The fact that Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider drafted Beau Stephens in the fifth round of the 2026 draft did not come as a surprise. In each of the three preceding drafts, Schneider had picked at least one lineman who would play guard in the NFL. In 2025, he chose three future NFL guards in the same draft.
They may not have played on the inside in college, but that is where prospects like Sataoa Laumea, Bryce Cabeldue and Mason Richman would end up once they joined the Seahawks. The selection of Stephens was seen as a pretty clear indication that despite all the recent additions, Schneider was still looking to upgrade the spot.
What took some observers by surprise was the fact that the GM traded a pick in next year’s draft to grab the Iowa product. That effectively makes Stephens a fourth-round pick instead of a fifth-rounder, and it costs Schneider some highly valued flexibility next April.
The Seattle Seahawks may regret trading up for Beau Stephens in the 2026 draft
At the time, the common wisdom was that the Seattle scouts must have really seen something they liked in Beau Stephens to justify such a move.
Stephens may still develop. It is insanely early in his NFL journey to be writing him off. But after one preseason in which he saw a lot of snaps, it is hard to see what the Seahawks thought they were getting. He has done little to show he was worth a 2027 fourth-round pick. As a point of comparison, consider that Anthony Bradford was a fourth-round pick back in 2023.
Beating up on Bradford has become common amongst Seattle’s fans and media. He does have deficiencies in his game, especially when it comes to pass blocking.
But I do want to remind the detractors that Bradford entered the league when he was 22 and became a starter in his first year. In his third year, regardless of those limitations, Anthony Bradford started every game for the Super Bowl champions.
Bradford is a pending free agent in 2027, so Schneider obviously sees the need to find his next right guard. Hence, the recent selections of Haynes, Cabeldue, Richman, and Stephens.
Stephens clearly has a lot of things going for him. He comes from the storied Iowa program (which also produced Richman) and was coached in college by George Barnett. The line he anchored in 2025 won the Joe Moore Award as the nation’s best unit. Stephens entered the NFL as a powerful, technically sound blocker.
He also has physical limitations. His arms are very short by NFL standards. He is not particularly quick or nimble. Watching him through the preseason, it has been hard to identify any part of his game that is better than average.
Mason Richman did not set the world on fire during his rookie season in 2025, but he entered his second year looking like Seattle’s best backup interior lineman. When he got hurt, it should have provided an opening for Stephens.
So far, he has not taken advantage. Christian Haynes, now in his third year, seems far more active and would appear to be Seattle’s first choice should either Grey Zabel or Bradford suffer an injury. Swing tackle Joash Jones can also play guard, which leaves Richman perhaps fifth or sixth in the pecking order, even without Richman.
Is that good value for what amounts to a fourth-round draft pick? Twelve picks after Schneider took Richman, Tampa chose Notre Dame guard Billy Schrauth, who was rated as a better prospect than Stephens by virtually every scouting service I know of.
In and of itself, that means little. Schneider has earned fans’ trust when taking a chance on a prospect. His hunches are often quite good. But it does suggest that there was other interior line talent on the board when he pulled the trigger on the trade. He clearly thought he had found a gem in Stephens.
Maybe that will still prove to be true. Before getting hurt, Richman looked like a completely different player in his second season. But it is very hard to see that in Beau Stephens right now.
Initially, there was some rose-colored speculation (by writers like me) that Stephens might actually supplant Bradford at some point this year. Now, it is looking like Stephens is on the roster bubble behind several other players as a depth piece on the line.
Given the cost, I wonder how likely John Schneider would be to make the same trade after seeing how his rookie has performed this preseason.
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