we stuck with into the fifth round. That’s when the Packers made us an offer we couldn’t refuse – resulting in a boatload of new Day 3 picks. In the end, we came out with 13 picks all together. Here’s how it went down.
In order to catch up with the Niners Seattle has to get bigger, meaner and better on both sides of the line of scrimmage.
“Men win wars. Not magic tricks.”
Bronn’s point applies to modern football as well as the Game of Thrones. Specifically, the men who determine who wins and who loses are the very large ones in the trenches who often get overlooked despite their size. Even the cleverest offensive playcallers and most talented quarterbacks find it difficult to overcome a ragged offensive line. On defense, no amount of manufactured pressure can best having multiple pass rush threats and stopping the run can be pretty close to impossible without the right pieces.
The Seahawks can attest to all of that, coming off a season where they exceeded expectations but hit a hard and painful ceiling whenever they faced opponents with superior offensive and defensive line units. Back-to-back losses against the Super Bowl contender Chiefs and 49ers illustrated that much, as did the season-ending loss to San Francisco.
In order to catch up with the Niners – who are making their third NFC Championship appearance in four years this weekend – Seattle has to get bigger, meaner and better on both sides of the line of scrimmage.
With that in mind, we went into our latest 2023 seven-round mock draft with a simple idea: all linemen, every pick. Observe.
In Daniel Jeremiah’s first 2023 mock draft at NFL.com, the Seahawks doubled up on edge prospects.
In Daniel Jeremiah’s first 2023 mock draft at NFL.com, the Seahawks doubled up on edge prospects.
First, he had them selecting Texas Tech Edge Tyree Wilson (6-foot-6, 275 pounds) with the No. 5 overall pick:
“Pete Carroll admitted after the season that the Seahawks needed more difference-makers in their front seven. Wilson is a tall, long and rangy pass rusher. He can also set a physical edge against the run.”
In Jeremia’s mock, the Bears took Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter at No. 1 overall and the Cardinals picked Alabama Edge Will Anderson at No. 3, so Wilson was the best defensive lineman available. He also has some very unique physical characteristics, including an 86″ wingspan.
That’s the kind of trait Pete Carroll and John Schneider will find hard to pass up on, especially if Carter and Anderson are both off the board already. As for the numbers, Wilson posted a total of 14 sacks and 27.5 tackles for a loss over his last two college seasons.
Here’s a look at Wilson’s 2022 highlight reel.
When Seattle was on the clock again at No. 20 overall, Jeremiah had them taking Iowa Edge Will McDonald IV:
“The 23-year-old has elite get-off and can really bend at the top of his rush, but he’ll need to continue to add strength at the pro level. McDonald would team up with Uchenna Nwosu and Wilson (SEE: No. 5 pick above) to juice up the Seahawks’ pass rush.”
McDonald (6-foot-4, 245 pounds) put up some very impressive numbers in his 48 games at Iowa State. That includes two double-digit sack seasons and finishing with 34 all together. He also had 40.5 tackles for a loss, seven pass deflections and 10 forced fumbles.
Here’s the tape on McDonald.
While we do expect the Seahawks to use multiple picks on defensive linemen, this might be a bit early to start taking edge prospects – excluding Anderson, anyway. Edge might be the deepest position group in this draft class, so Seattle may be able to wait on that spot and address some of their other roster needs first.
While we wait for Stroud to make his decision, we snuck him into our latest seven-round mock draft for the Seahawks.
College players have until Monday to declare for the 2023 NFL draft. One of the big stars that has yet to do so is Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud, generally ranked second at his position in this class behind Alabama’s Bryce Young. While we wait for Stroud to make his decision, we snuck him into our latest seven-round mock draft for the Seahawks.
However, before we pulled the trigger on taking Stroud with the No. 5 overall pick, we got an interesting trade offer from the Packers that was almost too good to pass up on. Here’s how the mock played out.
The Seahawks would be picking at No. 3 overall if the 2023 NFL draft were held today. That puts them in position to land a blue chip prospect that could fundamentally change their defense. It also puts them in a prime spot to trade down with teams who are looking to draft a quarterback.
In our latest seven-round 2023 mock draft we took advantage of the latter, dealing down three spots with Detroit and adding a pick in the teens. Later, we traded down again from No. 35 overall – doubling up the picks Seattle received in the Russell Wilson trade to maximize the value of the deal.
In the end, we still got our guy and came out with 11 total selections in the draft. Here’s how it went down.
In our second seven-round 2023 mock draft, we hit all three resolutions early and picked up a few interesting playmakers along the way.
For some people, the New Year is all about making resolutions: lose weight, quit smoking, smash the patriarchy, and so on. For the Seahawks, 2023 offers a rare to chance to truly improve themselves by upgrading the roster. At the moment they hold two of the top 12 picks in the draft, including No. 3 overall, which they got from the Broncos in the Russell Wilson trade. Seattle also has Denver’s second-round choice and five of the top 81 picks overall.
If the front office decides to make some resolutions for this coming year, these three should be at the top: 1. learn how to stop the run, 2. get Uchenna Nwosu some help on the edge and 3. find an inside linebacker who won’t get zapped in coverage by Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay.
In our second seven-round 2023 mock draft, we hit all three resolutions early and picked up a few interesting playmakers along the way…
Thanks to a fortuitous draft board, we were able to check almost all of those boxes.
The Seattle Seahawks have some obvious roster needs as the 2022 NFL season winds down. First and foremost, they need more talent along their defensive line, both to stop the run and get to the quarterback more often. They could also use an upgrade (or two) at inside linebacker and a new starting center.
For our first seven-round mock draft of 2023, we went with the idea of selecting who we wanted in each around rather than predicting what the team might do. Thanks to a fortuitous draft board, we were able to check almost all of those boxes and get a few surprise treats along the way. Here’s our Christmas wishlist mock.
Once the Seahawks decided what to do with their 2023 free agent class, their focus will turn to the draft. This franchise hit a home run in 2022 for the first time in 10 years and another strong class could put them into championship contention.
In a new two-round mock from Luke Easterling at Draft Wire, the Seahawks address their defensive needs with their first three picks. Here’s how the mock played out for Seattle.
