Long before the Earth cooled and when the Seattle Seahawks were just on the verge of entering relative mediocrity, the team spent a too-high draft pick on someone who basically became an AJ Barner wannabe. The tight end didn't truly work out, though he had some splashy moments.
In the third round of the 2016 NFL draft, former head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Schneider chose Ohio State's Nick Vannett. After a rookie season when he only appeared in nine games, he became a regular in the next two-plus years. He was a solid blocker, but an inconsistent receiver.
Vannett's most productive season for Seattle came in his third year when he had 29 catches and three touchdowns. (In contrast, Barner, a player seen as more of a blocker than receiver, like Vannett out of college, had 30 catches, 245 yards, and four touchdowns as a rookie.) But in Vannett's fourth season, Seattle traded him to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Former Seattle Seahawks draft pick Nick Vannett signs with the Minnesota Vikings
That was in 2019, and that would be the tight end's last year of anything close to consistency. Since that season, he has played for five teams in five years, played more than nine games in a season just twice, and had two touchdown catches between 2020 and 2023. Still, the 32-year-old manages to keep finding ways to get paid by NFL teams.
His most recent signing is with the Minnesota Vikings, the former home of Seahawks 2025 QB1 Sam Darnold. To be fair, the move might work out exceedingly well for Vannett. He joins an offensive system that should fit him well, and Minnesota could use more depth at tight end.
He is also the kind of glue player who will try to do his best at whatever the team asks of him. In 2024 (Vannett's ninth in the league), he played in 17 games for the Tennessee Titans and 171 snaps on special teams, the second-highest of his career. He is willing to do what he can to stay in the NFL, and there has never been a question about how hard he plays.
Still, Nick Vannett never panned out as well as a Seattle Seahawks third-round draft pick for a tight end should. He should have been a more productive receiver and had more of an impact overall. He turned out to be a fifth-round-level player. Not bad, but never great either. Maybe he will surprise the league in 2025 with the Minnesota Vikings.