As a lead-up to the 2024 NFL draft, we've broken down the current depth chart of every NFL team and identified the biggest draft and team needs for the Seattle Seahawks.
You can find additional team-by-team draft needs articles and other draft content on our 2024 NFL Draft Hub.
Who Did the Seattle Seahawks Select in the 2024 NFL Draft?
The Seattle Seahawks selected Byron Murphy (DT, Texas) with the No. 16 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The Seahawks also drafted:
- Christian Haynes (OG, UConn)
- Tyrice Knight (LB, UTEP)
- AJ Barner (TE, Michigan)
- Nehemiah Pritchett (CB, Auburn)
- Sataoa Laumea (OG, Utah)
- D.J. James (CB, Auburn)
- Michael Jerrell (OT, Findlay)
Seattle Seahawks Needs: Top Positions of Need in 2024
- Offensive Line
- Linebacker
- Safety
What Picks Do the Seattle Seahawks Have in 2024?
The Seattle Seahawks have 7 picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, including:
- Round 1 (16)
- Round 3 (81)
- Round 4 (102)
- Round 4 (118)
- Round 6 (179)
- Round 6 (192)
- Round 7 (235)
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Seattle Seahawks Draft Capital Stats
Our Sharp Draft Value Rank is a valuation of draft capital based on a combination of average performance delivered and average dollars earned on second contracts.
This is based on two public models: performance delivered based on draft slot (the AV model created by Chase Stuart) and contractual earnings in non-rookie deals based upon draft slot (the OTC model created by Brad Spielberger and Jason Fitzgerald).
- Seahawks Sharp Draft Value Rank: 26 of 32 teams
- Seahawks AV Model Draft Value Rank: 27 of 32 teams
- Seahawks OTC Model Draft Value Rank: 26 of 32 teams
Seattle Seahawks Draft Value vs. Other Teams:
The Seahawks’ draft value is 19% lower than the league average of all 32 teams. 25 other teams have more draft value entering the 2024 NFL Draft.
Seattle Seahawks Draft Prediction:
Brendan Donahue has the Seahawks trading down to select Cooper DeJean (CB, Iowa) with the 22nd overall pick in his most recent 2024 NFL Mock Draft.
Mock draft expert Ryan McCrystal believes the Seahawks could target a defensive lineman like Byron Murphy II (DT, Texas) with their top pick at No. 16 overall in the first round.
Seattle Seahawks Strength of Schedule, 2024
The Seattle Seahawks have the 15th-easiest NFL strength of schedule for the 2024 NFL season.
Seattle Seahawks Offense: Depth Chart, Analysis & Draft Needs
Rich Hribar breaks down the offensive depth chart by position for the Seattle Seahawks, identifying areas where the team could improve in the upcoming 2024 NFL Draft.
Quarterback Depth Chart, Seahawks:
- Geno Smith
- Sam Howell
After a career breakout in 2022, Geno Smith took a step back last season.
His completion rate went from 69.8% down to 64.7%.
His touchdown rate went from 5.2% down to 4.0%.
His yards per pass attempt went from 7.5 Y/A down to 7.3 Y/A.
Smith ended the season 16th among quarterbacks in EPA per dropback (0.06).
The largest issue that Smith and Seattle had last season was more pressure and handling that added heat.
Smith was under pressure on 40.8% of his dropbacks last season (28th in the league) after a 34.2% rate in 2022 (21st).
When pressured last season, Smith averaged only 5.3 yards per pass attempt (25th) while completing 50.0% of his passes (12th).
When Smith was kept clean, he averaged 8.4 Y/A (fifth) and completed 73.0% of his passes (11th).
Smith averaged 7.3 air yards per pass attempt from a clean pocket (12th) while averaging a league-low 6.4 air yards per throw when pressured.
Seattle had several issues up front last season (spoiler alert) that they are hoping to correct this season.
Smith may never have as efficient of a season as he had in 2022, but his performance from a clean pocket suggests that he is not a complete pumpkin again, either.
Seattle built options to get out of Smith’s contract extension should the veteran revert to his career production.
They can get out Smith’s contract if they choose to after this season, saving $25 million in cap space for 2025 in that event.
Otherwise, Smith will be on the books in 2025 for $38.5 million.
Seattle brought in Sam Howell via trade this offseason, who has two years remaining on his rookie contract.
General manager John Schneider has stated that Smith is the starter “until he’s not,” which is not an overwhelming amount of praise.
Seattle had an up-front look at Howell, who threw for 312 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions in Seattle in Week 10.
Despite that sample of success, Howell was 26th in the NFL in yards per pass attempt (6.4 Y/A) in his first season as a starter.
The negative plays were the killer for Howell getting another shot in Washington.
Howell’s 3.4% interception rate was ahead of only Mac Jones (3.5%), and he took a sack on 25.0% of his pressures (29th).
Howell ended up taking 64 sacks, the most in the league.
It is likely the Seahawks head into 2024 letting things play out between Smith and Howell.
But being able to get out Smith’s contract as early as next offseason does keep the door open to select a quarterback that they like in this draft if the opportunity presents itself.
Seattle did meet with both Bo Nix and Michael Penix at the Combine, and the team has used one of their top 30 private visits on Nix already.
Penix was the hot name connected to Seattle due to the lowest-hanging branch that the Seahawks brought in Ryan Grubb as their new offensive coordinator. Grubb was the offensive coordinator for Penix at Washington the past two seasons.
Running Back Depth Chart, Seahawks:
- Kenneth Walker
- Zach Charbonnet
- Kenny McIntosh
- Bryant Koback
After turning 255 touches into 1,215 yards and nine touchdowns over 15 games as a rookie in 2022, Kenneth Walker turned 248 touches into 1,164 yards and nine touchdowns over 15 games last season.
Walker had a dip across the board in nearly every efficiency metric as a rusher, going from 4.6 YPC as a rookie down to 4.1 YPC last season. His explosive run rate went from 12.7% down to 11.0% last season.
We have already hinted that this offensive line had some issues, and it showed up in the run game as well.
After averaging 1.45 yards before contact per rush as a rookie, Walker averaged 1.20 yards before contact per run last season.
Walker still has two seasons left on his rookie contract.
The team also still has plenty of rookie contract runway on Zach Charbonnet, whom they selected in the second round (52nd overall) last season.
As a rookie, Charbonnet turned 141 touches into 671 yards and a score.
Charbonnet already carved into a third-down role in the offense as a rookie, playing 122 third downs compared to 35 for Walker.
With DeeJay Dallas now gone via free agency (Dallas played 52 third downs), Charbonnet can extend that role even further.
Kenny McIntosh also could factor into the role that Dallas leaves vacant.
McIntosh did not play a single offensive snap as a rookie, but he is also on a rookie contract.
Seattle has been known for aggressively selecting running backs in the draft, but they are stocked with young and cheap talent to resist any of those urges.
Wide Receiver Depth Chart, Seahawks:
- DK Metcalf
- Tyler Lockett
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba
- Jake Bobo
- Laviska Shenault
- D’Wayne Eskridge
- Dareke Young
- Cody White
- Easop Winston
This is still the largest area of strength for this offense, but this unit did not blow the doors off in 2023.
Seattle wide receivers combined to catch 228 passes (ninth) for 2,842 yards (12th) with 19 touchdowns (tied for eighth).
DK Metcalf averaged only 4.1 receptions per game, his fewest since his rookie season.
Metcalf was able to make up for that dip in receptions by averaging a career-high 16.9 yards per catch.
After seeing a career-low 12.4% deep target rate in 2022, Metcalf was back up to a 21.8% deep target rate last season.
That contributed to a career-low 55.5% catch rate after a 63.8% catch rate last season.
He has always been a man coverage demon in the NFL, but Metcalf’s usage against zone (which teams are running more than ever) was the lowest of his career.
Metcalf was targeted on 35.9% of his routes against man coverage as opposed to a 17.0% rate against zone.
Against man coverage, he averaged 2.42 yards per route run, accounting for 35.4% of the team targets and 47.3% of the team’s air yards.
Against zone looks, Metcalf did average 1.95 yards per route run, which was his highest since his rookie season.
But he only received 16.7% of the team targets with 33.9% of the team’s air yards versus zone.
Metcalf has the physical tools to be a dominant wideout in the league, but he just has not quite gotten over that hump yet.
He still has gone over 1,000 yards in three of his five NFL seasons (with a low season of 900 yards), but it feels like we have been waiting for him to kick that final door down.
Metcalf is locked up through the 2025 season.
Tyler Lockett restructured his contract to stay in Seattle for at least another season.
Lockett will turn 32 this September and is coming off his lightest season since early in his career.
Lockett averaged 52.6 yards per game in 2023, his fewest in a season since 2017.
His five touchdowns were his fewest in a season since 2017 as well.
The quality of targets was a large culprit for his decline.
Lockett had a 13.1% inaccurate target rate last season after only a 7.7% rate in 2022.
Lockett is on the books through 2025, but the team can save $17 million on the cap next season if they trade or release him after this season.
Jaxon Smith-Njigba failed to answer any of the questions that we had entering last year’s draft about whether he was a true WR1 in the NFL.
Selected as the first receiver in last year’s draft. Smith-Njiba caught 63 passes for 628 yards and four touchdowns.
He was seventh among all rookie wideouts in routes run (475), ranked 10th in target rate per route (16.8%), and 13th in yards per route run (1.32). That was the same yards per route run as fellow rookie, Jake Bobo.
Smith-Njiba’s usage as a rookie was largely nondescript.
He averaged only 6.1 air yards per target, ranking 25th out of 27 rookie wide receivers last season to run 100 or more routes.
35.5% of Smith-Njigba’s targets were at or behind the line of scrimmage, which was the highest rate of all rookie wide receivers. For added context, YAC merchant Rashee Rice was at 26.5%.
Smith-Njigba did flash some special isolated plays toward the end of the season to provide hope that his rookie season usage was more of an issue in creating middling production as opposed to any talent limitations in the NFL.
Pre Order the Best Analytical 2024 Football Preview
Don't miss out on Warren Sharp's 500+ page preview of the 2024 NFL season.
The preview is unlike anything you have ever seen, featuring stunning visualizations built with the reader in mind.
This preview shares insights into players, coaches, teams, and philosophies with one goal in mind: to prepare you for the 2024 NFL season by delivering the smartest information in the fastest, most direct way possible.