Will the Seahawks first-round pick(s) be at the draft? NFL announces prospect invites

As a fan, I’ve always loved hearing a player’s name announced on Day One of the NFL Draft while my team is on the clock. It’s even better when the player is at the draft and I get to watch them walk across the stage, say, “Hello,” to Commissioner Goodell, and then hold up a jersey with their name and the number 1 on it.

Privately, I’ve always wondered what would happen if the Seahawks had two first-round draft picks and both of them were at the draft?

Would both of them get a #1 jersey (probably) or would the second one get a #2?

Well, the Seahawks have two first-round picks this year, and . . . who am I kidding? We all know that the odds of John Schneider and Pete Carroll selecting two players in the first round who are both considered Day One prospects and are at the draft are . . . well, about the same as successfully navigating through an asteroid field.

For the non-Star Wars geeks fans out there, the answer is 3,720-to-1.

Fortunately, we don’t have to calculate the odds for the Seahawks selecting two players who are both at the draft. We just need to look at the official list that the NFL released on Thursday.

There are only 17 names on the list.

Four of them are quarterbacks and, yes, they’re the four that you think they are (Will Levis, Anthony Richardson, C.J. Stroud, and Bryce Young). Thus, if you’re of the mind that Seattle’s Pre-Draft Quarterback Tour was a smokescreen (and/or just a fun way to get a bunch of us-ies) then the list narrows to 13 names.

One of those 13 is an Offensive Tackle (Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr.) and it seems highly unlikely that Seattle would use an R1 on an OT a year after selecting two OTs in the first three rounds of the 2022 NFL Draft.

That leaves 12 prospects.

Three of the 12 are wide receivers.

Interestingly, that means that one of the top four wideouts didn’t get an invitation.

But which one?

Spoiler Alert: TCU’s Quentin Johnston is the one that was told he’d need to watch the NFL Draft from home - which sort of implies that the NFL isn’t sure he’ll be selected in the first round. Ouch!

Three of the remaining prospects are EDGEs and while everyone will nod their head with the first two names I’m about to share, the third one is going to raise some eyebrows . . .

• Will Anderson Jr., Alabama
• Tyree Wilson, Texas Tech
• Keion White, Georgia Tech

Now, to be fair, some folks consider Keion White to be a DL5T (aka a 5-Tech Defensive Lineman), but still . . . he’s the #46 prospect on PFN’s Consensus Big Board and I don’t think I’ve seen anything anywhere that positions him as a solid choice on Day One.

What does the league office know that we don’t?

Answer: A LOT.

But still . . . Keion White getting an invitation to the draft while Quentin Johnston is told to stay home? That seems very odd to me.

Of the six remaining prospects, four are DBs (CBs Christian Gonzalez, Joey Porter, and Devon Witherspoon, plus Brian Branch at Safety).

The final two are one-offs: DT Jalen Carter and RB Bijan Robinson.

Here is the full list, courtesy of NFL.com:

• Jordan Addison, WR, USC
• Will Anderson Jr., Edge, Alabama
• Brian Branch, DB, Alabama
• Jalen Carter, DT, Georgia
• Zay Flowers, WR, Boston College
• Christian Gonzalez, CB, Oregon
• Paris Johnson Jr., OT, Ohio State
• Will Levis, QB, Kentucky
• Joey Porter Jr., CB, Penn State
• Anthony Richardson, QB, Florida
• Bijan Robinson, RB, Texas
• Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State
• C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State
• Keion White, Edge, Georgia Tech
• Tyree Wilson, Edge, Texas Tech
• Devon Witherspoon, CB, Illinois
• Bryce Young, QB, Alabama