Seahawks address the trenches in Day 2 mock drafts

I’ll admit, I thought I was done sharing 2023 Seattle Seahawks mock drafts.

Then my inbox received one from The Athletic that caught my attention, and another one from Sports Illustrated prompted me to write.

The Athletic: NFL Round 2 and 3 Mock Draft, by Dane Brugler: Levis’ slide ends, but Hooker is first QB taken

Sports Illustrated: 2023 NFL Draft: Rounds 2 and 3 Mock Draft

Note: Given the short amount of time before Day Two picks start being made, I’m only going to share Seattle’s picks at No. 37, No. 52, and No. 83.

Round 2, Pick 37

The Athletic: Northwestern DT Adetomiwa Adebawore

Sports Illustrated: Minnesota OC John Michael Schmitz

The Seahawks’ defensive front needs help across the board, but the value’s just not there in this scenario. Instead, Seattle’s better off bolstering its offensive line with this year’s top center prospect.

FTR’s Thoughts: John Gilbert wrote an article recently that said it’s time to stop mocking JMS to Seattle. Sports Illustrated didn’t get the memo. Even if they had, Ade’ Ade’ is the call they should have made at No. 37.

Note: Both mock drafts have the Rams taking Hendon Hooker at No. 36.

Round 2, Pick 52

The Athletic: Florida OG O’Cyrus Torrence

Sports Illustrated: LSU EDGE B.J. Ojulari

FTR’s Thoughts: Torrence went to the Lions at No. 34 in Sports Illustrated’s mock draft. TCU’s G/C Steve Avila was off the board in The Athletic’s mock. NDSU’s Cody Mauch was off the board in both. I mention those players because I like the idea of going O-line with this pick. I also like the idea of grabbing someone for the front seven on defense. But what I like more than either of those is either:

1. Grabbing Iowa TE Sam LaPorta (Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer and Georgia’s Darnell Washington are both long gone in these mocks); or
2. Selecting UCLA RB Zach Charbonnet (the consensus RB3 in this year’s draft).

Round 3, Pick 83

The Athletic: Tennessee EDGE Byron Young

Sports Illustrated: Wake Forest DL Kobie Turner

FTR’s Thoughts: I like both of these picks, but if I had to choose one over the other, I would take Turner because I think he addresses a bigger need. Plus, his Overall PFF grades the last three years were 90.8 (2020), 88.1 (2021), and 92.2 (2022) whereas Young’s were N/A (2020), 76.9 (2021), and 63.8 (2022).

Note: I’m not saying PFF grades should factor into evaluations, I’m just noting that there’s a substantial difference between Turner’s and Young’s and it helps me feel better about the choice post-decision.

Final Thoughts

The biggest takeaway (for me) from these two mock drafts is that both Dane Brugler (The Athletic) and Sports Illustrated’s Luke Easterling have the Seahawks taking an O-lineman, a D-lineman, and an EDGE rusher on Day Two.

That seems reasonable to me.

However, I sort of want to see us add another offensive weapon - either RB or TE, and . . .

More than anything, I want to see John Schneider and Pete Carroll stick to their Best Player Available / “Raise the Ceiling” (instead of prioritizing needs) approach we’ve seen recently, including last night.

Go Hawks!