SBNation Reacts Results: Seahawks fans overwhelmingly approve of Round 1 selections

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Each week we ask questions of the most plugged-in Seattle Seahawks fans and fans across the country.

In our previous survey, 80% of Seahawks fans said they thought Seattle would stand pat with the No. 5 pick, and that’s exactly what John Schneider did.

Per the Seattle Times’ Bob Condotta, via Twitter, the Seahawks received calls from five or six teams about trading up for No. 5, but John Schneider said Devon Witherspoon was one of two players the Seahawks weren’t going to move for.

Per Pete Carroll:

“Devon Witherspoon is a rare player. We’ve been through this draft just since the years we’ve been here, we haven’t seen a guy like this,” Carroll said. “We have not drafted corners high just because we haven’t come across a guy with this makeup. It’s his athletic ability, it’s his speed, it’s his playmaking, it’s his mentality.”

In the end, Pete Carroll got a gifted cornerback for his suddenly (potentially) elite secondary.

Just as importantly, the 12s got what they hoped for: an impact player at No. 5 that they can rally around, with 85% of Seahawks fans giving the Devon Witherspoon selection either an A or a B.

Fifteen picks later, the Seahawks were on the clock again with pick No. 20.

D-line is a HUGE “need” but John Schneider and Pete Carroll had something else in mind . . .

With every wide receiver and every tight end in the class still on the board, John and Pete wanted to give Geno Smith an elite offensive weapon.

Enter Ohio State WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

According to John Schneider, the Seahawks got calls about trading back from No. 20.

Before the draft, fans were split on this option in the last SBNation Reacts survey with 50% saying they thought the Seahawks would trade down and 45% saying they thought Seattle would stand pat. The remaining 5% thought ‘Trader John’ would trade up.

It would have been interesting to do a poll in real-time to see how the fans felt when the Seahawks were actually on the clock. In the end though, the Seahawks stayed put at No. 20 and got a true difference-maker for their vacant WR3 role.

Per John Schneider (via Seahawks.com):

“If we would have sat here last year at this time when we’re looking at the 2023 draft, we would have said that guy is easily a Top 5, 10 player, then unfortunately he had the hamstring injury.”

Asked about JSN’s hamstring injury affecting their evaluation of him, Schneider said:

“That’s why he went where he went. If he plays another healthy season, we’re not acquiring him with the 20th pick of the draft. So yeah, it definitely complicated it.”

Clearly, the 12s agree with John’s assessment as an overwhelming 91% of the respondents to last night’s survey gave the selection of Jaxon Smith-Njigba (JSN) either an A or a B . . . with a nearly 3:1 ratio of As to Bs (68% A, 23% B).

Round 2 starts soon.

Hopefully the Seahawks can land some more top-line talent that “raises the ceiling.”

The Seahawks currently have pick Nos. 37 and 52 in Round 2, and No. 83 in Round 3.

Let’s see if that’s where they end up picking.

‘Trader John’ might be getting restless.

Go Hawks!

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