You can’t always get what you want, but if you try sometimes, well, you just might find that you get what you need.

These sage words of Mick Jagger apply to all walks of life, from sleeping with backup singers twice your size to being inside an NFL war room on draft day. They could very well apply to our beloved Seattle Seahawks right around the corner.

Next week, I believe that John Schneider’s desired plan is to engineer a trade back (or two) from pick 16 that will net Seattle more day two picks. That said, what if he can’t find any takers who will give him fair compensation? If teams know he’s an eager seller, what would stop them from lowballing?

This is what Schneider must be prepared for. Trading back into the lower portion of round one just to get a late third round pick won’t be very appealing, especially if there is a highly compelling prospect to be had at pick 16.

It is also possible that an unexpected player lands to your pick, and he is just way too good to pass up. I suspect there is a small handful of players in this draft that John Schneider has rated so highly that he would not trade back if they found themselves available at 16. I feel like he’s probably got a few of these quarterbacks rated this highly, Georgia tight end Brock Bowers, an offensive lineman or two, and probably a couple pass rushers.

This mock draft article is about staying put, and just taking the best player off your board, regardless of position. Last year, I think the team did this at pick five overall when they took cornerback Devon Witherspoon. There was no outward need for taking a corner that high, but he was just the highest rated player left on their board, and that was that.

As much as we want to anticipate that they will trade back and recoup a second round pick (or more), it may not happen. Here’s a fun hypothetical of what could happen if the right player lands to pick 16.

With the 16th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Jared Verse, Edge Rusher, Florida State

Seattle doesn’t have an overwhelming need at edge rusher, and they have poured high resources into the position for several years now, but sometimes a player is so good that he forces your hand. Verse is regarded by some as the top edge defender in the draft, and it would be stunning if he makes it here, but if he is, Seattle can snap him up and send pass rushers in waves next Fall. A superb selection to start the Mike Macdonald era.

With the 81st pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Matt Goncalves, Offensive Tackle, Pittsburgh

By not trading back at 16 and gather a second round pick, Seattle sweats out a long portion of the draft keeping their fingers crossed that a good offensive lineman will be available when they pick in the middle of the second round. They take Goncalves, who is well sized, athletic, and has experience at playing both tackle positions. It’s very possible he can be looked to convert to guard.

With the 102nd pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Mekhi Wingo, Defensive Tackle, LSU

At the top of round four, Seattle goes best player available again with an active defensive tackle. Wingo is an explosive 3 technique who will push Dre’Mont Jones, and will give Seattle instant interior pass rush depth. Great motor, great character, and a guy you want in your rotation.

With the 118th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Malik Mustapha, Safety, Wake Forest

Seattle stays patient with the safety position and takes potentially a good one here. I mocked him to Seattle before at pick 102, but this time I have them taking him a pick further back. They need to come out of this draft with a good safety prospect, and Mustapha feels like a guy who gets drafted in the middle rounds and ends up a quality NFL starter in a couple years.

With the 179th pick of the 2024 Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Nathaniel Watson, Linebacker, Mississippi State

I mocked Watson to Seattle last week in the sixth round and I am repeating it here. They brought him in for a visit the other week, he’s a productive three down player who called plays for the Bulldogs, and Seattle needs to take a linebacker. At this stage, he’s the best linebacker left on their board.

With the 192nd pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Michael Barrett, Linebacker, Michigan

Seattle double dips at linebacker by taking a player familiar with Mike Macdonald’s system and was productive. Barrett may not amount to much more than a depth player in the league, but he played for the national champs on the defense that Macdonald built. If there is one spot for him to land and maybe be molded into an eventual starter, it would be Seattle.

With the 235th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Brevyn Spann-Ford, Tight End, Minnesota

With their final pick of the draft, the Seahawks select a tight end who is well sized with decent hands and size to be a good blocker. He’s a developmental player who offers some upside, and maybe that is what they are looking for out of third tight end spot.

Thoughts about this mock draft

I don’t think it’s likely Jared Verse makes it to pick 16, but sometimes funny things happen. If five quarterbacks are taken in front of Seattle along with several offensive linemen, some receivers, and a supremely talented tight end from Georgia, all it might take is for a team or two take one of the other top edge rushers over Verse for him to land to where Seattle picks. My goodness, what a blessing this would be for Seattle, if this proved true.

This mock draft isn’t a terrible scenario for Seattle, in my opinion. They land a guy who has the talent to become one of the top edge rushers in the league in a few years, and will make they pass rush rotation potentially very strong in year one of Mike Macdonald’s regime. While I don’t believe they need to take an edge rusher in round one, Verse could be so special that it’s really kind of a no brainer.

Mike Macdonald has recently described his football philosophy as playing a brand of ball that makes the opposition feel like they are playing more than eleven players. San Fransisco felt that when they played the Ravens last year, and Brock Purdy played one of his worst games of his young career. The Washington Huskies felt that in the championship game when they played a Michigan defense that Macdonald was the former architect of, and Michael Penix Junior continues to get criticized for his underwhelming performance against it.

By adding Jared Verse to a group that includes Nwosu, the up and coming talents of Boye Mafe and Derick Hall, and the pass rush abilities of Darrell Taylor, Macdonald could bring waves of edge rushers in year one of his regime. It’s hard to imagine that he would not want that.

When you mix in a guy like Mehki Wingo, an active inside pass rusher, John Schneider would give his first year head coach the ability to also stock his inside pass rush. Suddenly, he’s got an interior pass rush that include Leonard Williams, Jarran Reed, Dre’Mont Jones, Wingo, and potentially Mike Morris who was drafted last year and played for Macdonald in Michigan. Wingo mixed with Verse, coming out of this draft, could be enough to give this side of the ball an impressive turnaround this Fall. That’s an exciting thought.

In the third round, I had them opting for a gigantic 6-6 327 pound dude who played left and right tackle in college and could develop into a guard, giving Seattle an enormous offensive line in the future. Goncalves missed a bunch of games with a toe injury in 2023, but has tape showing an active guy who held up in pass protection well enough, but had an ability to explode into the second level opening up run lanes. He was also a team captain. In the NFL he might be a serviceable starting tackle, but if he learns to play with better leverage, he has the potential to be a much better guard.

With Seattle bringing in Laken Tomlinson, drafting a talented gigantic tackle like Goncalves and transitioning him to guard makes sense, in my opinion, and should they sustain injuries at tackle, he already has that in his background. Tomlinson buys time for Goncalves to grow into the position, and Seattle has Scott Huff who was an excellent offensive line coach at UW, and known for successfully converting tackles to guards for the Huskies. Also, Goncalves has a Baltimore Raven style offensive lineman vibe about him, and I dig that.

Beyond these guys, I have Seattle taking shots on guys to plug in at need spots. Beyond offensive line help, they need a talented young safety to eventually become a starter. I think they need a third option at tight end to develop as a key contributor in the future. I think they need to come out of this draft with a linebacker (or two) who can grow in Mike Macdonald’s system behind Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dobson.

What this mock draft also shows, however, is the disappoint that could be felt from not trading back from 16, collecting further picks. This draft is especially deep at offensive line and receiver. In this mock, I have Seattle only taking one offensive lineman, and it would be a shame if they did not grab two from this class, and it would also kinda be a bummer if they didn’t take advantage of the richness of the receiver situation, as well. In this scenario, they miss out on both opportunities by choosing to take Jared Verse at 16. That is the price of staying put and taking a non offensive lineman even if he could be a great player at another position.

Also, I believe that John Schneider would love to draft a quarterback this year, if he can. If they miss out on one (as presented in this scenario), I think it would be an irritant for him. In his first draft apart from Pete Carroll, one where he can finally get back to his Green Bay DNA of drafting and developing quarterbacks, I can see it ego bruising for him if he did not finally take a swing on one, even if it is a later round pick.

In this mock, however, I wanted to show a scenario where Schneider misses out again at quarterback. As much as I believe he wants to take one, I don’t think he will burn a pick on one just for the sake of it. He likely has them rated in ranges where he would be comfortable taking them, but it might not fall the way he wants it to for them, and in this case, it doesn’t.

In the end, this would still be a draft class that Seattle can feel good enough about. They didn’t address offensive line they way I wanted them to do it, and that stings, but adding Jared Verse to this defense would have the potential of being franchise altering in an exciting way. In the long run, that might prove more fruitful towards building into a true contender.

When the Rams stayed put and took Aaron Donald, it changed their coarse from being bottom barrel to Super Bowl contender in a few short years after a coaching change. When the 49ers sucked in Kyle Shanahan’s early years, they snatched Nick Bosa at the top of the draft even though they already had a stacked defensive line, that move immediately made them a contender, and they have mostly been a top NFL team ever sense. I’m not going to suggest the Verse will be as dominant as either of those guys, but he could have enough talent to fall within the group who is just a notch below. In this league, every team would gladly take that.

If Seattle was fortunate enough to land a dude like Verse, it could be the golden ticket to truly turn this defense around in a huge way in year one of Macdonald’s regime. This is why I would just stay put and do it. I think Verse can be that good in this league, especially if he gets with a dude like Macdonald.

That is certainly something to get excited about if it happens.

Go Hawks.

Few people can ever gage what is going on in Seahawk general manager John Schneider’s mind when it comes to the draft. I think he’s a very good poker player and intentionally throws out smokescreens through the media.

I have been doing annual mock draft articles on this blog for years now, and I didn’t see Devon Witherspoon, Charles Cross, Jaxon Smith Ngijba, or Jordyn Brooks coming in round one. I did, however, detect that Boye Mafe, Abe Lucas, Ken Walker, Zach Charbonnet, Anthony Bradford, Kenny McIntosh, and Cam Young could all be draft picks and I was right with these.

What does this all mean? It means that even though they can be hard to predict at the top end of the draft, there are players on days two and three of the draft who one can easily project as fits for what Seattle likes at certain positions. They have types.

Last year, I was almost certain that they were going to draft a quarterback fifth overall, or take a pass rusher. The way they pranced around at top quarterback prospect pro days taking selfies with each of them should have been a dead given away of a smokescreen, but I fell for it, anyways. That’s how intoxicating it can be to imagine drafting a young quarterback in round one.

This year’s “smoke screen” was most likely John going onto Seattle Sports Radio a few weeks ago, and lamenting how much guards get over paid and over drafted in the league. It’s clear that they didn’t want to pay Damien Lewis what Carolina just did. It’s also clear that through these last view weeks of free agency, guard remains Seattle’s biggest need. It is also worth noting once again just how uniquely deep this draft appears to be at offensive line.

This first mock draft article exemplifies how Seattle might use this draft to build up its offensive line for the long term, finally. This also might be the mock draft I do that will most realistically mirror what Seattle ends up doing at the end of this month, but we shall see.

With the 16th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks trade with the Detroit Lions

Seattle and Detroit have a long history of trading together, and I have them again scratching each other’s backs. Penn State edge rusher Chop Robinson slides to pick 16, and Detroit makes an aggressive trade up for him sending picks 29, 61, and their 2025 second round pick. This satisfies John Schneider, and the deal is done.

With the 28th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Roger Rosengarten, Offensive Tackle, Washington

Seattle surprises by taking an offensive tackle when that is the strength of their offensive line, but in their view, they take best player available. Offensive coordinator Ryan Gruff and offensive line coach Scott Huff know Rosengarten extensively, and he was tasked to protect Michael Penix Junior’s blind side as he put up prolific passing numbers at UW. Rosengarten is a good athlete who tested well at the scouting combine, and will come in knowing exactly what to do in this blocking scheme. His presence could allow Abe Lucas to kick inside to a guard spot in order to better protect his knee and for Seattle to field the best five guys on the field together. Alternatively, it could be the rook who initially kicks inside, and Lucas stays outside. Either way, I would kinda dig this pick.

With the 61st pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Ruke Orhorhoro, Defensive Tackle, Clemson

Seattle locked up Leonard Big Cat Williams to a three year deal, and he will be an anchor inside on Seattle’s defensive line, but they might want to find him a mate to rush with him. Orhorhoro has great length and athleticism to play end in the 3-4 stuff they will do, and explosive strength to be an effective pass rushing DT when they go four down linemen. His selection will immediately push Dre’Mont Jones who was the big free agent signing last year that didn’t live up to expectations.

With the 81st pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks trade with the Cleveland Browns

In part of the Sam Howell trade, Seattle swapped their fifth round pick for Washington’s early sixth rounder, and in this scenario, they find a trade partner in Cleveland to move back a few spots in the third round to recoup a fifth round pick. Cleveland moves up to take an edge rusher who they think the Vikings, Rams, or Steelers might covet.

With the 85th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Trevin Wallace, Linebacker, Kentucky

Seattle takes a hard hitting middle linebacker. Wallace is an explosive athlete who attacks gaps, is unafraid to take on bigger bodies, and shows signs of being decent in coverage. He also offers pass rush abilities. He would benefit from having Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dobson playing in front of his. His job as a rookie will be to provide quality depth, great special teams, and to soak in Macdonald’s system to eventually take over as a starter.

With the 102nd pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Malik Mustapha, Safety, Wake Forest

At some point in this draft, I think we see Seattle taking a stab at a potential starting safety type, and I think Mustapha feels like a classic Baltimore Raven back end defender. He’s described as instinctive, rangy, plays the run and pass well. At 5-10 and 205 lbs, he’s not enticingly long, or big, but neither was Quandre Diggs, and I think he’s got those sort of traits.

With the 118th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Layden Robinson, Guard, Texas A&M

Last year, Seattle took massive athletic LSU guard Anthony Bradford in round fourth with intentions of him developing into a starter. I believe that is still the plan for him, but I can see them using another fourth rounder this year on a guard to push him, or become the eventual guard at the other spot. Robinson is another powerful big boy at 6-4 320 lbs, and with Ryan Grubbs taking over the offense, and I think we are going to see a lot of mixtures of zone and man blocking with the scheme. Robinson has the bruit abilities to fit the power man stuff, and could provide valuable swing guard duties in year one.

With the 156th pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Joe Milton, Quarterback, Tennessee

At some point in this draft, I believe it is still likely that Seattle will take a quarterback even though they just traded for Sam Howell to potentially be the QB of the future. I think John Schneider is itching to draft quarterbacks now with Pete Carroll out of the picture. Schneider is from the Green Bay school of drafting and developing passers and he has openly lamented only taking two in the last fourteen years.

I have thought long and hard about what prospect they could be targeting in the mid rounds should they not invest in one earlier. Joe Milton offers upside with Cam Newton like size, arm strength, and running abilities, but he is painfully raw with only twelve college starts in an air raid system that doesn’t greatly translate to the pros. However, with Geno Smith and Sam Howell, Seattle might be the ideal landing spot for him to come in and properly learn pro concepts with no pressure to start anytime soon. If he can pick the system up, fix his mechanics, he has crazy upside. At this stage in the draft, why not take a shot on a prospect who could actually blossom into a top end starter if all goes correctly? I would rather see them take a shot at potential greatness than play it safer on a prospect who will mostly likely be a run of the mill backup.

With the 179th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Jaheim Bell, Tight End, Florida State

Seattle has Noah Fant locked in for two more years, and they brought in Pharaoh Brown for a couple years to serve as their primary blocking tight end. They have depth players behind these two guys, but I could see them taking a shot on a player like Bell who offers good pass catching chops. At Washington, Grubb loved using athletic tight ends almost as big slot receivers who can get down field on occasion, and offer outlets on third downs. This is what Bell could be in the pros.

With the 192nd pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Josiah Ezirim, Offensive Tackle, Eastern Kentucky

Here, Seattle goes for its third offensive line prospect, and they take advantage of the unique depth at the tackle spot in this draft. Stone Forsythe is in the final year of his rookie contract, so Seattle could be in need of a longer termed swing tackle. Ezirim is huge at 6-5 324 lbs, and he has natural abilities as a run blocker and pass blocker. At this stage in the draft, he might be too good of a prospect for Seattle to pass up, and now they feel great about the depth of their offensive line for years to come.

With the 235th pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks select Tyrice Knight, Linebacker, UTEP

Knight is a developmental middle linebacker with good athletic traits. He was a tackling monster at Texas El Paso, but has been described as a player who free lanced a lot within the scheme. He will be tasked to learn how to become a disciplined linebacker in Mike Macdonald’s scheme, but in this late stage of the draft, they take a flyer on his traits.

Thoughts On This Mock Draft

If the Seattle Seahawks make a trade such as this one, bypassing a chance at a premiere pass rusher like Chop Robinson by trading into the backend of the first round for a right tackle many will see graded as a second round pick, I can guarantee the outrage all over Seahawks Twitter and sports radio. Before Roger Rosengarten plays a meaningful down of football, fans will be calling for John Schneider’s head on a silver platter.

The truth of trading back, however, is that a great prospect has to land at Seattle’s pick in order to entice the deal. For the folks who want Seattle to trade back in order to collect more picks, they need to square themselves with the fact that Seattle could pass up on a dude who might be an absolute star at a premium position. In this mock draft, I wanted to present a scenario where Seattle does just that.

A few quick thoughts on the quarterback situation for the Seahawks before we get to Roger Rosengarten and other picks in this draft. Even though Seattle now has Geno Smith and Sam Howell, a narrative is being driven that Seattle is still a quarterback needy team. I’m not so sure about that, but I think a few things are worth addressing here as the position ties into this mock draft.

I suspect the Seahawks probably went into this offseason keen to potentially draft one of the top quarterbacks of this class, but somewhere through the course of Senior Bowl workouts, the combine, and pro days, they determined that it would probably be too difficult to land a quarterback they really dig at pick 16, and this is why we saw the Sam Howell trade. They liked Howell a couple years ago, and are probably willing to give him a good long look with two years left on his rookie contract. If he blossoms into a quality young NFL starter, Schneider can hang his hat on saying that he always loved him coming out of college. I believe there’s a decent chance that he could, and I feel the team sees it this way, too.

That said, this Sam Howell trade does not prevent Seattle from starting to draft quarterbacks until they have found their next franchise passer. In this mock draft, I have them taking a fifth round flyer on Joe Milton, who has all kinds of physical talent, but is raw as can be for NFL standards, and will have an uphill battle to improve accuracy and show an ability to handle pro style concepts as a passer. If he clears those hurdles, however, he could be something special, but like Howell, he would be just one bite at the apple trying to find the next franchise passer.

A real key to this scenario of trading back with Detroit isn’t just getting their late second round pick this year, but also acquiring their second round pick in 2025, as well. If they want to take another chomp at the quarterback apple in 2025’s draft class, having two second round picks would give them ammo to move up for one, if they determine Howell or a guy like Milton isn’t going to be the guy long term. It just gives them more options and resources to better find that next guy in 2025, if needed.

The real story of this draft is taking advantage of what the strengths of it is, and that is offensive tackle. This is a ridiculously deep draft at the position. If there are internal concerns over how well Abe Lucas’s knee will hold up long term, Seattle could land a player like Rosengarten later in round one after a trade back, and they can be good to go at that spot for years.

In his recent mock draft, ESPN’s draft guru Mel Kiper has Rosengarten going to the 49ers at Pick 31. Kiper is a very well sourced draft analyst and might be hearing chatter in the winds that the former Husky is getting a lot of positive traction with teams these days. So, in my mind, it’s not out of the realm of possibilities that he ultimately finds himself in the backend of round one, and Seattle, with his former Washington offensive coordinator and line coach, knows him better than any other team out there. I’m connecting these dots.

People could read this article and ask why doesn’t Seattle stay at pick 16 and take UW’s Troy Fautanu instead because he is the superior prospect who is also familiar with the coaches, but I don’t expect him to make it to 16. The Chargers, Titans, Bears, and Saints all need offensive line help, and I can see him going to any one of those teams in front of Seattle. Therefore, I think there is a decent chance that they could be keen on Rosengarten after a trade back. He could be their best player available by the time they pick who also fits somewhat of a need.

I do think they will aim for a true guard but it might not be until early day three of the draft where they were comfortable taking Anthony Bradford last year. John Schneider might feel that rounds three through five are great points of the draft to take guards, and in truth, many quality guards in the league were drafted later on. You can find good guards, linebackers, safeties, and running backs in the mid portions of the draft. It’s actually fairly common.

Good offensive tackles, however, those guys usually go in round one. It is, and it has always been a premium position in the league. This is why I wouldn’t be surprised if they ultimately pick an offensive tackle first when the real bullets fly on draft day. Not the most obvious need, but because of the uncertainty of Lucas’s health, I think it’s a sneaky of enough need that also aligns with the top end strength of this draft class. Seattle can get a really good offensive tackle in round one, if they want one.

With the late second round picked gained in the trade back, I opted to go with a good defensive tackle prospect, even though it also didn’t feel like an overt need. I don’t think Schneider wants to get caught up on drafting needs. Orhorhoro was available at pick 61 in the draft simulator that I used, he was the highest rated player, and the pick made sense to me.

Mike Macdonald was hired to stop the Shanahan and McVay teams in the NFC West. His Baltimore defense was built up with a strong defensive line and front seven. I can see Seattle wanting to gift him with a player who has a chance to be special on the defensive line along with Big Cat Williams. Orhorhoro feels like a Baltimore Raven style D Liner. Tall, powerful, plays explosively with good pad level. I like this fit in Seattle.

In terms of linebacker, it has been talked about a lot how this draft isn’t super great at the position. Nobody really stood out at the combine hyped as the next Ray Lewis, or even Devin White, and the few guys being touted as potentially higher picks didn’t work out much. I think Seattle is interested in a few of these guys, but I don’t think they will burn a high pick on one just for the sake of it. Trevin Wallace in the middle of round three makes some sense. Waiting late on a raw yet athletic guy like Tyrice Knight makes sense, as well. No need to force any need here with Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dobson being brought in as veteran starters for 2024. Take a linebacker where ever it feels right to do it.

I like taking day three shots at safety and tight end. It feels right to target them there unless someone truly special falls in their lap earlier. There’s only one special tight end in this class, though, and I don’t think Brock Bowers makes it to pick 16.

If I were to nitpick this mock draft, I would have liked to have found another young edge rusher, and maybe taken a shot on another receiver. This is also a deep class at receiver, and it would be a shame for Seattle to not tap into it with Tyler Lockett being older, and Dee Eskridge being in the final year of his deal. While it is not a great need, I like the theme of staying with the strength of the draft, and instead of taking a developmental linebacker in the round three, that pick could have gone to a decent receiver prospect. Just a thought.

‘Tis what it is, though, and generally, if they pulled something like this off, I would dig that draft. I would love to see Seattle build up a great offensive line, and if they hypothetically kicked Abe Lucas to left guard to better protect that knee, a line that features Charles Cross, Abe Lucas, Olu Oluwatimi, Anthony Bradford, and Roger Rosengarten has an exciting feel to it, at least to me. It would be BIG, athletic, with a good mixture of technically sound pass blockers and physical earth moving run blockers. I could get behind that. Absolutely I could.

Go Hawks.