Draft Pick Rundown: 7 points on Seahawks fourth round selection Ugo Amadi

With their third and final selection in the fourth round, the Seahawks again returned to the Pac-12, selecting defensive back Ugo Amadi. The fourth defensive player drafted by Seattle up to that point, Amadi brings tremendous versatility to the Seahawks’ secondary.

Athletic Fit

Amadi was one of the players I theorized prior to the draft would lead Seattle to dip below their 32” arm threshold at cornerback. He has good size (5-foot-9, 199 pounds, 31 3/4” arms) and great agility. Though he doesn’t quite move as well as some of the higher thought of nickels, like Julian Love, Amadi has more than enough quickness to get by inside. The Seahawks will surely try him all over the secondary, but slot corner could be his long-term home.

Where Amadi Wins

Amadi combines quick-twitch ability to react to a receiver’s routes with good ball skills. In that sense, he wins by staying in phase with a receiver and the ability to make a play on the football when he arrives. Slot corner is where I have projected him all along, but all of his traits truly do point to him succeeding there.

Where Amadi Loses

Perhaps the one thing that could stop Amadi from becoming Seattle’s new slot corner is his thin frame. We saw teams run at Justin Coleman previously, and Amadi could face the same challenges. Though he’s a willing tackler, Amadi can be exposed in one-on-ones due to his small frame.

Year One Role

The Seahawks will likely open training camp with an open competition for Coleman’s vacated nickel spot. If that’s where Pete Carroll and Seattle decide to try Amadi, one would have to imagine he’ll be in the thick of that competition. At the very least, he can be a plus special teams player as a rookie.

Best Case Scenario

If Amadi can combine his physical traits and processing, and make the slot corner position his own, then the best case scenario would see the Seahawks have good play from a starting position for very cheap over the next four years. Amadi could join Tre Flowers and Shaquill Griffin in a young, promising cornerback group.

Worst Case Scenario

Though “tweener” stopped being a label teams feared years ago, Amadi could fall into that category. In that case, he would be limited to matchup specific roles versus smaller slot receivers—not a player who is consistently part of a sub package.

My Take

Thrilled by this selection. I have full belief in Amadi’s ability to become a good-to-great nickel cornerback for Seattle, a position he will be able to play for a long time as a part of a young nucleus.