Seahawks rookie Byron Murphy II offended by NFL's DROY tweet

The Seattle Seahawks were surprised to land defensive tackle Byron Murphy II in the 2024 NFL draft. General manager John Schneider assumed Murphy would be long gone before pick 16 where Seattle sat. Without any real way to trade up in the draft, Seattle was content believing they might have a chance to choose Alabama tackle JC Latham.

Instead, Latham was the player who disappeared off the board as the Tennessee Titans chose him at pick 7. No defensive player went before pick 15 and after Laiatu Latu was chosen, Seattle knew they could take a player ranked high on the pre-draft big board but one they didn't expect to get. Murphy is now a part of helping new head coach Mike Macdonald rebuild the defense.

Murphy should be an immediate starter as well. Macdonald will move Seattle back to a 4-3 base front so the defensive line should feature Leonard Williams, Murphy, Jarran Reed, and Dre'Mont Jones on the majority of downs. With better direction from Macdonald than the previous coaching staff was seemingly capable of, the Seahawks could have one of the best D-lines in the league.

Seahawks DT Byron Murphy II given slim odds of winning DROY

The biggest question about the group is just how quickly Murphy can acclimate to the NFL and how soon he can be disruptive. He has the strength and quickness to play well right away, but getting used to the speed of the NFL can be difficult for any rookie. Murphy might be better against the run than he is at pass rush at the beginning of his career and Rookie of the Year voters will probably be more tantalized by sack numbers than run-defense win rate.

This could be why, according to our pals at FanSided's Betsided site, Murphy is given little chance of winning the Defensive Rookie of the Year honor. The defensive tackle has the sixth-best chance of being DROY but those with better chances are all players who should have higher sack totals or a number of interceptions. Murphy's current odds are +1200. (Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change, however.)

Those with better odds than Murphy are edge rusher Dallas Turner (+500), edge rusher Latu (+650), edge rusher Jared Verse (+1000), cornerback Quinyon Mitchell (+1100), and cornerback Terrion Arnold (+1100). Those players may not be better than Murphy but they might have flashier numbers. That could be all it takes to win the award.

Murphy, however, might simply want to win football games as he took personal offense to an NFL tweet about DROY candidates by responding, "Still want to disrespect me". He is joining a team with a head coach who will know exactly how to use him as well. By year three, Murphy might be getting double-digit sacks every season.

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