With several holes on the Seahawks roster going into the 2024 NFL Draft, GM John Schneider did a solid job of finding players in the draft to fill those positions of need. The Seahawks needed to add to their defensive line, offensive line, secondary, and special teams. John Schneider did a good job of addressing each of those areas of need and was effective at adding depth, as he went about filling each of those positions.
John Schneider came into the 2024 NFL Draft without a second-round selection or a fifth-round selection but was still able to put together a nice draft. Instead of trading back in the first round of the draft, Schneider decided to hold on to the 16th overall pick. Using the 16th pick on arguably the best defensive player in the 2024 NFL Draft. Although not trading back prevented Seattle from having a second-round selection, the Seahawks came away with a solid defensive tackle in Byron Murphy II.
The Seahawks did not make another pick until round three on day two of the draft. Seattle ended up with one of the best interior offensive line prospects in guard Christian Haynes at pick 81. John Schneider was able to make a nice trade with the Broncos to acquire a fifth-round pick and a late sixth-round pick by trading back from pick 102. By trading back, Schneider acquired more draft capital, and eventually selected defensive back Nehemiah Pritchett at pick 136.
How these rookies will fit into the Seattle Seahawks' plans this upcoming season
Rookie impact player No. 1 - Guard Christian Haynes
The Seahawks lost guard Damien Lewis in free agency this off-season, as Lewis signed with the Carolina Panthers on a four-year deal for $53 million. Also, the Seahawks lost starting center Evan Brown to free agency, opening up another interior O-line spot. After both of these departures, the Seahawks needed to add depth to the interior of their offensive line. The Seahawks not only added guard Laken Tomlinson in free agency but also added Christian Haynes in this year's draft out of UCONN.
Christian Haynes was good both on and off the field for the UCONN Huskies. He had an academic award named after him at UCONN and earned a master's degree from the university. That was on top of being a two-time All-American guard during his college career. Haynes was also a team captain for two seasons at UCONN. The Seahawks not only selected a talented young guard but also an amazing person, with strong leadership qualities.
Seattle will likely have quite a competition ahead during training camp this year with Christian Haynes, Laken Tomlinson, and Anthony Bradford competing for the starting guard positions. Haynes is in a unique position where has a chance to earn the starting guard position out of camp this summer. Even if Haynes does not earn the starting position out of training camp, given his talent, there is no question he will have a chance to earn the starting role at some point in 2024.
Rookie impact player No. 2 - Defensive Tackle Byron Murphy II
Given the Seahawks' defensive struggles with stopping the run, finding a run-stopper was a priority this off-season for John Schneider. He made sure to re-sign defensive tackle Leonard Williams, while also adding defensive tackle Jonathan Hankins in free agency.
At the 2024 NFL Draft, Schneider used the Seahawks' first pick on defensive tackle Byron Murphy II out of Texas. Since the first 14 NFL teams selected offensive players with their first-round picks (including six teams who picked QBs), Seattle had plenty of options to improve their defense.
By selecting Byron Murphy II with the 16th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seahawks found a true run-stopper and a pass rusher. Murphy can start right away and make an immediate impact for coach Mike Macdonald's defense. Given Macdonald is a defensive-minded coach, the selection of defensive tackle Byron Murphy II made sense. By pairing Murphy with defensive tackle Leonard Williams (who the Seahawks signed to a 3 years and $64.5 million contract) Seattle is set at the position for the next three years.
John Schneider has done a nice job of adding depth to the Seahawks defensive line over the last three years. Adding edge rushers Uchenna Nwosu, Boye Mafe, Derick Hall, and Dre'Mont Jones, while also bringing in Jarran Reed, Jonathan Hankins, Leonard Williams, and Byron Murphy. By using free agency, draft picks, and a trade with the Giants, John Schneider has rebuilt the Seahawks defensive line. With the talent the Seahawks have acquired over the past three years, this should be a fun unit to watch for years to come.
Rookie impact player No. 3 - Defensive Back Nehemiah Pritchett
The Seahawks' kick and punt returning duties had been handled by DeeJay Dallas for the past three seasons. With Dallas leaving Seattle in free agency to join the Arizona Cardinals, the Seahawks will need to find a new kick return man this year. The Seahawks have been needing to find a return man who can provide them a spark for a long time now. In his time as the Seahawks' returner, DeeJay Dallas had an average punt return of just 9.4 yards and a kick return average of 23.8 yards.
Hopefully, with an open competition for kick and punt returners this summer, the Seahawks will find a better return man going forward. Nehemiah Pritchett who Seattle selected with the 136th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, has potential as a kick returner. After running a 4.36 40-yard dash time at this year's NFL Combine, Pritchett showed how fast he can be. His 40-yard dash time finished in the top 10 among all NFL draft prospects at the combine in 2024.
Nehemiah Pritchett has had experience returning kicks in college, as he was Auburn's kick return man throughout his time with the Tigers. Pritchett was the Tigers' primary kick returner during his junior year at Auburn. With an average kick return of 31.3 yards per return during the 2021 season.
The Seahawks are likely going to have an interesting competition which could also include players such as Kenneth Walker III, DK Metcalf, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. However, picking a depth player in Nehemiah Pritchett to return kicks would make more sense, because Seattle likely will not want to put those starters in harm's way.