NFL Draft Grades: Seahawks 2023 draft class receives high marks from 19 of 21 sites

If you’re wondering what grades the Seahawks 2023 NFL Draft class earned, you’ve come to the right place. We scoured the internet so you won’t have to.

We visited 22 sites; 21 of them had grades.

Overall, Seattle did well.

There were, however, a couple of sites that had head-scratching results.

For example, one of the sites gave the Seahawks a B-. Gasp! The horror! Sarcasm aside, that site has twenty-one teams with higher grades than the Seahawks, and only seven with lower grades.

It’s an outlier though; 19 of the 21 sites gave Seattle a B+ or higher.

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Quick recap

Before we look at the grades, let’s look at the Seahawks’ 2023 draft class:

• R1.05: Devon Witherspoon, CB, Illinois
• R1.20: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, WR, Ohio State
• R2.37: Derick Hall, EDGE, Auburn
• R2.52: Zach Charbonnet, RB, UCLA
• R4.108: Anthony Bradford, G, LSU
• R4.123: Cameron Young, DT, Mississippi State
• R5.151: Mike Morris, DE, Michigan
• R5.154: Olusegun Oluwatimi, C, Michigan
• R6.198: Jerrick Reed II, S, New Mexico
• R7.237: Kenny McIntosh, RB, Georgia

Fun Fact: Olusegun Oluwatimi’s first name means “God gave me victory.”

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Non-Graded Evaluations

We found 21 sites that offered grades, but none of them were The Athletic. They did, however, have a list of winners and losers.

Winners (in listed order): Philadelphia, Seattle, Pittsburgh, Houston, Arizona, Cincinnati

Losers (alphabetically): Cleveland, Dallas, Jacksonville, Miami, Washington

Somewhere in between: Everyone else

Here’s what the Athletic said about Seattle’s draft:

John Schneider and Pete Carroll continue to position their team for success (and cash in on trading Russell Wilson last offseason) with a deep draft class that featured 10 selections led by cornerback Devon Witherspoon and wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba. From there, the Seahawks added a collection of players that initially will bolster depth and eventually turn into key contributors on both sides of the ball.

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Graded Evaluations

Here are all the grades I was able to find on Sunday afternoon/evening. Sites are listed alphabetically.

Note: There is a summary of the grades at the end of the article.

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The Associated Press: A

Got the best players at their position with CB Devon Witherspoon (5) and WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba (20) in the first round. DE Derick Hall and OL Anthony Bradford highlight a strong overall group.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: C-

Higher grades (2): Houston, Philadelphia

Same grade (3): Chicago, Minnesota, Pittsburgh

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Athlon Sports: B+

There’s something to be said for maintaining a strength and reloading depth, and the Seahawks definitely went for that title with this class. Devon Witherspoon gives them another shutdown corner to pair with Tariq Woolen, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba as the No. 3 receiver alongside DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett seems borderline unfair.

Click here for additional comments from Athlon Sports.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A | Los Angeles: B+ | San Francisco: D

Higher grades (5): Arizona (A), Houston (A), Indianapolis (A+), Philadelphia (A), Pittsburgh (A)

Same grade (6): Carolina, Chicago, Cincinnati, Los Angeles Rams (LAR), New England, New York Giants (NYG)

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Bleacher Report: A-

The Seahawks did a wonderful job of identifying needs and adding value with their first three selections. The fact that Seattle grabbed two running backs when Walker is already a budding star keeps this from being a perfect grade.

Click here for Bleacher Report’s full analysis.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A | Los Angeles: C | San Francisco: C-

Higher grades (7): Arizona (A), Chicago (A), Detroit (A), Houston (A), Las Vegas (A), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A)

Same grade (2): Indianapolis, Tennessee

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CBS Sports (Pete Prisco): B+

The Skinny: Getting Witherspoon and receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the first round will really improve this roster. Both will be starters right away. I didn’t love the rest of their draft, but they had a lot of picks. General manager John Schneider usually does well with those picks and is coming off an outstanding draft last year. So it’s tough to doubt him.

Click here for the rest of Prisco’s comments.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B+ | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: C-

Higher grades (4): Cincinnati (A), Dallas (A), Detroit (A), Philadelphia (A)

Same grade (8): Arizona, Carolina, Chicago, Cleveland, Green Bay, Las Vegas, Pittsburgh, Washington

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DraftKings: A-

The Seahawks put together a very solid draft here. With Geno Smith sticking around at QB, they had plenty of early draft picks to choose from. Devon Witherspoon will fill out the secondary alongside Tariq Woolen, Smith-Njigba gives Smith an excellent receiving option who can start right away, and they added some depth to their offensive and defensive lines, which is never a bad idea. The one questionable choice was adding two running backs just a year after rookie Kenneth Walker had a breakout season and earned the RB1 position in Seattle. It’s also interesting that they did not choose to grab one of the QBs remaining on the board to back up Smith, but they have some stars in the making here.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: C+

Higher grades (5): Arizona (A), Baltimore (A), Houston (A+), Philadelphia (A), Pittsburgh (A)

Same grade (4): Carolina, Detroit, Indianapolis, NYG

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ESPN (Mel Kiper): A

See April 30th Field Gulls article for Kiper’s comments.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A- | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: B-

Higher grades (0): N/A

Same grade (1): Philadelphia

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FanSided: A+

The Seahawks hit a grand slam in this draft and remain in excellent position to challenge the 49ers in the NFC West.

Click here for FanSided’s full comments.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A- | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: C-

Higher grades (0): N/A

Same grade (1): Philadelphia

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Fantasy Pros: C+

In my “talent added” metric, the Seahawks finished No. 5 in the NFL. But they spent the third-most equity to get there.

Click here for the full explanation for the Seahawks’ worst grade.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: D+ | Los Angeles: C- | San Francisco: F

Higher grades (16): Baltimore (B), Buffalo (A), Carolina (B-), Cincinnati (A-), Cleveland (A-), Denver (B), Indianapolis (A+), Las Vegas (B-), Miami (B), New England (B+), New Orleans (C), NYG (B+), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A+), Tampa Bay (B-), Tennessee (A)

Same grade (2): Atlanta, Los Angeles Chargers (LAC)

Note: AFC Grades are on a different page than the NFC Grades.

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FOX Sports: B+

For a second straight season, it appears Seattle drafted a handful of difference-makers to improve their roster.

Click here for the full commentary.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A- | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: C+

Higher grades (5): Arizona (A-), Chicago (A-), Indianapolis (A-), NYG (A-), Philadelphia (A+)

Same grade (7): Baltimore, Cleveland, Detroit, Houston, Miami, New England, Pittsburgh

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NBC Sports Edge: B+

I’ve praised many teams for drafting to their needs. The Seahawks didn’t do that at all. And that’s okay.

Click here for the full analysis.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B+ | Los Angeles: C- | San Francisco: F

Higher grades (6): Carolina (A-), Chicago (A-), Indianapolis (A), NYG (A-), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A)

Same grade (3): Arizona, LAC, Tampa Bay

Note: NBC Sports Edge has the AFC grades and NFC grades on different pages.

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The New York Post: A

After acing the 2022 class, the Seahawks struck again with the top cornerback and the top receiver. Witherspoon, with Tariq Woolen, and Smith-Njigba, with D.K. Metcalf, are scary pairings. It was curious that they took a running back in the second round for the second straight season, especially after Kenneth Walker’s rookie success.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A- | Los Angeles: C- | San Francisco: F

Higher grades (1): Philadelphia (A+)

Same grade (3): Houston, NYG, Pittsburgh

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NFL.com: A-

Seattle did a nice job on Day 1, using the No. 5 overall pick — acquired from Denver in the Russell Wilson trade — on the feisty Witherspoon and staying put at 20th overall to select Smith-Njigba, the top receiver in the draft. Hall is a gamer who should help the team’s edge depth, and Charbonnet is a power back with some wiggle, though using second-round picks at that position in consecutive years is unusual.

I love Bradford’s power at guard, as well as Young’s ability to hold the line of scrimmage at nose tackle. Oluwatimi is another strong interior blocker who was a better value than many pivots selected before him. Seattle likes powerful edge rushers like Morris, even if he is not a quick-twitch athlete. McIntosh is a good seventh-round pick despite his lack of elite speed.

Grade Breakdown: Day 1, A+ | Day 2, C+ | Day 3, A

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A | Los Angeles: A- | San Francisco: B-

Higher grades (6): Arizona (A), Baltimore (A), Buffalo (A), Indianapolis (A), Pittsburgh (A), Tampa Bay (A)

Same grade (10): Atlanta, Chicago, Cincinnati, Green Bay, LAR, Minnesota, New England, NYG, Philadelphia, Tennessee

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Pro Football Focus: A

Click here for their 548-word commentary - or check the Comments section as someone “might” copy-paste it there before too long.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A+ | Los Angeles: A- | San Francisco: C-

Higher grades (5): Arizona (A+), Indianapolis (A+), NYG (A+), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A+)

Same grade (3): Buffalo, Cincinnati, Tennessee

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Pro Football Network: A

The Seahawks had some terrific selections all throughout the weekend, including Devon Witherspoon to lock down the field opposite Tariq Woolen and PFN’s top wide receiver, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, all on the first night.

Securing Derick Hall off the edge in Round 2 was huge for Seattle’s defensive overhaul, as was grabbing both Michigan trench players Mike Morris and Olusegun Oluwatimi. There’s a lot to like, including the best pass-catching back available after Bijan Robinson in Kenny McIntosh as John Schneider nailed almost every pick out of the park.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B+ | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: B+

Higher grades (0): N/A

Same grade (1): Philadelphia

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The Ringer: A

The Seahawks had one of my favorite Round 1 hauls in Illinois corner Devon Witherspoon and Ohio State receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, both of whom should be early contributors and big-impact playmakers. Seattle then did that thing they tend to do and took a probably-too-early running back in Zach Charbonnet in the second round, but overall, the rest of their class filled out nicely.

Click here for the rest of The Ringer’s commentary.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B+ | Los Angeles: C+ | San Francisco: C-

Higher grades (3): Indianapolis (A+), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A+)

Same grade (2): Chicago, New England

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The Sporting News: B+

Analysis: The Seahawks filled some key defensive needs vs. pass with Withersppon to complement Tariq Woolen and Hall to add rushing juice to newcomer Dre’Mont Jones. Smith-Njigba and Charbonnet were ideal depth pieces to make their offense more dangerous overall. Everything else was more like their typical deep digging with John Schneider and Pete Carroll.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: D | Los Angeles: B- | San Francisco: B-

Higher grades (12): Baltimore (A), Carolina (A-), Chicago (A), Cincinnati (A), Detroit (A), Houston (A-), Indianapolis (A+), Kansas City (A), NYG (A), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A+), Tennessee (A-)

Same grade (2): Denver, Minnesota

Note: The Sporting News ranks the draft classes and put the Seahawks at No. 13. (aka the best of the B+ teams).

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Sports Illustrated: A-

The Seahawks might have won the first round with the selections of Witherspoon, a tenacious defender, and Smith-Njigba, a smooth route runner. Seattle now has a strong cornerback duo with Witherspoon and last year’s gem, Tariq Woolen, to defend the game’s best skill players, including the offensive weapons in San Francisco. The Seahawks also addressed a need at edge rusher by adding Hall, who had seven sacks last season. Drafting Charbonnet was somewhat of a head-scratcher because the Seahawks already have Kenneth Walker III, but having a dominant rushing attack is a part of coach Pete Carroll’s philosophy.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B- | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: C+

Higher grades (4): Carolina (A), Houston (A), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A)

Same grade (1): Indianapolis

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Touchdown Wire: A+

Click here for Touchdown Wire’s commentary.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: B-

Higher grades (0): N/A

Same grade (1): Philadelphia

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USA Today: A

Click here for USA Today’s commentary.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A- | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: C+

Higher grades (1): Philadelphia (A+)

Same grade (2): Houston, Pittsburgh

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Walter Football: B-

There was some good and some bad for the Seahawks in this draft class. While it was disappointing to see them commit a couple of blunders in the early stages, they did well to make up for those errors with some other selections.

Click here for the full explanation for Seattle’s 2nd-worst grade.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: A | Los Angeles: B | San Francisco: B

Higher grades (21): Arizona (A), Baltimore (A-), Buffalo (B+), Carolina (B), Chicago (A-), Cincinnati (B+), Cleveland (A), Detroit(A-), Houston (A-), Indianapolis (A), Las Vegas (B), LAC (A), LAR (B), Minnesota (B+), New Orleans (B), NYG (B+), Philadelphia (A+), Pittsburgh (A), San Francisco (B), Tennessee (A-), Washington (B)

Same grade (3): Atlanta, New England, Tampa Bay

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The Washington Post: A-

The Seahawks had four selections in the first two rounds and made them count. Their first-round haul of CB Devon Witherspoon and WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba was extremely promising.

Click here for the full commentary.

NFC West rivals: Arizona: B+ | Los Angeles: C- | San Francisco: C-

Higher grades (2): Houston (A), Philadelphia (A)

Same grade (0): N/A

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Summary

Here is a list of which sites gave the Seahawks which grades:

• A+ (2): FanSided, Touchdown Wire
• A (7): The Associated Press, ESPN (Mel Kiper), The New York Post, PFF.com, Pro Football Network, The Ringer, USA Today
• A- (5): Bleacher Report, DraftKings, NFL.com, Sports Illustrated, The Washington Post
• B+ (5): Athlon Sports, CBS Sports (Pete Prisco), FOX Sports, NBC Sports Edge, The Sporting News
• B: N/A
• B-(1): Walter Football
• C+ (1): Fantasy Pros
• Lower: N/A
• Winner: The Athletic

Out of 21 sites, 17 gave the Seahawks draft class an A, an A-, or a B+. Two gave the class an A+, and two were clearly out of their minds and/or using very different criteria to calculate their grades.

Early indications are that John Schneider, Pete Carroll, et al. have had a really good draft for the second straight year.

Go Hawks!