The Seattle Seahawks are going to be careful in the 2026 NFL draft. The issue is the team currently only has four selections in April, though more might be added if general manager John Schneider trades back and out of the first round. Even if that doesn't happen, ESPN recently offered the interesting suggestion of Seattle choosing Trey Lance's brother.
Here is the positive. Bryce Lance, Trey's brother, doesn't play quarterback. That means he won't be able to follow the exact path Trey did when he was taken third overall by the San Francisco 49ers in the 2021 draft. That pick turned out to be a bust for Seattle's NFC West rival.
He failed to become a starter and has since bounced around the NFL after San Francisco gave up on him and traded him to the Dallas Cowboys in 2023. He is currently part of the Los Angeles Chargers roster, but with no path to being QB1.
ESPN projects the Seattle Seahawks to choose Trey Lance's brother in the 2026 NFL draft
Bryce Lance has size like his brother, and both played at North Dakota State. Bryce is 6'3" and 210 pounds with elite athleticism. He ran a 4.34 40-yard dash at the NFL combine and had a vertical jump of 41.5 inches. Of course, Trey Lance also tested well and has yet to turn out to be positively impactful in the league.
The Seahawks might not have a glaring need at wide receiver and could spend their four picks on an edge rusher, cornerback, and interior offensive and defensive linemen. A wideout would appear to be a luxury. The upside is that if Bryce can transpose his athleticism into production, whatever team takes him would get a steal in the middle rounds.
That is where ESPN's Matt Miller has Seattle choosing the wide receiver. With the team's third-round pick (number 96 overall), Bryce Lance would join a receiving group that includes Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Rasheed Shaeed, Tory Horton, and Cooper Kupp.
Lance would add size to the position and potentially be a good red-zone threat. He would also add an element of explosiveness in a way DK Metcalf did.
What keeps Bryce Lance from being taken higher is that he is still somewhat underdeveloped in terms of perfecting a route tree, and didn't face elite defensive backs in college. North Dakota State is a smaller program, but a great one. The teams they played are not of the same ilk.
Should the Seattle Seahawks take Lance, he might need a year or so to learn how to become a quality wide receiver. At least, he would be playing a position of less importance than his quarterback brother did. He might have a chance to grow into his role in a way Trey Lance never did.