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As part of a much larger ‘NFL Draft 2023: Latest rumors, news and prospect risers’ article behind the ESPN+ paywall, NFL draft analyst Matt Miller selected the Seattle Seahawks as his “intriguing team” and built what he considers the “perfect” draft for John and Pete’s gridiron warriors.
Much of what follows is a copy/paste, but there will, of course, be plenty of “FTR thoughts” worked in.
Navigating the ESPN article
- In the ‘Jump to a topic’ list near the top, it’s listed as ‘Ideal drafts’
- In the main article, it’s titled ‘Building intriguing teams’ perfect drafts’
As noted, Matt Miller chose the Seahawks. Miller’s partner / literary foil (Jordan Reid) chose the Texans.
Note: The embedded links in the bulleted list both lead to the Seahawks’ ‘perfect’ draft which is roughly 2/3rds of the way through the article.
Miller’s ideal scenario for the Seattle Seahawks
We’ll take Miller’s draft a day at a time . . .
DAY ONE
No. 5: Jalen Carter, DT, Georgia
No. 20: Myles Murphy, DE, Clemson
Miller’s comments / explanation:
The Seahawks rebuilt the offensive line last year with tackles Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas as part of what’s now seen as one of the past decade’s best draft classes. General manager John Schneider can do something similar with the defensive line this year. Carter is the draft’s best interior pass-rusher and would fill a need at 3-technique with his speed and power off the snap. And adding the speed of Murphy — he ran a 4.51 at his pro day while weighing 270 pounds — gives the defense the juice it was lacking off the edge in 2022.
FTR’s thoughts:
I am still harboring some hope that Carter doesn’t become a Seahawk on Thursday night, but I will absolutely understand if he does.
Murphy, on the other hand, I just do NOT understand that pick - I’ve never been high on Murphy’s accomplishments or potential. More to the point, there were undoubtedly at least a dozen players that I’d have preferred we pick at #20.
DAY TWO
No. 37: Josh Downs, WR, North Carolina
No. 52: Julius Brents, CB, Kansas State
No. 83: Ricky Stromberg, C, Arkansas
Miller’s comments / explanation:
On Day 2 of the draft, the Seahawks can continue to find value — and starters. I have them adding a slot wide receiver (Downs) to eventually replace Tyler Lockett, a cornerback to play opposite last year’s gem Tariq Woolen (Brents) and a center with a lot of potential (Stromberg).
FTR’s thoughts:
We’ve had plenty of discussion about Josh Downs and Julius Brents over the last month or two and I don’t have any reservations about either (or both) of them becoming Seahawks next Friday.
Stromberg is someone that I like, but picking him at 83 seems too high.
DAY THREE
No. 123: Davis Allen, TE, Clemson
No. 151: Jerrod Clark, DT, Coastal Carolina
No. 154: Dorian Thompson-Robinson, QB, UCLA
No. 198: Warren McClendon, OT, Georgia
No. 237: Travis Dye, RB, USC
Miller’s comments / explanation:
The Day 3 picks are more about stacking the roster with depth, notably at quarterback with Thompson-Robinson. He could be an understudy to Geno Smith.
FTR’s thoughts:
I’ve grabbed Jarrod Clark in probably 15 or 20 of the 500+ mock drafts I’ve done; don’t think I’ve ever taken him before Round 6 though.
DTR is an intriguing option on Day Three, although I don’t personally see him as ever being anything more than a backup. Maybe I’m wrong. (If we pick him, I hope that I’m wrong.)
Don’t think I’d heard of the other three before reading their names on Miller’s list.
Final Thoughts
The problem that I always have with “less than complete” mock drafts is that there’s no context for the pick(s).
- Who else was available at each draft slot?
- Did we go with a needs-based approach, a best-player-available approach, a combination of the two, or something else entirely?
- What was the rational for selecting Player X instead of Player Y?
- Et cetera
Based on what we DO know, I don’t view this as a “perfect” draft.
I do like that we added a Nose Tackle (Jerrod Clark) on Day Three. I like that we added one prospect each at QB, RB, WR, WR, and Center. I wonder why we didn’t grab an ILB though (I would prefer a Mike over a CB). And I think we drafted some of the positions to early (or too late).
Overall, I think I’d give this one a B.
Bonus Coverage
Interestingly, I think I like every pick that Jordan Reid made for the Houston Texans (from Seattle’s perspective).
Here’s the list:
No. 2: C.J. Stroud, QB, Ohio State
No. 12: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State
No. 33: Will McDonald IV, OLB, Iowa State
No. 65: Luke Wypler, C, Ohio State
No. 73: Daiyan Henley, ILB, Washington State
No. 104: Jakorian Bennett, CB, Maryland
No. 161: Cameron Latu, TE, Alabama
No. 188: Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson, CB, TCU
No. 201: Andrew Vorhees, G, USC
No. 203: Deuce Vaughn, RB, Kansas State
No. 230: Brandon Joseph, S, Notre Dame
No. 259: Brenton Cox Jr., OLB, Florida
If I were Houston, I think that I would have taken Alabama EDGE Will Anderson Jr. at #2 instead of C.J. Stroud. (Logic = Houston is still at least a year away from being competitive; build the defense and the non-QB portion of the offense and grab the quarterback of the future next year).
Andrew Vorhees at No. 201 could turn out to be the steal of the draft.
Brenton Cox Jr. at No. 259 is excellent value.
Credit Tariq Woolen if Julius Brents sneaks into the tail end of Round 1 (and probably for the fact that he’s commonly viewed as an R2 selection).
That’s from Jordan Reid; here’s what he actually wrote:
Two prospects keep coming up when talking with league sources as potential picks at the end of Round 1: Kansas State cornerback Julius Brents and TCU interior blocker Steve Avila. The NFL is a copycat league and the immediate success of Tariq Woolen has significantly helped Brents. Even though he’s not as fast in a straight line as Woolen, Brents has a lot of similar qualities as a prospect, including a lot of explosion and a deep toolbox. With Avila, the lack of consistent options on the interior and a strong showing at the Senior Bowl helped boost his stock. I’ve heard that Dallas and New Orleans are two teams to keep an eye on with Avila.
GO HAWKS!
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