The 2022 NFL Draft starts on Thursday, April 28. As a lead-up to the draft, we’ll be giving a team-by-team breakdown for positional needs. For each team, we’ll give an overview of the current depth chart and how big of a need each position is in the upcoming draft. You can find the rest of the team needs (as they’re updated) and the rest of our draft content in the 2022 NFL Draft hub.
What Picks do the Seattle Seahawks have in 2022
The Seattle Seahawks have eight picks.
Round 1 (9)
Round 2 (40)
Round 2 (41)
Round 3 (72)
Round 4 (109)
Round 5 (145)
Round 5 (153)
Round 7 (229)
Seattle Seahawks Top POSITIONS OF NEED
- QB
- OL
- EDGE
- DB
Seattle Seahawks Strength of Schedule, 2022
The Seattle Seahawks have the fifth easiest NFL strength of schedule for the 2022 NFL season.
Seattle Seahawks Offense
By Rich Hribar
QUARTERBACK
Drew Lock
Geno Smith
Jacob Eason
With the trade of Russell Wilson, the Seahawks are heading in a new direction as a franchise. While they are attempting what appears to be a soft rebuild at the moment, what they do next at quarterback will determine the severity of that plan.
Seattle brought Drew Lock back in the trade of Wilson. The team has provided all of the token team jargon supporting Lock as their potential quarterback, but since Lock entered the league in 2019, he sits 33rd in EPA per dropback (-0.06), 36th in completion percentage (59.3%), 30th in yards per pass attempt (6.68 Y/A), 34th in touchdown rate (3.5%), and 31st in interception rate (2.8%).
Lock is also in the final year of his rookie deal, so it is hard to buy anything Seattle is selling right now.
Even if Seattle bypasses a rookie with the ninth overall pick, expect them to swing on a rookie to push Lock for starts in 2022.
RUNNING BACK
Rashaad Penny
Chris Carson
DeeJay Dallas
Travis Homer
Darwin Thompson
Josh Johnson
Nick Bellore (FB)
We know Seattle wants to run the football and in 2021, they closed the year sixth in expected points added via rushing (47.4 EPA), 11th in yardage (2,074 yards), and third in yards per carry (5.0).
A large part of that efficiency was tied to the strong finish by Rashaad Penny.
After being left for dead and on his very last legs with Seattle, Penny rushed 92 times for 671 yards (7.3 yards per carry) over the final five games of the season, posting 135 or more rushing yards in four of those games.
Elevated by the small sample, Penny produced a carry of 10 or more yards on 15.9% of his carries, which was third in the league. 61.3% of his rushing yardage came on those explosive runs, the highest rate in the league.
Penny did exploit a number of soft defenses over that stretch (Houston, Chicago, Arizona, and Detroit were all back half teams in explosive run rate allowed) but did so still in an impressive fashion that extended beyond just producing due to opponent.
Penny had just 161 carries over his first three seasons in the league, so this could all be just Lucy holding the football for Charlie Brown, which is why Seattle insulated itself by only retaining Penny on a one-year deal.
Things sound promising for Chris Carson’s return this season from a neck injury, but he remains a question mark. Carson is also only signed for 2022 and carries a $3 million dead cap hit.
We have seen both DeeJay Dallas and Travis Homer contribute over their rookie contracts. Dallas is the only running back here signed beyond 2022, but Seattle does not need to push in on a rookie runner.
WIDE RECEIVER
DK Metcalf
Tyler Lockett
Dwayne Eskridge
Freddie Swain
Penny Hart
Cody Thompson
Matt Cole
Aaron Fuller
Cade Johnson
Seattle is front-loaded here with DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. If they want to swerve into really tearing this thing down, those are their two primary assets to accrue more future picks.
The team is already against the wall with a decision to make on Metcalf, who is in the final year of his rookie contract. With no fifth-year option available, Seattle will have to strike a long-term deal with the franchise tag as insurance if they are going to continue to build around Metcalf.
Lockett is a touch trickier to move. He is signed through 2025 and will turn 30 years old in September. A number of teams can surely use him, but he carries dead cap hits of $31.2 million and $21.1 million over the next two seasons.
Metcalf and Lockett combined to account for 49.8% of the team targets, 45.7% of the receptions, 56.1% of the receiving yards, and 66.7% of the touchdown catches in 2021.
Behind them, there is little of note.
2021 second rounder D’Wayne Eskridge caught just 10 passes for 64 yards as a rookie, playing just 32% of the snaps.
If Seattle ends up moving Metcalf, this becomes more of a need with front-end draft capital, but even if retaining Metcalf, depth can be added to this position.
TIGHT END
Noah Fant
Will Dissly
Colby Parkinson
Tyler Mabry
Seattle Noah Fant in the trade of Wilson and have already picked up his fifth-year option for 2023.
Fant posted a fine 68-670-4 line in 2021. He averaged a career-high 4.3 receptions per game, but also had an early career-low depth of target of 6.4 yards, which played a role in dropping down to 9.9 yards per catch, which was also his lowest rate through three seasons.
Fant also took a small step back in targets per game, going from 6.2 per game in 2020 down to 5.6 a year ago.
The team also gave blocking tight end Will Dissly a three-year extension, solidifying the position.
OFFENSIVE LINE
LT: Stone Forsythe
LG: Damien Lewis/Phil Haynes
C: Austin Blythe/Dakoda Shepley
RG: Gabe Jackson/Kyle Fuller/Pier-Oliver Lestage
RT: Jake Curhan/Greg Eiland
Seattle was middle of the road across the front in 2021 in pass protection, ranking 15th in ESPN’s Pass Block Win Rate (61%). At Pro Football Focus, they graded 20th in collective pass blocking.
They were 30th as a team in pressure rate allowed (37.7%).
Their two starting tackles from 2021 — Duane Brown and Brandon Shell — both remain free agents.
The team selected Stone Forsythe in the sixth round in 2021, but he logged just 14 snaps as a rookie.
Current right tack Jack Curhan ranked 87th among 95 tackle in pressure rate allowed in 2021 (9.2%).
Current guards Gabe Jackson (6.8%) and Damien Lewis (5.2%) ranked 73rd and 47th among 94 guards with 100 or more pass blocking snaps. After grading out 14th among guards per Pro Football Focus as a rookie in 2020, Lewis was 59th in Year 2.
Lewis and Jackson are signed beyond 2022. Lewis is safe, but Jackson only carries a $3 million dead cap hit in his age 32 season.
It will take more than this draft class and offseason, but this entire unit needs to be overhauled big picture, outside of maybe Lewis.
Seattle Seahawks Defense
By Dan Pizzuta
Interior Defensive Line
Poona Ford
Quinton Jefferson
Shelby Harris
Al Woods
Bryan Mone
Niles Scott
Jarrod Hewitt
Myles Adams
Poona Ford was 10th among defensive tackles in ESPN’s Pass Rush Win Rate and ranked 35th at the position in pressure rate per SIS. Ford played 63% of the defensive snaps in 2021. He signed a two-year deal before the 2021 season, which runs through 2022.
Quinton Jefferson returns to Seattle after a year each in Buffalo and Las Vegas. Jefferson has been a plus pass rusher from the interior throughout his career. Jefferson had 16 quarterback hits as a 17-game starter for the Raiders last season.
Shelby Harris was part of the Russell Wilson trade and the soon-to-be 31-year-old has added to his pass rush production over the past two years with 11 quarterback hits in each of 2020 and 2021. Harris has mostly been an odd-front end with the Broncos, but the Seahawks envision him as a 3-tech defensive tackle.
Al Woods was a top run-stopping defensive tackle, ranked fifth in Run Stop Win Rate. Woods just turned 35 years old and re-signed on a two-year deal, which should continue to keep Woods in the middle of that line.
EDGE
Darrell Taylor
Uchenna Nwosu
Alton Robinson
L.J. Collier
Alex Tchangam
Darrell Taylor, a 2020 second-round pick, missed his entire rookie season, but bounced back to make an impact in Year 2. Taylor only played 43% of the defensive snaps but had 13 quarterback hits with 6.5 sacks and ranked 39th among edge rushers in pressure rate.
Uchenna Nwosu got his first run as a full-time pass rusher with the Chargers last season and flashed the ability to be a starter on the edge. Nwosu was 25th among edge rushers in pressure rate last season and he signed a two-year deal with Seattle this offseason.
2020 fifth-round pick Alton Robinson has the athleticism to be a productive pass rusher, but has just seven quarterback hits over two seasons. He played 29% of the defensive snaps last season and could be in line for more playing time due to depth issues.
Off-ball Linebacker
Jordyn Brooks
Cody Barton
Joel Iyiebuniwe
Jon Rhattigan
Ben Burr-Kirven
Tanner Muse
Lakiem Williams
Aaron Donkor
With Bobby Wagner released, Jordyn Brooks takes over as the top linebacker. That changes a lot for this defense. For as good as Brooks can be downhill, he’s struggled in coverage. Brooks ranked 82 among 85 qualified linebackers in yards allowed per coverage snap in 2021.
Seattle played the highest rate of base defense last season (39%) and only played dime on 8% of snaps. Even if that changes to more nickel personnel under new defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt, that leaves a lot of openings for linebacker snaps after Brooks.
Cody Barton played 15% of the defensive snaps and is the leading returner of the depth.
Cornerback
Tre Brown
Sidney Jones
Justin Coleman
Artie Burns
Ugo Amadi
Mike Jackson
John Reid
Tre Brown only played in five games and on 150 coverage snaps during his rookie season but his play in that small sample gives a ton of optimism for what could be in the future.
Sidney Jones was 42nd among cornerbacks in Adjusted Yards allowed per coverage snap, easily his best year as a pro. He was signed for just a one-year deal in 2021 and re-signed for another one-year deal for 2022.
The Seahawks brought back Justin Coleman, who developed into a top slot corner with Seattle in 2017 and 2018 but hasn’t reached those highs since he left in free agency. Coleman, now 29 years old, could jump back in as the starting slot.
Ugo Amadi has safety-corner versatility and played most of his snaps as the slot corner last season.
Safety
Quandre Diggs
Jamal Adams
Marquise Blair
Nigel Warrior
Seattle re-signed Quandre Diggs for three more seasons after he played well as a deep safety. Diggs played 96% of the Seahawks’ defensive snaps and has 17 passes defensed over the past two seasons.
Jamal Adams didn’t have the same impact he had in 2020 and his role completely changed as a pass rusher. In 2020, when Adams had 9.5 sacks, he rushed the passer on 17.3% of his pass snaps with a 46.1% pressure rate. In 2021, those numbers dropped to 8.8% and 16.3%.
Like Amadi, Marquise Blair has corner-safety versatility but he’s appeared in just eight games over the past two seasons and is entering the final year of his rookie deal.
