Patience â to a point
KIRKLAND, Wash. – For the Seattle Seahawks, patience proved to be a virtuous attribute for most of Saturday afternoon.
But eventually, the Seahawks could wait no longer.
The Seahawks passed on addressing their most obvious need, a tight end, in Round 1 of the NFL draft. Seattle actually traded down three spots, from No. 25 to No. 28, before selecting USC defensive end Lawrence Jackson.
The Seahawks ditched the patient approach about an hour later, trading their third-round pick to move up 17 spots in the second round to get a shot at Notre Dame tight end John Carlson.
The last time the Seahawks traded up in the second round, they took a USC linebacker named Lofa Tatupu who has gone to the Pro Bowl after each of his first three NFL seasons.
“If it works out as well as that one,” team president Tim Ruskell said, “we’ll be very happy – obviously.”
The Seahawks could have had their pick of tight ends in Round 1. Purdue’s Dustin Keller was the first chosen, going to the New York Jets at No. 30. But Seattle passed on the position in favor of a player who adds depth on the defensive line.
The Seahawks didn’t want to take any chances in Round 2. They gave Baltimore their third-round pick to move up from No. 55 to No. 38 so they could take Carlson.
“Had we not done the first move and gotten the extra picks later in the draft,” Ruskell said, “maybe we wouldn’t have had the confidence to be able to (move up in Round 2).
“… We love the third round, but we wanted our tight end to come out of the second round. We thought that was the round of value for the tight end position.”
The Seahawks, who entered the draft hoping to add picks in the later rounds, got their initial wish when Dallas traded fifth- and seventh-round selections to move up three spots to No. 25 in Round 1. Dallas took South Florida cornerback Mike Jenkins, while the patient Seahawks waited until No. 28 to select Jackson.
The 6-foot-4, 271-pound, Jackson had 10 1/2 sacks during his senior year at USC, and he’s expected to be an immediate contributor on the defensive line. Coach Mike Holmgren said Jackson will line up at right defensive end and compete with Darryl Tapp for a starting job, but the four-year starter from USC also has the ability to slide inside on pass-rushing downs.
He’ll also add depth on a line that includes Pro Bowl defensive end Patrick Kerney on the left side.
“Patrick, he kind of wore down,” Holmgren said of the 2007 season. “(Jackson) gives us real good depth at the defensive end position. I think it is very, very important for us to have that.”
Carlson, meanwhile, appears to be a leading candidate for a starting job. The only other tight ends on the roster are veterans Will Heller, Jeb Putzier and Ben Joppru, who had a combined 19 receptions last season.
Carlson had 47 receptions in 2006, when he was a junior on a Notre Dame team that included quarterback Brady Quinn. After Quinn went on to become a first-round pick in the 2007 draft, Carlson’s numbers dropped off. He caught 40 passes as a senior while the Irish struggled to find a quarterback.
“If you just entered this business and looked at this year’s film on John Carlson, … you’re not seeing a lot of things that you really like,” Holmgren said. “His junior year was entirely different, and so much of that was because he had a quarterback.”
The Seahawks were looking for a tight end to replace former starter Marcus Pollard, who was not re-signed. Holmgren said that the Seahawks saw Carlson as the most complete tight end in the draft.
So rather than wait for their second-round pick to arrive, the Seahawks hopped ahead of 17 teams in order to get their man.
“We weren’t that confident, at 55, that we would get the guy we wanted,” Ruskell said. “So by doing the move, we ensured that we would get the tight end that we wanted.”
In the process, the Seahawks gave up a valuable third-round pick. But they added two later picks in the trade with Dallas, giving Seattle five picks in today’s final five rounds.
Special teams will be a priority in today’s picks, Ruskell said.