The "Seahawks Sleepers" series is a flurry of quick scouting reports on some players that I've identified as potential targets for Seattle. My goal with this series is to highlight a few players that John Schneider, Pete Carroll and their scouting team might be interested in, and to give a brief synopsis as to why. For the most part, I'm high on the guys that I'll be pointing out - and I'll be monitoring them during the Draft and in Rookie Free Agency. Also, for the most part, these are mid- to later-round prospects because let's be honest, you're probably sick of reading about first- and second-round type guys.
DE Rufus Johnson, Tarleton State - 6'6, 266
Johnson is a big 6'5 1/2", 266 pound defensive end out of Tarleton State (no idea) that ran a 4.75 40 at his pro day with a 1.62 second split. He has/had a private workout with the Hawks, so suffice to say he's on my radar as a possible UDFA or late-round draft pick. Johnson was the 2012 Lone Star Conference defensive lineman of the year after he racked up 10.0 sacks and an impressive 17.5 tackles for a loss.
Impressively, he also finished the 9-game season with 50 tackles, which tells me that he plays the run well too - something the Seahawks will certainly find attractive.
He's got a nice strong punch off the snap that he uses to get offensive tackles off balance, and he does a nice job of keeping his eyes in the backfield so he doesn't run himself out of plays or get out of position.
The way he moves on the field - and maybe this is way over reaching, but he reminds me a little bit of Chris Clemons. Just the way he snaps up as the ball is snapped and either rushes the passer like a bat out of hades or sees that it's a run and gets himself into a balanced stance - slightly reminiscent of Clemons, in my opinion.
Why Seattle?
The Seahawks take their small-school scouting seriously and have even used several of their ever-valuable draft picks on low-profile players.