How the Seahawks rank in the NFC West for best 2021 NFL draft

The Seahawks had only three picks in the 2021 NFL draft, the fewest in the NFL. But how does their draft class measure against the rest of the NFC West? Of course, none of these classes can truly be measured for another few years because some players will pan out while others will not meet expectations.

I have seen several draft grade articles of the NFL overall. Some of them like to point out that the Rams did well because really their third round pick was Matthew Stafford (incorrect as they traded Stafford for a pick and Jared Goff) and their first round pick was really Jalen Ramsey (who they traded the pick to get).

It’s odd many of these same articles do not point out that really the Seahawks first round pick was Jamal Adams and Adams is pretty good, even though Seattle did give up two first round picks to get him. So where do the Seahawks ran among their NFC West rivals from the 2021 NFL draft?

Seahawks standing in the NFC West among 2021 NFL draft classes

1.  San Franciso 49ers

I hate to put the 49ers first and I am not doing so simply because they chose quarterback Trey Lance with the third pick. There is no proof Lance is going to be a good quarterback. Where the 49ers did absolutely well was taking running back Trey Sermon who is a perfect fit for the 49ers. Ambry Thomas is going to be a good cornerback and, like Sermin, went in the third round. Aaron Banks at guard in the second round might be starting for San Francisco for the next 10 years.

Grade: B+

2. Seattle Seahawks

Yes, Seattle had just three picks in this draft but this is an article about quality and not quantity. Seattle got pretty close to what they needed in this draft. Tackle Stone Forsythe is a steal in the sixth round and could be a starter in a few years. Seattle needed a corner and got mature and fast and feisty Tre Brown in the fourth round. And Seattle needed a third option at wideout and picked up D’Wayne Eskridge in the second round and Eskridge has the speed to burn NFL defenses. Three boxes entering the draft and three checked boxes exiting the draft.

Grade: B

3. Los Angeles Rams

I think Tutu Atwell is a good fit at receiver in the Rams system but wasn’t the best receiver on the board. Ernest Jones at linebacker is just meh. To be fair, the only pick out of the 9 picks the Rams had that I thought was an A was cornerback Robert Rochell in the fourth round. I wish Seattle had him.

Grade: C+

4. Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals were a bit like the Seahawks in this draft. They did have seven picks, but four of them were in rounds 6 and 7 combined. Receiver Rondale Moore is another guy I wish Seattle had had the chance to take and I think Tay Gowan will be a good cornerback one day. But Zaven Collins was a reach at number 16 (and he’s currently overweight which is never a good sign) and no one else that Arizona took would change the outcome of a Cardinals-Seahawks game.

Grade: C