The Seattle Seahawks only had three picks in the 2021 NFL draft. None of the players remain. Second-round pick Dee Eskridge was injured and ineffective, and was sent packing. So was offensive lineman Stone Forsythe, but he was more of a gamble in the sixth round.
The second pick (and fourth-round choice) was cornerback Tre Brown. He ended up being the most promising of all the Seattle picks. He had been injured and undersized in college, but practiced with a chip on his shoulder. He wanted to earn his way.
And, as a rookie, he almost did. He got a bunch of reps because then-head coach Pete Carroll liked Brown's tenaciousness. The issue is that the cornerback fulfilled the prophecy and got injured early in his career. He hurt his knee in coverage and missed nearly the next year.
Former Seattle Seahawks draft pick Tre Brown finds a new NFC West team
Fully healthy in 2023, he got a chance to start, and he failed. He couldn't tackle well and allowed 63.8 percent of his targets to be completed. He eventually lost his starting gig to Michael Jackson, who proved to be better than Brown.
The same thing kind of happened in 2024, but new head coach Mike Macdonald gave up earlier on the fourth-year player than Pete Carroll might have. Macdonald made the correct choice. The coverage was better with surprise upstart Josh Jobe than Brown, abd the veteran was benched.
Seattle wasn't about to spend much to re-sign Tre Brown this offseason, and he eventually went to the San Francisco 49ers. He washed out there before the 2025 season got underway, too. He talked trash, but couldn't earn his keep and he floated around as a free agent.
The corner has now signed with his third NFC West team, the Los Angeles Rams. LA will probably quickly find out what the Seattle Seahawks and 49ers learned: Brown is good against smaller receivers, but terrible against taller and more physical ones.
The issue is that Brown can't play in the slot. He is a purely outside cornerback who shouldn't be. He is a bit like those pieces on the Island of Misfit Toys. Maybe he is entertaining, but when real reps begin, he will fail.
After all, this is a cornerback who went from having a 59.7 quarterback rating allowed as a rookie before he was hurt, to having successive seasons of 118.8, 94.1, and 144.8. That last number is atrocious because Brown ultimately is as an NFL player. But maybe the Rams will float him out against the Seattle Seahawks and Sam Darnold can take advantage.