Seattle Seahawks fans approached the 2024 draft with a mixture of hope and trepidation. It was going to be the first time in approximately forever that Pete Carroll would not be involved. During his long tenure in Seattle, Carroll exercised as much, if not more, control over his team’s draft board than any coach in the NFL. Early on, it yielded fantastic results. Super Bowl-level results.
But things had been far more hit-and-miss of late. With Carroll out of the picture, the onus would fall on John Schneider to show what he could do without his long-time colleague in his ear. Schneider eventually selected eight players. Six of them came on Day 3.
Only two picks came in the top 100. In the immediate aftermath, everyone seemed pleased, but that’s the optimistic nature of the NFL in April. When it was all about upside potential, we could all feel great.
Now we have a year’s worth of actual data to process. So let’s regrade John Schneider’s 2024 draft class as these players head into year two of their NFL careers.
How did Seattle Seahawks GM John Schneider fare in his first draft without Pete Carroll?
To put things bluntly, Schneider didn’t do very well. But it’s still early, and several of these players could develop into more than they appear as of now. If you want a brutal, unbiased assessment of the quality of Schneider’s draft after one year, consider this:
The Rams’ Les Snead had ten draft picks last year and they were much more top-heavy than what Schneider had to work with. Four of the Rams’ picks came in the top 100. Still, it is very hard to ignore the fact that three Ram rookies – Jared Verse, Braden Fiske and Beaux Limmer – combined to play almost the exact same number of snaps as all eight Seahawk draftees.
And Limmer, who played more than anyone, arrived with the 217th pick in Round six.
OK – no more comparisons to what other teams did. Let’s see what John Schneider did, going from his final pick to his first.
Michael Jerrell – Offenisve tackle – Round six, picks 207
Jerrell was picked as a developmental tackle, and that’s exactly what he was. Though he still has a lot of growing to do, he essentially outplayed veteran backups George Fant (who was oft-injured) and Stone Forsythe (who was oft-not very good).
Jerrell flashed early, then regressed, but he appears to be making steady progress. He was recently traded to the Atlanta Falcons for a conditional 2027 seventh-round draft choice.
Grade – C+
D.J. James – Cornerback – Round 6, pick 192
James was the second of two late-round cornerbacks chosen by Schneider. Doubling down to rebuild depth behind two quality starters made some sense. But this pick was a whiff. James failed to impress as a cornerback or as a return man and was released before the season.
He is currently on the Patriots' practice squad and did have an interception against Washington in their game Friday night, so perhaps he does have a future. But not in Seattle.
Grade – F
Sataoa Laumea – Offensive lineman – Round 6, pick 179
Laumea was pressed into service late when Anthony Bradford was hurt and Christian Haynes proved ineffective at right guard. He finished the season as the lowest-graded guard in the entire league according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
His pass-blocking grade of 19.8 is among the lowest in recent memory. Still, he played more snaps than any of the three offensive linemen drafted by Schneider and will probably stick around as a depth piece.
Grade – C-
Nehemiah Pritchett – Cornerback – Round 5, pick 136
Pritchett showed some promise in the preseason, but he was unable to carry that into the regular season. He saw his playing time diminish as the year went on, though he had his best game in week 17, when Seattle used a lot of bench players. For the year, he was only in on 151 defensive snaps, and his future is cloudy.
Grade – D
A.J. Barner – Tight end – Round 4, pick 121
Barner played more snaps than any other rookie on offense and showed decent development throughout the year. He is now firmly established as the team’s best in-line blocking tight end, but he also showed some ability as a receiver, scoring three touchdowns over the final six weeks. He is the only 2024 draft pick to play in every game during his rookie year.
Grade – B+
Tyrice Knight – Linebacker – Round 4, pick 118
Knight was scheduled to be a backup to a couple of free agent pickups at inside linebacker. Mike Macdonald quickly determined that the two free agents were poor fits in his defense and got rid of them.
Knight became a starter and quickly grew into a reliable presence in the middle of the field, ending the year with 88 tackles in just 551 defensive snaps. If he continues to develop, his future is very bright.
Grace – A
Christian Haynes – Guard – Round 3, pick 81
Everyone knew Seattle needed help at guard. I’m one of the few fans who wasn’t down on Anthony Bradford, and even I knew he needed competition on the right side. That was supposed to come from Haynes. Most analysts figured he’d be starting by the end of the year. Didn’t happen.
Not only was he unable to beat out Bradford, but he was also soon replaced by sixth-rounder Laumea when Bradford was injured. It was a very bad start for a player who showed great potential in college. There was hope that a new line coach and a new offensive coordinator would help him grow in year two, but as of now, he is still buried on the depth chart. The biggest disappointment of the ’24 draft.
Grade – D-
Byron Murphy II – Defensive lineman – Round 1, pick 16
A lot was expected of Murphy in his rookie season, and it was mildly disappointing. He dealt with a few injuries that slowed his progress, and he had trouble cracking the talented Seahawks' D-line. He did play 457 snaps and occasionally showed why hopes were so high.
Still, it’s hard to ignore that he was thoroughly outperformed by fellow Texas Longhorn defensive lineman T'Vondre Sweat, who was selected 22 spots after Murphy. I expect a much-improved second season.
Grade – B-
All in all, not a great performance by Schneider. He hit on a few in the middle rounds but didn’t get much out of the beginning or end of the draft. A stalwart season from Murphy in 2025 would make things look a lot better.
Overall Draft Grade – C-