So, the Seattle Seahawks are trading their franchise quarterback and thinking about replacing him with a creep. They’re also releasing their legendary future Hall of Fame middle linebacker Bobby Wagner and likely beginning a total rebuild. On the bright side, at least they have a lot more draft capital today than they did yesterday before the Russell Wilson-to-Denver deal was announced.
Now armed with eight selections – including the No. 9 overall pick from the Broncos – the Seahawks are in position to land a real difference-maker in the first round for the first time in several years. In a new 2022 mock draft from Todd McShay at ESPN, Seattle uses that pick on Oregon defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux, one of the top-two edge rusher prospects in this class.
“I’ve mentioned that I still want to see a little more fire out of him on a down-to-down basis, and that’s still true. But there’s no doubt he has the talent to be a difference-maker on an NFL defense. And Seattle’s unit could use that: Its 34 sacks tied for No. 22 last season, while its 38.7% pass rush win rate ranked No. 20. Thibodeaux, who had seven sacks and 46 pressures last season, gets a new era of Seahawks football rolling.”
Thibodeaux is usually going higher than No. 9 in most mock drafts and we’d be surprised if he’s still on the board at that point. However, crazier things have happened in the draft. If Thibodeaux is available, picking him should be an easy call – unless Malik Willis is there.
