10 worst Seattle Seahawks draft picks of the Pete Carroll era
By Luke Allen
Legendary Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll was a part of a plethora of unforgettable moments, including the franchise's first and only Super Bowl win amidst the most successful and prosperous era in Seahawks history. Carroll also helped orchestrate arguably the best draft class in NFL history in 2012.
That was the year that Seattle drafted the likes of Bobby Wagner, Russell Wilson, Bruce Irvin, Robert Turbin, J.R. Sweezy, and Jeremy Lane. Even in his first season in 2010, Carroll brought in Earl Thomas, Russell Okung, Golden Tate, and Kam Chancellor.
While Carroll was the head coach, he also had the final say over all roster decisions during his time with Seattle. However, not all of Carroll's draft classes were that loaded. Here are the ten worst draft picks of the Pete Carroll era.
10 biggest NFL draft misses by the Seattle Seahawks in the Pete Carroll era
No. 10 - James Carpenter (2011)
In the 2011 NFL Draft, after Pete Carroll's first season in Seattle, the Seahawks had the 25th overall pick after winning the NFC West at 7-9 (yikes) and shocking the New Orleans Saints in the Wild Card round behind Marshawn Lynch's Beastquake. With the 25th pick, Seattle selected tackle James Carpenter from Alabama, a late riser in the draft after a dominant BCS Championship run. Carpenter started nine games in his rookie season and was average at best before tearing his ACL in Week 10.
Carpenter never started more than 13 games in a season before Seattle declined his fifth-year option in 2015, as Carpenter signed with the New York Jets - and immediately started all 16 games the next three seasons, of course. While Carpenter never lived up to his first-round expectations, he still won a Super Bowl with Seattle in 2013.
Who did they miss?
Seattle missed out on guys like Cam Heyward and Justin Houston, who were drafted after Carpenter. Seattle made up for it by drafting KJ Wright and Richard Sherman in later rounds.