Tag: stn

Biggest need for Seahawks improving offensive or defensive line, per PFF

In Seattle’s case they picked improving the offensive or defensive line.

We are expecting a trade down from the Seahawks when they are on the clock in Round 1 of the 2024 NFL draft later tonight. As far as who they’ll actually pick their best bet is taking the best lineman on the board. Pro Football Focus seems to think so, anyway.

Heading into the draft PFF has named the biggest need for all 32 teams. In Seattle’s case they picked improving the offensive or defensive line.

“Seattle ranked 28th in pass blocking grade last season and lost two starters from their offensive line in free agency. Selecting Jackson Powers-Johnson, the draft’s best center, would make plenty of sense. They also desperately need an edge player to pair with Boye Mafe. UCLA’s Laiatu Latu, college football’s highest-graded defensive player in 2023, would be an ideal fit.”

Uchenna Nwosu might have something to say about that as he returns from his pectoral injury, but the point stands that the Seahawks need depth on the edge as well as the interior defensive line, to say nothing of the far more desperate need for guards and centers as well as depth at tackle.

Picking Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson would probably improve their roster more than any non-QB pick could, but doing so at 16 would be a reach. If they trade down into the 20s that’s a more ideal spot to target JPJ or another interior lineman. If they stay put at 16 expect Florida State’s Jared Verse, Texas’ Byron Murphy II or another DL.

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Mel Kiper: Michael Penix Jr. won’t fall past Raiders at No. 13 overall

Mel Kiper at ESPN has shared a bunch of predictions going into the draft, including one that says Penix won’t last past No. 13 overall.

Here at Seahawks Wire we have been on Michael Penix Jr. watch even before the team hired Ryan Grubb as their offensive coordinator. For a long time the conventional wisdom was that Penix would still be available at the start of Round 2. However, thanks to his performance at the combine and Washington’s Pro Day, he’s now expected to be taken before Seattle is on the clock at No. 16 overall. Here’s more evidence pointing in that direction as the draft arrives.

The original draft guru, Mel Kiper at ESPN has shared a bunch of predictions going into the draft, including one that says Penix won’t last past No. 13 overall, where the Raiders are slated to pick:

“The Washington quarterback is liked by several teams with picks in the teens, but I don’t think he’ll last past the Raiders at No. 13. That’s a little rich for my tastes — he finished No. 24 on my Big Board — but there are several teams looking for their quarterback of the future in this class, and his accuracy, experience and moxie make him appealing.”

Already missing a second-round pick thanks to the Leonard Williams trade, the Seahawks simply don’t have the capital to move up from 16 for Penix or anybody else. Unless he falls, the Penix-Seattle connection will stop tonight.

However, the good news is that the 2024 draft class is deep at quarterback and they might still be able to land a quality prospect as late as Day 3. The other big name we will be keeping an eye on is Spencer Rattler from South Carolina, who’s projected to get drafted in Round 2 or Round 3.

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Devon Witherspoon says he’s ‘very high’ on Michael Penix Jr.

Witherspoon made it clear that he’s a big fan of his game, complimenting his pocket presence and ability to make every throw.

Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon was a guest last night on the NFL Draft Week space on Twitter, and he was asked for his opinions on some of the top quarterback prospects in the 2024 draft class – some of whom he competed against personally. On the subject of Michigan’s JJ McCarthy, Witherspoon said he sees his skillset translating well to the NFL, especially his mobility.

As for Washington QB Michael Penix Jr., Witherspoon made it clear that he’s a big fan of his game, complimenting his pocket presence and ability to make every throw. You can listen to the full recording at the link below:

Penix is easily the best fit for Seattle in this draft class given his experience with offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb. The only question is if he’ll still be available when the Seahawks are on the clock at No. 16 overall. Our best guess is that he won’t be – the x-factor being the Raiders, who pick at 13. While they signed Gardner Minshew in free agency his contract is far from a long-term investment and Penix has been heavily connected with them throughout draft season.

Nothing is certain, though. Far weirder things happen every year in the draft than a prospect like Penix sliding a few spots lower than he’s projected for. We’ll find out tomorrow night if it’s meant to be for Penix to stay in Seattle.

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2024 NFL draft: Washington OT Troy Fautanu has medical flag

However, there’s a late flag regarding Fautanu’s health.

One of the prospects who has been most frequently connected with the Seahawks has been Washington left tackle Troy Fautanu. He is by far the most popular mock draft pick at No. 16 overall and at least in theory would fit in like a glove with Ryan Grubb and Scott Huff, who he worked with the last two seasons.

However, there’s a late flag regarding Fautanu’s health. According to Albert Breer at Sports Illustrated, Fautanu has a knee issue that could affect his longevity in the NFL:

“Washington OT Troy Fautanu’s knee was flagged. That one was described to me as the sort of issue that shouldn’t be a problem in the short term, but could wind up impacting his longevity in the pros…”

This is pretty far from ideal, especially considering that Seattle’s starting right tackle Abe Lucas has a long-term knee problem of his own that kept him on the sidelines for 11 games last season.

Fautanu is still an excellent prospect overall and a great fit for what Seattle wants to do, but this could be disqualifying – especially considering the depth at offensive tackle in this draft class there’s no need to roll the dice on a prospect with a medical red flag.

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Texas DT Byron Murphy II grew up on Seahawks, Marshawn Lynch

Sometimes a prospect just seems destined to go to a certain team.

Sometimes a prospect just seems destined to go to a certain team. With one day to go before the draft, it seems possible that the stars are aligning for Texas defensive tackle Byron Murphy II and the Seattle Seahawks.

We learned a lot about Murphy via a piece earlier this week from Greg Riddle at the Dallas Morning News, including the nugget that he grew up wanting to play running back and emulated Marshawn Lynch. Murphy was also a fan of the Legion of Boom era Seahawks despite being in Cowboys country.

“I used to love watching Adrian Peterson, and I used to love Marshawn Lynch. I used to try to model my game after them… When he met Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, Murphy says, ‘They loved me, they love how I play.’ But even though he’s from DeSoto, the Cowboys weren’t his favorite team growing up. ‘I used to like the Seattle Seahawks,’ Murphy said. ‘The Legion of Boom era, with Russell Wilson, Kam Chancellor, Marshawn Lynch, Michael Bennett.’”

For most of draft season Murphy has been projected to be a late first-round pick, generally projected to come off the board in the 20s. However, his stock has risen fast late in the game and now some analysts believe he could be a top-10 pick.

Murphy says he has been told that he won’t slip past No. 16…

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Seahawks worked out free agent offensive lineman Lucas Patrick

According to Aaron Wilson, on Monday the team worked out free agent interior lineman Lucas Patrick.

Last week the Seahawks brought in veteran guard Greg Van Roten for a visit and were also reported to be interested in a couple of other free agent iOL in Cody Whitehair and Laken Tomlinson. This week the work continues to find more options at the guard and center positions, which are arguably the weakest on paper in the NFL right now.

We can add another name to the list of veterans Seattle is taking a look at. According to Aaron Wilson, on Monday the team worked out free agent interior lineman Lucas Patrick, who spent last year with the Bears.

Patrick (6-foot-3, 313 pounds) played his college ball at Duke. Despite going undrafted, he has managed to appeared in 96 games at this level, including five years in Green Bay and two in Chicago.

For most of his career Patrick has been a guard, putting in time at both spots but this last season he was the starting center for the Bears. PFF wasn’t too keen on what he did, giving him a 50.5 overall grade (ranking 30 out of 36 qualifying centers) including a 40.6 grade in pass protection.

If Patrick does sign he could compete at any of the three interior positions, but right now left guard is the team’s most-desperate spot. While they do have some inexperienced options at right guard and center, they have exactly none with any NFL experience at left guard.

The Seahawks could use as many bodies as they can get right now for that offensive line but they simply may not have the dough to sign anybody at the moment.  According to the latest figures at Over the Cap, the team has less than $1.8 million in cap room. However, their effective cap space (including rookies) is still in the red.

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Seahawks getting visit from veteran free agent G Greg Van Roten

The Seahawks are in the market for a guard… or two.

The Seahawks are in the market for a guard… or two. Last week general manager John Schneider told 710 Seattle that the team would be hosting a veteran offensive linemen or two, and earlier this week ESPN reported that the Seahawks were interested in free agent left guards Laken Tomlinson and Cody Whitehair.

Now we have reports of a meeting with yet another veteran free agent guard. According to Aaron Wilson, Greg Van Roten will be visiting today.

Van Roten (6-foot-3, 305 pounds) was originally undrafted out of Pennsylvania, but he’s gone on to a long career for a guard. All together he has appeared in 110 regular season games for five different teams, starting 71 of them.

Most recently Van Roten spent the 2023 season with the Raiders, where he put in over 1,000 snaps at right guard. PFF gave him a solid pass blocking grade (77.4) and a decent 68.5 run blocking grade for the year.

Now 34 years old, Van Roten is past his prime with the Panthers, but he should be relatively cheap in what’s been a wildly overpaid guard market this cycle. If he does sign, Van Roten would likely compete with second-year guard Anthony Bradford for the RG1 spot on the roster.

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Seahawks expected to sign former Cowboys DT Johnathan Hankins

Hankins has been around the league.

The Seattle Seahawks may not have been active during the first wave of free agency, but they appear to be making up for lost time in the later stages. On Tuesday, Seattle signed former Titans defensive back K’Von Wallace to a contract, and apparently Wallace was not the last one on John Schneider’s agenda for today.

It was announced Tuesday afternoon that the Seahawks are going to sign veteran defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins. Hankins will join a defensive line eager to stop the bleeding of being one of the worst against the run in the NFL.

Hankins has been around the league. Originally a second-round pick by the New York Giants during the 2013 NFL draft, Hankins spent the first four years of his career with Big Blue before becoming an Indianapolis Colt.

Hankins’ stint in the Heartland did not last long, as after one year he was released. He then spent the next four and a half seasons with the Raiders in both Oakland and Las Vegas before being traded to the Dallas Cowboys midway through the 2022 season.

The Cowboys connection likely landed Hankins in Seattle, as new Seahawks defensive coordinator Aden Durde was his defensive line coach for the last two years.

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Seahawks sign former Titans DB K’Von Wallace to 1-year deal

It’s a one-year deal, according to Tom Pelissero at NFL Network.

The Seahawks have signed former Eagles, Cardinals and Titans defensive back K’Von Wallace. It’s a one-year deal, according to Tom Pelissero at NFL Network.

Wallace (5-foot-11, 205 pounds) played his college ball at Clemson, where he totaled five interceptions in 45 games. He was then picked by Philadelphia in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL draft. Wallace spent three seasons with the Eagles, appearing in 45 games but only getting seven starts. From there, he moved on to the Cardinals for one season, and last season he was with the Titans. All together he has played in 62 NFL games with 19 starts.

Signing Wallace continues the Seahawks’ theme of adding diverse coverage players for the back end of their defense. Like Rayshawn Jenkins, he’s gotten high grades for his coverage and he can play multiple positions.

Seattle may no longer need to pick a safety in the 2024 NFL draft, with Jenkins and Wallace effectively replacing Quandre Diggs and Jamal Adams. Seattle still has plenty of youth at this spot on their depth chart in Jerrick Reed, Coby Bryant and Ty Okada.

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Seahawks announce they’ve signed former Rams G Tremayne Anchrum Jr.

The Seahawks just gave themselves another option at this position, announcing that they have signed former Rams guard Tremayne Anchrum.

Guard remains one of the most unsettled positions on the Seahawks roster currently. 2023 starters Damien Lewis and Phil Haynes have been allowed to test the market, opening a path for two new potential starters.

The Seahawks just gave themselves another option at this position, announcing that they have signed former Rams guard Tremayne Anchrum.

Anchrum (6-foot-2, 314 pounds) played his college ball at Clemson. After that, he was picked by the Rams in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL draft. Since then he has appeared in 31 games, but has only started once.

Anchrum’s first few years he barely played, but last season he played 96 snaps at right guard, raising the possibility he could compete with Anthony Bradford to replace Phil Haynes at that spot.

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