Three ways the Seahawks can guarantee they land Will Anderson in the draft

Plan three: Seahawks do what we all expect and trade up

There's been quite a bit of buzz that the Hawks and Cards will swap picks, I really can't see that happening, especially as both teams are looking at the same players. I think it's much more likely that Seattle would find a very willing trade partner in Houston. The Texans have a lot of needs, and the Seahawks have a lot of picks. Sounds like a workable situation to me.

One reason I see this as a very plausible deal is that Houston could still get one of the prizes on their wish list at the fifth pick. As I wrote earlier, they need a quarterback in Houston. Let's see how this could play out if the Seahawks move up to two. If the Panthers take Stroud at one, the Hawks get their guy Anderson at two. Again, the Cardinals aren't going for a QB, so they take Carter (or another defender, but certainly not a quarterback). That leaves the Colts to take Young or Richardson at four, and the Texans can then take the last of the big three. Or Levis, if they're also stupid. Or they could take another great defender and snap up Levis at 12, which would be more reasonable. Either way, Houston accomplishes what they need in the first round, and picks up whatever Seattle offers as well.

So many sources have reported that the Texans are receiving trade offers for that second pick, the rest of this article would be a maelstrom of links if I cited them all. Suffice it to say that they're getting more offers than Tyler Lockett has career touchdowns. Okay, maybe not quite that many, but you get the idea. Houston GM Nick Caserio has already stated that they're listening to all offers. We know all GMs will say all sorts of crazy stuff before the draft, but in this case, it makes sense. The Seahawks are by far in the best position to make the trade work.

First, with 10 picks in the draft, including two each in the first and second rounds, Seattle has a ton of draft capital. Yes, Houston has 12 picks, but five of those are in the fifth and sixth rounds. The Hawks could dangle their second pick of the second round, number 52, along with other treats for the talent-hungry Texans. Second, Houston would only drop three slots in the draft with Seattle, as opposed to a possible trade with Las Vegas for the seventh pick, or an even bigger drop with whoever else they might trade with. Third, the Seahawks aren't looking at the same players as the Texans.

Sure, it's possible that Houston goes for Anderson or Carter, but they currently have Davis Mills, Case Keenum, and E.J. Perry on their roster. Yeah, sure, of course, they'll pass on a quarterback. I mean, maybe the Texans are that stupid after all.