NFL Draft 2022 Grades: Seahawks draft impressed nearly everyone

The Seattle Seahawks selected players, didn’t trade down until the fifth round, and didn’t take any linebackers.

After years of a giant “screw you” to convention, John Schneider and Pete Carroll made a series of pretty normal picks, including a renewed emphasis on “premium positions,” something highlighted around the league leading up to the draft.

This is what the media at large considers a “good job.”

Here’s a zoomed-in shot if that helps with readability.

We’ll pull out some of the more interesting ones, starting with Chad Reuter at NFL.com.

Cross and Lucas should be a solid set of bookend tackles, in which the team was in dire need. A pass rusher like Mafe was definitely in play in the second round. Walker’s talent was obvious this year, but his selection was a bit perplexing because of the backs already on the roster.

Please, Seahawk fans, when you hear something like this, let your brain do the hard work, which is to immediately tell you “this guy does not pay attention to the makeup of the Seattle roster.”

Chris Carson may never play for Seattle again, and Rashaad Penny is on a 1-year deal. Whether a running back can be found later is the correct argument, “they drafted the best guy but already have running backs” is not.

Connor Orr of Sports Illustrated also gave a C+, and this quote’s just weird:

I always dislike a team that’s bottoming out from a personnel standpoint trying to break in potential left tackles. It’s a position, like cornerback and quarterback, where players can develop bad habits quickly when overwhelmed. The Seahawks offense is going to be overwhelmed this year fairly consistently.

Excuse me, sir. If you’d ever seen an NFL tackle try to pass block for Russell Wilson for 7.8s, you know that any habits they have whatsoever aren’t helpful at that point. Will the offense be overwhelmed? No, because that’s not a real thing. They face some of the best pass rushers in the NFL - or at least used to until a bunch of them followed Wilson out to the AFC West. However good the offense is projected to be has literally no bearing on any left tackle having to learn to defend against good NFL pass rushers. Get over yourself.

James Dator at SBNation was one of the A grades for Seattle:

The team had a clear understanding it needed to improved its roster at every position but quarterback, and nailed the draft. I admire Seattle having an understanding of its position in a post-Russell Wilson rebuild, as well as knowing a QB-rich 2023 draft is around the corner. The Seahawks found value all over each round and have positioned themselves to rebound quickly as soon as they find a passer.

What level-headedness.

The Draft Wire thought the Seahawks stole the second half of the draft:

Woolen was the best bargain of the bunch, but getting OT Abraham Lucas in the third round was a close second. CB Coby Bryant and WR Bo Melton on Day 3 were also stellar picks. Oh, and they got one of the best values from this year’s loaded EDGE class in Boye Mafe in the second round. I know Hawks fans are sad after losing Russ and Bobby Wagner, but this is the best class this team has given them since . . . 2012?

We could go on, but I’d like to end with this, potentially even more interesting observation. Across 18 different outlets, the San Francisco 49ers, Los Angeles Rams, and Arizona Cardinals scored in the bottom-six of the NFL for their drafts this year.

The Rams got an F. The Cardinals received three different D’s, and not a single evaluator gave the 49ers an A this year.

Seattle will certainly struggle against its rivals this year. But they still have stars across the board, with an even bigger draft haul coming next year, and are well on the way to a productive and exciting rebuild.