The Seattle Seahawks seemed to have a fantastic 2025 NFL draft. The team had 11 picks overall and decided to take offensive players with nine of those choices. Seattle went pretty heavy on defense in the 2024 draft, so balancing out made sense.
Plus, while head coach Mike Macdonald's defense was much improved last season over former head coach Pete Carroll's defense in the prior seasons, general manager John Schneider thought it better to keep most of the unit intact instead of rebuilding it a great deal. Seattle did make a splash by signing defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence in free agency, though.
Of the two players the Seahawks took in the draft, one seems pretty sure to make an impact on the future of the franchise, but the other might not. The likely good one is safety Nick Emmanwori. He is 6'3" and 220 pounds with loads of speed. He might not hit like Kam Chancellor (yet), but he has even more athleticism.
Seahawks might regret choosing Rylie Mills over Ty Hamilton
The other defensive choice is far more iffy. In the fifth round, Schneider selected Notre Dame defensive lineman Rylie Mills. Mills might have gone higher in the draft had he not suffered a knee injury late in the 2024 college football season, but he slid, in part, because of the ACL tear.
He is big enough to play in the league as he is 6'5" and 291 pounds, and he has good strength. What he does not have is much quickness. This would imply that he might be more suited for a defensive tackle position than an end, and his ceiling might be limited in that spot.
While he is strong, he can also be pushed outside by long-armed guards. Lacking the quickness, even when fully healthy, to get around interior offensive linemen means Mills might strictly be a bull-rusher. To succeed greatly in the NFL, defensive linemen need versatility, and Mills might not be capable of that.
The positive part is that Mike Macdonald's 3-4 base should be most beneficial for Mills. The Seahawks also have good veterans on their defensive line, including Leonard Williams and Jarran Reed. They might be able to show Mills some tricks to help him overcome some physical limitations.
But Seattle could have gone a different direction, even as late as the fifth round. Ty Hamilton was available, for instance, and was chosen by the Los Angeles Rams six picks after Mills. Hamilton is more of a pure tackle at 6'3" and 299 pounds, but the Seahawks might need a tackle to develop more quickly than an end. Reed and Williams are both over 30 years old.
Hamilton is also much quicker than Mills, a needed quality in a 3-4 front. While Mills was more productive in college, Hamilton might have been the better long-term fit with Seattle. Let's hope Hamilton doesn't turn into a fantastic player for an NFC West rival while Mills struggles with the Seahawks.