NFL expert mocks Seahawks to take a player you likely have never heard of

Maybe ESPN's Jordan Reid thinks the Seattle Seahawks will get back to business as usual in the 2024 NFL draft. He might be right. Or Reid may not have remembered that general manager John Schneider finally (and for the first time since he joined the team in 2010) had the final say over all roster decisions.

The truth, as Reid might be implying in his latest mock draft, is that for several years in the late 2010s, Seattle seemed to overreach in the first round of drafts for a player they might have been able to take in the second round. Running back Rashaad Penny and defensive lineman L.J. Collier are two such examples of Seattle grabbing a player early that they should not have. Maybe former head coach Pete Carroll, who used to have final roster decisions, wanted Penny and Collier while Schneider would have passed.

That is the hope, of course. Of course, in the last two drafts, Seattle has done seemingly well. First-round picks Charles Cross, Devon Witherspoon, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba all look like winners. Maybe those were Schneider's guys as well.

ESPN's Jordan Reid mocks an odd player to be taken by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2024 NFL draft

But Jordan Reid might be mocking the next L.J. Collier to Seattle. He has the Seahawks selecting defensive lineman/edge rusher Darius Robinson from Missouri. Robinson has not been chosen in many mock drafts to go in the first round. But pick number 16? That seems like an extreme stretch.

Not that Robinson is not without talent and he has good size at 6'5" and 285 pounds. Plus, he had a good combine, which is likely why Reid suddenly has him going so high. Robinson ran a 4.95 40 and a solid 1.73 10-yard split. But he lacks high-end athleticism, and quickness, and appears only to rely on his power to create quarterback pressure. That won't work in the NFL.

Many mocks do not have Robinson being taken until the third round. Seattle and new head coach Mike Macdonald need a player with a better chance of competing for reps right away. That does not mean a defensive player, necessarily. The Seahawks could go with offensive lineman Troy Fautanu as well. He would probably be a Week 1 starter at either guard spot.

But Seattle should not take Robinson in the first round. If he is available in the second round and Seattle has somehow traded to get back into the second round then maybe take Robinson. But the Seahawks will likely have better options along the defensive line or whichever other position spot they choose to fill in the first round than to choose Robinson.

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