3 players the Seattle Seahawks could have drafted instead of Dee Eskridge in 2021

Two years into his career, Seattle Seahawks receiver Dee Eskridge seems like a huge bust. Eskridge was a bit of a reach when Seattle chose him in the second round of the 2021 NFL draft anyway. And I won't even mention that he is already 26 years old though he has only played those two seasons. To put it more into perspective, Eskridge is nine months older than DK Metcalf and Metcalf has played four years in the league (and been a ton better than Eskridge).

Eskridge has missed 13 games in two years. This is more shocking than it seems because in the 20 games he has participated in, he has been amazingly invisible. Eskridge has caught just 17 passes over two seasons, about half of his 33 targets. He managed to score a touchdown in 2021 but has averaged a paltry 7.2 yards a reception.

One of Eskridge's issues might be he is simply a bad fit in Seattle's system. He isn't truly an outside guy and doesn't really play in the slot well. Offensive coordinator Shane Waldron seems happy giving the ball to Eskridge on jet sweeps than throwing the ball to him down the field. And the Seahawks could have taken the following three players instead of Eskridge in the 2021 draft and made the team even better.

Seahawks missed on defensive lineman Osa Odighizuwa

Maybe the Seahawks felt like their defensive line was OK the way it was in 2021, but drafts are about future success, not just fixing immediate problems. Al Woods was brought back in 2021 before the draft happened and while Woods wasn't bad, he was also 34 years old. Seattle needed younger and more versatile defensive lineman moving forward.

Two seasons into his career with the Dallas Cowboys, Osa Odighizuwa has racked up a combined 6 sacks, 22 quarterback hits, 14 tackles for loss, and in 2022 he missed just 2,3 percent of his tackle attempts. Odighizuwa does still need to get better as a run stopper, but his ability to supply interior pass rush is so good it might have meant Seattle didn't need to chase players of his ilk, like Jarran Reed, in free agency this offseason.