Change your heart or die: Evaluating Seahawks 2023 draft class

It's almost uncanny how quickly the Seattle Seahawks' team-building philosophy changed after trading quarterback Russell Wilson. In years past, head coach Pete Carroll and GM John Schneider put a laser focus on the team they had, taking players they thought could fill very specific weaknesses without affecting what anyone else on the team did. As a result, the team became one of the most predictable in football and often found themselves looking up at other teams as an also-ran.

Last year, the team deviated quite starkly from the formulas of years prior, refusing to trade back for more bites at the proverbial apple. They picked players that outside voices agreed were good fits, such as left tackle Charles Cross, right tackle Abe Lucas, edge rusher Boye Mafe, and cornerback Tariq Woolen. It worked better and faster than most anyone thought it could.

This year marked that change of philosophy official, as the Seattle Seahawks again chose to take chalky, projectable players. They selected the consensus best player available on numerous occasions, forgoing the opportunity to pick the pet projects they often opted for in years past.

Seattle Seahawks seemed to have bounced back to their 2010s days when it comes to NFL drafts

Gone are the Dee Eskridges, Malik McDowells, and Marquise Blairs. Say goodbye to selecting LJ Collier in the first round. This is the version of Pete Carroll, Vice President of Football Operations, and John Schneider, General Manager that we haven't seen since the halcyon days of the early 20-teens.

Seahawks 1st round, pick 5: CB Devon Witherspoon, Illinois

It's almost sacrilege. Pete Carroll pulled the trigger on a cornerback of middling size early in the first round? Under his regime, the Seahawks have become legendary for taking long, lanky cornerbacks late in the draft and molding them into zone coverage mavens. What on Earth did they need to do this for?

Well, as it turns out, sometimes it doesn't matter if a player doesn't necessarily fit the mold of a specific defense, even one as ballyhooed and imitated as Pete Carroll's legendary 4-3 under cover 3, because the player in question is really freaking good.

Devon Witherspoon is really freaking good.

He plays with as much anticipation and instinct as anyone in the nation. He's lightning-quick in every sense of the phrase. He's a menace in man coverage and can blanket a no. 1 receiver at all five receiver positions. When asked about him, Carroll compared Witherspoon to Troy Polamalu, which is just about the highest praise you can possibly give any defender.

Adding onto that, do you remember the last time Seattle drafted a defensive back that was a little undersized in the first round? Yeah, if you're not getting Earl Thomas vibes from this pick, you should be.

Lastly, with Witherspoon in tow, that gives the Seahawks a projected starting secondary of Tariq Woolen, Quandre Diggs, Jamal Adams, Julian Love, and Devon Witherspoon. Now tell me, where's the hole in this group? What route do you throw that's going to pull these guys apart? I'm not sure there is one, short of George Kittle going absolutely beast mode on a crosser over the middle with play action to suck Bobby Wagner down into the box as much as possible.

Witherspoon is a franchise cornerstone, and virtually guarantees that the Seahawks will be as tough to throw on as any team in football for both the short- and long-term future.

Grade: A+

Seahawks 1st round, pick 20: WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio State

On its face, this pick may have baffled its share of people. The Seahawks already have an incredible duo of receivers in Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf. Pete Carroll is an old-school coach who clings to old adages like "control the clock" and "establish the run." And the Seahawks' best package for picking up yards through the air last year was likely out of 12 personnel, where the slot receiver leaves the field in favor of a second tight end.

Forget all of it.

JSN is as prototypical a Seahawks receiver as has ever existed. A fluid route runner of average size for his position. Comes from a well-established FBS school. Hands to rival any other prospect in his class. Projects to be an incredible slot receiver. Overblown questions about top-end speed. It sounds just like Tyler Lockett. Or Doug Baldwin. Or Darrell Jackson. Or Bobby Engram. Or Joey Galloway. Or Brian Blades. Or Steve Largent.

What more needs to be said? Perhaps it also bears repeating that Shane Waldron was plucked from the Rams' coaching staff, and the Rams' offense always runs better with a receiver with JSN's profile, be that Cooper Kupp, Robert Woods, or Brandin Cooks.

It could also be that the Seahawks may need to deal away Noah Fant at some point this offseason for cap purposes — Seattle currently has less than $5 million in effective cap space per Over the Cap and has two first-round picks still to sign, not to mention a litany of other rookies.

Put it all together, and JSN was not only the best player still on the board for the Seahawks, he was also very much at a position of need. Absolute ace of a pick.

Grade: A+

Seahawks 2nd round, pick 37: OLB Derick Hall, Auburn

Another pick where Seattle drafted a really good player at a position they could use more upside at. Most draft scouts have very little to critique with Hall. At 6'3" and just north of 250 lbs, he has prototypical size for a 3-4 edge rusher, as well as the Bruce Irvin LEO position. With a recorded 40-yard dash of 4.55, his speed is on par with Cliff Avril, one of the most notoriously quick pass rushers of all time.

His power for his size is even more notable. He converts speed to power on a level that brings to mind some very prominent names in the pass-rushing landscape. He will collapse the edge of the pocket as quickly and effectively as anyone in this class short of Will Anderson.

Furthermore, Hall gives Seattle another option on the edge. Darrell Taylor put the league on notice to close out last season, but he'll need to prove he can do what he did consistently. Boye Mafe is of similar traits as Hall, but didn't see the field as much as some expected last season, myself included. Uchenna Nwosu was a revelation in the pass rush last season, but he can't be the only one.

It's not all sunshine and lollipops with Hall, though. There is a universal concern that he's not as bendy as a lot of the edge defenders he's often compared to. He is also not as sound a tackler as some would like.

All in all, though, there's DeMarcus Lawrence upside here with the right coaching. The only other names worth considering at this pick were offensive linemen, and this was without a doubt the pick with the most upside left on the board at the time.

Grade: A-

Seahawks 2nd round, pick 52: HB Zach Charbonnet, UCLA

Oh, come on. Another running back in the second round? Didn't we just do this last year? You could have drafted someone in the 7th round and they would have been just as effective! What a waste of a pick! Typical Pete, doing Pete things.

Few things make me groan more than this sort of surface-level analysis. Yes, the analytics crowd will tell you that a run is inherently much less valuable than a pass, per EPA/play. What they often don't tell you is that the reason for that is shockingly simple — running is less efficient in terms of yards gained over time. You need more of them to keep the chains moving and they take longer than passes do, on average.

For someone like me, who tends to think of playcalling in terms of tactics over numbers, acting as though it's never advantageous to burn clock is a ridiculous notion. And while Charbonnet will be as good at burning clock as anyone else in the draft, there is a spaghetti of other reasons to draft him.

Ken Walker is decent out of the backfield, but Charbonnet is better. His hands are especially soft for a halfback, if not quite on the level of an Austin Ekeler or Travis Etienne. He's also a more patient runner than Walker, which ought to make him an ideal short-yardage back, as well. Better yet, he's a very solid blocker, which will be of utmost importance with Travis Homer gone. From a tactical standpoint, that blocking ability also makes Seattle's playcalls easier to disguise.

If there's anything to be wary of, it's his injury history — Charbonnet has dealt with a number of minor nicks, plus a knee that sidelined him last spring that he admitted never fully healed. As such, deploying him in a part-time role alongside Walker might be the best thing for his career.

Taking into account the pile of halfback injuries Seattle has stacked up in the last half-decade, though, this may actually be a reasonably forward-thinking solution. There are shades of Chris Warren and John L. Williams here, and pairing Walker and Charbonnet with the explosive passing attack Seattle has could net a massive offensive windfall.

Grade: A

Seahawks 4th round, pick 108: OG Anthony Bradford, LSU

Let's take a pause for a moment of brevity. I really wanted the Seahawks to draft Steve Avila. Watching him go one pick before Seattle's selection, and to the Rams, of all teams, didn't sit well with me. It felt like validation for my belief that Avila would be a great fit, since Seattle's offense is modeled very closely after the Rams'.

That said, Anthony Bradford offers a lot of the same things Avila does. He's overwhelmingly strong, with a good frame (they're almost the exact same size), comes from a good program, and will anchor against just about anyone.

If there's one place where Bradford falls short of Avila, it's in his footwork. There are questions about Bradford's ability to move in space, which could pose a problem in the event he's asked to pull across the formation.

On the other hand, Bradford is genuinely a better athlete than Avila, along with just about anyone else at his position. While his footwork is said to be on the sloppy side, he's also the last person you would want to see climbing to the second level, because he is the very personification of "freight train" as a descriptor. In that sense, you could say Bradford offers as much upside as anyone in the draft. After all, the last guard Seattle selected from LSU has turned out pretty well.

When I look at this pick in tandem with the second round, this definitely feels like better value than what I had on my wish list.

Grade: A

Seahawks 4th round, pick 123: DT Cameron Young, Mississippi State

I have to admit, this one puzzles me a bit. Initially, I had figured that the Seahawks were moving back towards their tried-and-true 4-3 LEO, as Richard Sherman has hinted at a number of times in interviews with current Seahawks players. They even brought back Jarran Reed, presumably to play the Brandon Mebane stand-in role he played during his first run as a Seahawk.

As it turns, out, it seems that Pete Carroll sees Cameron Young as a nose tackle, rather than the hybrid 1-tech that I would expect.

Pairing that idea with there now being four designated edge defenders on the team in Uchenna Nwosu, Darrell Taylor, Boye Mafe, and Derick Hall, there's a question rising here — what defense does Seattle plan to run this coming season?

As for Young, he's built more like a 4-3 tackle than a 3-4 nose, at 6'3" and about 305 pounds. Like Bradford before him, his game is still on the raw side, but the tools are definitely there. He anchors well, pursues the ball with vigor, and can handle double-teams when needed. There do seem to be some similarities to Jarran Reed's draft profile a number of years ago.

It does seem as though Young could feasibly grow into either defense if asked, but I wonder if this pick is emblematic of Seattle's confusion as to what defense they're meant to be running. They were truly horrific against the run last season, and while they've taken steps to improve on defense this offseason, I'm not sure I see what the finished product is supposed to look like. They're acting as though they're building a 3-4 or wide 3-3-5 in the defensive backfield, but there are a lot of 4-3 archetypes up front, revolving around undersized nose tackles.

Don't get me wrong, I like Cam Young as a prospect, and I think he's a fair selection for where Seattle got him. I think he'll eventually be a productive player with the proper time and effort, whether they're playing 3-4 or 4-3. I just have more questions about Seattle's defensive identity if this is the kind of player they're after.

Grade: B

Seahawks 5th round, pick 151: DE Mike Morris, Michigan

As the draft continues, the questions I started pondering last pick are picking up steam. Mike Morris played defensive end in a 4-3 system in college, is listed at 6'5" and 275 lbs, but claims he is up to 295 per Pete Carroll's request.

Now, that could mean a couple of different things. It's not unusual for 3-4 4i-techs to bulk up at the NFL level. Cam Heyward and Calais Campbell are two great examples — Heyward especially is of similar build to Morris.

On the other hand, Clint Hurtt reportedly mentioned Morris playing some 3-tech in Seattle's call to Morris to inform him they'd drafted him. Additionally, a build of 6'5" and 295 is pretty comparable to Michael Bennett's 6'4" and 285.

As for who Morris is as a player, he's tall and stiff for a defensive end, but generates good power and leverage. He's also unusually quick for being as stiff around the edge as he is. The traits he possesses in tandem are a bit of a rarity at the NFL level.

Morris didn't test particularly well at the combine, and if it's true that he also played his senior year at Michigan at 290, then it's also fair to question whether it's a smart idea to move him inside or ask him to play 3-4 end. The production was there from the 4-3 end position — Morris won the Big Ten DL of the Year award last year.

What I'm left with is basically the same question I had regarding Young — how does Seattle intend to use him? They're talking as though both are going to be used in typical 3-4 positions, aside from the actual defensive coordinator, and what I see is closer to Seattle's classic 4-3 LEO. Granted, Pete Carroll is notorious for being liberal with the truth in the press, but the harder I look at what they're building, the less I understand about their intentions.

I'll need more time to grade this one. If they're playing 3-4 this year, this pick nets a D from me, but if they're going back to the LEO, I like it well enough to give it a B+.

Grade: Incomplete

Seahawks 5th round, pick 154: C Olesagun Oluwatimi, Michigan

Like Morris, Oluwatimi is a smart, acclaimed player who is better than their combine results. It's much easier for me to understand the Oluwatimi pick, though, because there's no questioning what his role would be on this team. There's no moving him to guard with Lewis, Haynes, Brown, and Bradford on the roster, who are all bigger, stronger, and faster. He's a center, plain and simple.

And he's a very good center, at that, having played the position for the Air Force Academy, the Virginia Cavaliers, and the Michigan Wolverines, winning a Rimington Award after being a finalist for the award the year prior, and calling all the signals for Michigan, a top program in the country for offensive linemen.

He's not the greatest athlete in the world, at least at the NFL level, and there are questions about his upside in the run game, since he is a bit undersized, as well, at 6'3" on a good day and about 310 lbs.

But forget all of that for a second and remember that Seattle was just fine rolling with Austin Blythe, who seems to be the floor for the uber-intelligent Oluwatimi. There's also a common thread here among Seahawks centers — Carroll doesn't seem to mind below-average athletes at the position so long as they can sense the rush well and adapt to it both pre-play and mid-play.

There's something about Oluwatimi that reminds me of Chris Spencer, for those of you who have been watching the Seahawks for a while now. Maybe the top-end upside isn't quite there, but there's consistency here, and if there's anything you want from your offensive line, it's consistency and predictability.

Grade: A

Seahawks 6th round, pick 198: S Jerrick Reed II, New Mexico

Part of Pete Carroll's "Always Compete" mantra is that you don't necessarily draft for depth — you draft with the intention of finding a long-term starter with every pick. Bearing that in mind, Jerrick Reed is an undersized safety with good instincts, range, and a nose for the ball. Remind you of anyone?

Quandre Diggs is now 30 years old and will likely start easing into a front office role at some point when his current contract expires, I imagine. It's important that Seattle start looking to force him to keep his starting spot before he starts to slow down. And Reed seems to be almost a carbon copy of Diggs, down to being a late-round draft pick from the Southwest likely passed over in large part because of his size.

He's also spent significant time on special teams, which is almost always a way to get a foot in the door for the Seahawks. There's upside here, if not necessarily an immediate path to seeing meaningful defensive snaps.

Grade: B

Seahawks 7th round, pick 237: RB Kenny McIntosh, Georgia

Truth be told, I've seen more of Kenny's brother, Deon, than I have of him, having watched Deon extensively at Washington State's summer training camp in 2021. That said, they're both roughly the same size, and they profile pretty similarly, as larger backs with good hands, versatile skillsets, and busy legs that keep churning under any circumstance.

McIntosh lacks the top-end speed of Seattle's other halfbacks, but offers receiving upside that even Charbonnet can't match. Like Reed, I wouldn't expect him to see major playing time without some good special teams reps, but that's also how Deejay Dallas leapfrogged Travis Homer and Alex Collins on the depth chart.

Furthermore, McIntosh gives Seattle four halfbacks on the roster. At this point, that is the minimum I'm comfortable with, having seen Seattle's offense crumble as halfbacks start to drop for half a decade now.

I don't expect McIntosh to challenge Walker or Charbonnet for touches, but should one of them go down, I can absolutely see him picking up positive yards on a consistent basis, a la Maurice Morris.

Grade: B+

Seahawks overall grade: B+

Seattle did a lot of things right in the draft this year. They didn't reach for anyone I thought couldn't have been found later in the draft, and when they had the opportunity to pick good players, they did so, rather than trading back simply because they thought they knew better.

I still would like to see a clearer direction for the defense, but the personnel is unquestionably more talented than it was before. They can figure out what to do with all the extra talent as they practice together and talk through film sessions.

It's a surreal experience, writing a draft breakdown like this, because usually, it's just the opposite — I know why these players in particular were drafted, but I can't help but wonder what they could have done with other players that were still on the board. Here, it feels like every one of these guys was the best player available.

What they'll choose to do with these guys, especially the ones on the defensive side of the ball, is anyone's guess. Given Seattle's penchant for evolving their defense as the season wears on, not having a clearly-defined plan might be the scariest football-related thing I can think of.

But there's also opportunity in that sort of approach — it could allow the Seahawks to tailor their scheme to the guys they have for the first time since the formation of the Legion of Boom. And like the original LOB team, there are a lot of guys on the roster with diverse talents and skill sets that don't necessarily fit together quite yet.

If Pete Carroll can find a way to make something out of this mishmash of talent and athleticism for a second time, there should be no reason left to question him on anything football-related, because he will have cemented himself alongside Bill Belichick and Andy Reid as one of the greatest coaches of this generation.