Seattle Seahawks: 3 players headed into make-or-break seasons in 2020

DE L.J. Collier

Last year, the Seahawks spent a first-round pick on L.J. Collier. Edge rushers were flying off the board, and they reached for the defensive end out of TCU. As you probably already know, Seattle got jack squat from the desperation Day 1 pick.

Let’s put it this way: it wouldn’t have made an ounce of difference if Collier had simply never shown up to training camp. I know that’s harsh, but he was so utterly ineffective that the Seahawks often opted against even putting him in the game. He played on only 17 percent of Seattle’s defensive snaps, totaling three tackles along the way.

Yeah. Yikes.

Suffice it say, Collier is going to be on a very short leash in 2020. It doesn’t seem like Jadeveon Clowney is coming back, but that doesn’t mean the 2019 first-round pick is a shoo-in for the starting job. The Seahawks brought back Bruce Irvin this offseason, and also spent two draft picks on edge rushers — Darrell Taylor in the second round, and Alton Robinson in the fifth.

Factor in Benson Mayowa and Rasheem Green, and you’ve got a lot of competition for those defensive end snaps. If Collier can’t find a way to secure a significant amount of them, we may see him become the first 2019 first-round pick to be handed his walking papers.

The “bust” label is hovering over his forehead. Can Collier avoid it, or will it be slapped on before season’s end?