Seahawks list of pre-draft visits is like a pre-draft Russell Wilson: Short and doubtful

The first thing that I did when I started to put this article together was look at a list of players that the Seahawks have met with in the pre-draft process. The list was short and didn't have a lot of big names on it, because why would it? Seattle won't be meeting with Luke Joeckel. He might be a super nice guy and I wouldn't be surprised if Pete Carroll sent him an Easter card that said "I'm Egg-cited to see you go to the AFC!" but there isn't any point.

So then I immediately came up with the title of this article based on that and I liked it a lot. Then I found out my list was only short because it was inaccurate. I still like the title, so fun off. I'm sticking with it.

Still, most of the players that Seattle has met with are unknown names and from a lot of small schools. Plenty of them won't be drafted in the first four rounds, if at all. The biggest names are a couple of quarterbacks and a guy that polarizes fanbases on a mini-Tebow level. But it is also a list that includes some guys that I'm sure will be wearing blue and green, and not just because they got hella style.

(joke) (joke) (joke) (self-deprecating joke) (90s reference) Let's get to it.

Seahawks 2013 visits (unofficial)

Matt Scott, QB, Arizona

Jeremy Wright, RB, Louisville

Russell Shepard, WR, LSU

Martel Moore, WR, Northern Illinois

Aaron Mellette, WR, Elon

Tyrone Goard, WR, Eastern Kentucky

Rufus Johnson, DE, Tarleton State

Stefan Charles, DT, Regina

Duke Williams, S, Nevada

Kevin McDermott, LS, UCLA

Conclusion:

See, not much of a list, right? You've heard of Matt Scott because he's a quarterback and we like to talk about those kinds of things and he was in the Pac-12. Some people think he's a legitimate starting NFL quarterback and a lot of people would rather see Scott than Brady Quinn. He only got to start for one year at Arizona because of Nick Foles, and that's also an interesting comparison. Just in the way that Foles had things you don't like and traits that also make you think he might be a starter in the NFL, and sure enough he started six games last year for the Eagles.

You've heard of Scott, but in regards to the rest of the names you either:

- Haven't heard of any of them.

- Have heard of all of them because "college football is kinda my thing, bro."

- Have heard of one other guy because your mom had him in English.

Notice the small school guys. Mellette went to Elon, which is two stars to the right and straight on till morning. Two players have been drafted from Elon since 1990: WR Joe Randall was a 12th round pick in 1992, LB Chad Nkang was a 7th round pick in 2007. Hall of Fame tight end Rich McGeorge was a first round pick from Elon in 1970.

Mellette making it in the NFL would be akin to a dashboard cam in Russia capturing a meteor falling to Earth and becoming a viral sensation. The source is unlikely but there is definitely something to see here. Mellette is 6'3, 217 pounds, and ran a 4.45 40. He had 1,100 yards as a sophomore, 1,639 yards as a junior, and 1,408 yards as a senior with 42 touchdowns over those three years. He didn't even start playing football until 10th grade.

Rufus Johnson would be the second player since 1990 to be drafted out of Tarleton State, joining James Dearth, a long-snapper that spent 11 seasons in the league almost all with the Jets. Johnson stands at about 6'4 or 6'5, 266 pounds, and ran a 4.75 and 4.78 at his pro day. He's projected as a 7th-UDFA and projected as an outside linebacker.

Probably one of the most interesting names is "Regina." You won't find "Regina" anywhere on my list of players drafted since 1990, but you will find one "Reginald." The University of Regina is located in Saskatchewan, Canada. Stefan Charles is 6'5, 320-pounds, 145.15 kilograms. He was once the top prospect for the CFL draft and played alongside Akiem Hicks, a 3rd round pick of the Saints last year. Charles only did 15 reps on the bench at the combine but had the highest vertical in his group at 37-inches. Here's a highlight video.

I only broke down those players because I thought it was interesting that they came from small schools, I have little time or interest in big name prospects! I would never pretend to be one of the several smart scouting dudes we have on this website, I'm just passing some info along. Some... incomplete info. Why so incomplete? Because as Jared Stanger pointed out to me (thankfully I checked first) that list is incomplete. I thought it seemed short, even if Seattle does not have a first round pick, they do have lots of picks and no reason to waste your allotted amount of visits. Here is a plug for Walter Football, they are sort of winning me back as a customer lately.

The prospects not listed there that the Seahawks have met with:

- Luke Batton, LB, Kent State

- Datone Jones, DL, UCLA

- Tyrann Mathieu, DB, LSU

- Brendan Melanophy, DB, Fordham

- Latavius Murray, RB, Central Florida

- Ryan Otten, TE, San Jose State

- Quinton Patton, WR, Louisiana Tech

- David Quessenberry, OL, San Jose State

- Sheldon Richardson, DL, Missouri

- Eric Rogers, WR, Cal Lutheran

- Duke Williams, DB, Nevada

- Michael Williams, TE, Alabama

- Tyler Wilson, QB, Arkansas

Added by Stanger:

- Dontra Peters, CB, New Hampshire (twitter handle @_TrizzKhalifa!)

- Craig Wilkins, LB, Old Dominion

- Perez Ashford, WR, Northern Illinois

- Kyle Juszczyk, FB, Harvard

(Edit: Additions from Davis Hsu)

- Mike Catapano, DE, Princeton

- Ryan Jensen, OL, Colorado State

Second Conclusion:

Now we're cooking. Hey you'd have to have a degree from Harvard to spell Juszczyk, am I right?!

If these really are the official visits, it comes to 27 29 of the allotted 30 they are allowed to make. Breakdown by position:

QB - 2

RB/FB - 3

WR - 7

TE - 2

OL - 1 2

DL - 4 5

LB - 2

DB - 5

LS - 1

Note that despite how likely it is that they'll take at least one lineman in the draft, they have met with as many long-snappers as they have with the standard offensive lineman. They are set at receiver, but they have met with seven of them. I suspect that their first pick will be a defensive lineman or maybe a tight end, and yet they haven't been that extensive in that area. Guys like Datone Jones and Sheldon Richardson probably won't be available when Seattle picks either.

Note a player like Juszczyk, a 6'1, 248-pound blocking lead back, fullback. About all those comments that Seattle would not be looking for Michael Robinson insurance, why waste a visit on a prototypical fullback that's projected to be drafted? This isn't a UDFA, this is NFL Draft Scouts #1 fullback.

This list absolutely means something. The Seahawks will sign a couple of these guys as undrafted free agents, I feel pretty certain about that. They could be looking at some of these guys in the seventh round, but they haven't tipped their hand much with what they'll do in the second and third rounds.

Seahawks 2012 visits included Bobby Wagner, Korey Toomer, Jeremy Lane, Lavasier Tuinei, and DeShawn Shead. The pre-draft process was a decent indicator that even if they did not meet with guys like Bruce Irvin and Robert Turbin, they met with a significant amount of future Seahawks.

In conclusion again, I think this is a pretty good article. Lots of info! I'm going to post it now. (This is what happens when Danny leaves.)

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