Seattle Seahawks 2010 NFL Draft Grade
SEATTLE
1.6 Russell Okung, OT, Oklahoma State
The Seahawks had a lot of fun with their draft clues on twitter, but they might have even more fun on the field with this class. Okung was the best tackle in this class and fell into their laps a la Aaron Curry. He’ll protect Charlie Whitehurst, which is a heck of a first step toward keeping him interested in playing. I know there are questions about his fit in a ZBS, but he’s a coachable kid with lots of experience and nice polish compared to the other tackles. GRADE: A
1.14 Earl Thomas, S, Texas
Thomas might be closer to Eric Berry than some thing. He’s got great versatility and enough moxie and skill to man up on receivers like Michael Crabtree while also being able to line up over the top and hawk the ball. I thought Seattle would look for more of an in-the-box style safety, but Thomas was too good a player to pass up at 14th, and he fills a major need for a coach who puts a premium on safety play. GRADE: A
2.60 Golden Tate, WR, Notre Dame
Tate is one of the most underrated receivers in this class. He’s Percy Harvin-esque, and Carroll will have fun moving him around. He needs a little refinement to his route-running, but this team was pretty devoid of true playmaking pass-catchers with a flair for acrobatic catches. He’s nasty after the catch. GRADE: B+
3ROUND GRADE: A
4.111 Walter Thurmond, CB, Oregon
A great pick here, even if everyone won’t see it at first. Thurmond missed the majority of his last season with a knee injury, but when he’s healthy he’s an ace cover man who can play as a starter in this league. GRADE: B
4.127 EJ Wilson, DE, UNC
The Seahawks needed some defensive line help after collecting some good quality junk pieces this offseason. Which was apparently their MO considering Wilson was taken three rounds two high. He’s purely potential, and overrated in that aspect. GRADE: D
5.133 Kam Chancellor, S, Virginia Tech
Carroll opts for the poor man’s Taylor Mays despite all that dough that Seattle is paying him. I liked Chancellor a lot heading into the season, but he really hasn’t put it all together yet. He’s got the skills to be a successful in-the-box safety. GRADE: C+
6.185 Anthony McCoy, TE, USC
Risky pick here, but Carroll knows him as well as anyone. The marijuana test results hurt his stock, but he could be a valuable down-field weapon for Whitehurst or Hasselbeck, and Carroll thinks he can handle him. GRADE: C
7.236 Dexter Davis, DE, Arizona State
Davis tore Charles Brown apart in the Az State-USC game, and Carroll remembered. He’s got a lighting quick first step, and if he can regain his junior form, he could be a dangerous pass rusher standing or at end. GRADE: B+
7.245 Jameson Konz, TE, Kent State
I really like this pick too. Konz was never a productive asset in college, but you have to believe that Carroll will find a way to use a guy who is 6-03 230 and runs a 4.4 range 40. The seventh round is supposed to be for upside.GRADE: B
Best Pick: Earl Thomas
Worst Pick: EJ Wilson
Sleeper Pick: Walter Thurmond
FINAL ANALYSIS
The Seahawks are going to receive a bunch of blind “A’s” from a lot of people. And I can see where they’re coming from. Okung was the consensus (well, mostly) left tackle in this class, even if he will need some coaching on his footwork and agility to perform at the highest level in this scheme. He was the right pick, and I like to think they would have made it even with Trent Williams on the board. Earl Thomas fills a huge void at the safety spot, and it’s nice to see the Hawks finally address that area in the first round. He’s a spectacular playmaker with excellent ball skills and enough coverage ability to play some corner if needed, though I think it’s a plus that ended up with a team that will use him as a centerfielder. Tate was an underrated receiver due to questions about his size and route-running, but he comes from a very complex, pro-style offense that will put him in position to see the field a good bit as a rookie. And I really like the upside that Dexter Davis, Jameson Konz, and Kam Chancellor provide. At least one of those guys should hit.
EJ Wilson was a great player to everyone who only saw him workout. He flashed some potential at UNC, but with his skill set, he should have been more productive. He’s a destitute man’s Everson Griffen. Anthony McCoy is a high-risk player with character issues after the drug test failure, but Marijuana usage didn’t seem to get in Percy Harvin’s way; he stopped, or at least didn’t get caught. If anyone can coach McCoy up, it would seemingly be Carroll.
We see this from a lot of college turned pro coaches in their first draft. They go with familiar players. Carroll coached for or against Tate, Thurmond, Davis, and McCoy, and he’s been a fan of the Va Tech and Texas programs for a while, and has studied both. There’s good reason to like this draft when you factor in the Leon Washington and LenDale White additions. Maybe he can recreate some of that rushing game Seattle used to have. At the very least, it looks like Pete hit pretty hard with his first three picks, even if some of the late selections may not translate well to the pro game.
FINAL GRADE: B+
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|JAX|KC|MIA|MIN|NE|NO|NYG|NYJ|OAK|PHI|PIT|SD|SF|SEA|STL
|TB|TEN|WAS|
