The Seahawks continued their stellar 2022 draft with their seventh pick, defensive end / edge defender Tyreke Smith. He may not be a touchdown, but he’s a solid pick for certain.
Once you move into the fifth round of the NFL draft, almost every pick is a roll of the dice. The Seahawks took their biggest chance – in my eyes, their only risky choice so far – with the 158th player, Ohio State’s edge defender Tyreke Smith.
At 6’3″ and 254 pounds, Smith is perhaps a little undersized to play at the traditional defensive end. With the Seahawks utilizing a 3-4 scheme more often, that makes him even less likely to fit in with the Hawks in a full-time role. But that doesn’t mean this pick is a dud; not at all.
Seahawks will employ Smith on seek and destroy missions
Tyreke Smith might not be an every-down player, but when you get to the fifth round, you’re not likely to find too many of them (although I think that’s exactly what the Seahawks got with their previous fifth-rounder, Tariq Woolen). In the fifth round, you’re typically looking for players that can fill specific roles. The Hawks newest pass rusher can definitely do that.
Tyreke Smith played 30 games at THE Ohio State University, starting in 17. He recorded 11 tackles for a loss and seven sacks. That isn’t the best production, and the consensus is that it’s a problem with technique and not his motor. That’s good news for Seattle and the 12s; Smith is going to get plenty of help on his technique, but it’s pretty hard to fix a slow motor. He’s never been accused of giving anything less than Deadpool. You know, maximum effort.
The only reason I see this pick as less than a touchdown is that every other pick in this draft has been exactly that, a touchdown. That being said, at the least Smith will fit into the Seahawks rotation and give opposing teams a different challenge.
Grade: B