Tight end Daniel Bellinger should be high on Seahawks draft board

The Seattle Seahawks might need to revamp their tight end group this offseason. Both Will Dissly and Gerald Everett are unrestricted free agents. Colby Parkinson is the only tight end on the roster with any bit of NFL experience. Seattle might need to address getting a quality tight end in the 2022 NFL draft.

One target Seattle should be looking at is San Diego State’s Daniel Bellinger. Bellinger is 6’5″ and 253 pounds and can be a tenacious blocker. He needs to learn better technique but he should do that with good coaching in the NFL. If he does have a weakness as a blocker it is simply that he hasn’t had the right coaching, not that he is incapable of doing better.

Bellinger has good hands when catching passes but doesn’t seem to have great agility when running after catching. That said, maybe he hasn’t had proper coaching for that either.

Because Bellinger probably moved up a bunch of draft boards with his performance at the NFL combine on Thursday. Bellinger showed off physical tools that some may have thought he didn’t possess.

Seahawks should be thinking of taking Daniel Bellinger in the 2022 NFL draft

He was fourth among tight ends in the 40-yard dash (4.63 seconds and plenty fast enough to play tight end in the NFL) and tied for second in bench press reps (22). But he led his position group in the 3-cone drill (7.05 seconds) and broad jump (10 feet and 5 inches).

Maryland’s Chigoziem Okonkwo is considered a bit of a physical freak and was expected to be the most athletic tight end at the combine and, according to Next Gen Stats, he was. But second-best was Bellinger. By the time Seattle is ready to draft a tight end – hopefully, in round four or later – Okonkwo is probably off the draft board. But Bellinger is likely to still be around.

Another great thing about Bellinger is that he works best in a two tight end system and this is exactly what offensive coordinator Shane Waldron likes to do. Bellinger will be a good enough blocker and can catch passes well enough; He’s more Dissly than Everett and that is OK. The Seahawks taking Bellinger with one of their two fourth-round picks would be a wise choice.