FanPost

Some Draft Thoughts

First let me say I am not an expert, nor do I consider myself one. I am simply a long time fan making some observations about what we've seen over the years.

With the season over and the draft coming up I started trying to put together what I thought Pete and Company might do for the draft this year and I came to some interesting conclusions. The Hawks are always fairly unpredictable when it comes to drafting and seem to buck what any and all media experts THINK they should do. However, I think I have an idea of some of the potential targets for the Hawks this year.

1st round - TRADE : Shocking right? This is a pretty obvious choice but I honestly believe the Hawks will either trade out of the first round this year OR trade for a premium pass rusher (I've seen Von Miller floated as a possibility). If I had to guess this spot will go to a team looking to jump back in to snag a sliding QB (Justin Herbert if I had to guess). My prediction for the team to do it? The New England Patriots looking to leap frog the Titans on a future signal caller.

2nd round - First Pick : Two picks here, that I think will go in some interesting directions. I think if the Hawks pick up their pass rusher from the trade or snag a guy from free agency the focus will be on depth. The offensive line was a depleted mess this year particularly at the guard position. I think a target for one of those picks is a versatile guy who can compete at center but could also offer flexibility at guard.

2nd round - Second Pick : Quarterback. This might seem shocking I know. Russ is one of the top paid QBs and is an MVP level player, so why on earth draft a QB so high? Future flexibility. There are so many questionable prospects this year for QBs to where outside of Burrow and Tua none seem ready to be day one starters. John Schneider was at Pat Mahomes pro day a few years ago and it caused quite a bit of outrage and worry at why he would. He explained the importance of having another guy in the chamber. That's why I feel grabbing a QB now will help down the road when Russ nears the end of his contract AND age 35. For a developmental guy I'd say the pick would be either Jalen Hurts or Jordan Love.

Rest of draft : This is where it gets tricky as the rest is dependent on what happens with the first round pick. Going off of what we currently know with picks in rounds 4, 5, and 6 I think this will be depth/competition picks. Look at DL and WR as the two biggest areas of focus to add in some depth and competition.

Thanks for the read, Go Hawks!