NFL Draft 2017: Why the Seahawks Should Trade Down Again

Seahawks like to trade down and 2017 would be a good year to do it againOut of the last five drafts, the Seahawks have traded down out of the first round three times. This year Seattle has seven picks but none in rounds four and five. Seattle has five choices in the first three rounds and one each in rounds six and seven. This alignment is very un-Seahawks-like.

Seahawks like to trade down and 2017 would be a good year to do it again

Seattle is currently in a position where they need to add not only depth, but start grooming the next generation of core players. They have immediate needs at cornerback and offensive line. 2017 offers dissimilar quality in those two groups.

Cam Robinson is currently the top rated offensive tackle in the 2017, per Walter Football. Many years Robinson would not be chosen in the first round. This year he is almost a certainty to go round-one because of the lack of talent at tackle in this class. Does this mean the Seahawks should spend their first pick on him? If Robinson is not going to be a Pro Bowl quality player consistently for the next five to seven years, the answer is no.

The cornerback class in 2017 is the opposite. There are so many talented cornerbacks available this year that Seattle could afford to wait until the second round to take a potentially good one. Players like Ahkello Witherspoon and Fabian Moreau have the size Pete Carroll likes in corners and most likely could be chosen well into the second round, if not beyond.

By trading down Seattle could get a second-round pick and a fourth or fifth as well. This would give Seattle the opportunity to draft a player they like enough to have chosen in the first round and increase their overall number of 2017 choices.

Seahawks fans should not be surprised that after waiting for hours for Seattle to make their choice in the first round they instead hear, “The Seattle Seahawks have traded the number 26 pick in the NFL Draft to…”

Again.