My Ideal 2022 Seahawks Draft

With the trade of Russell Wilson (😢), the Seahawks acquired some draft capital this year and beyond.  I thought I'd put together my own mock draft for the Hawks.  This is assuming there will be no trades, which, knowing general manager John Schneider, is nowhere near realistic, but I am not going to try to predict any draft trades, either.  

Here's a list of guys I would take with the draft picks the Hawks have based on their needs, assuming each guy will be available.  I'll try to be realistic as to when each player will be available (for example, I won't have the Hawks take a guy in the 3rd round that is expected to be a 1st round pick).  I'll be stoked if the Hawks take just one of these guys.  It'll be interesting to see if any of these guys I select end up being diamonds in the rough.

Rd 1 Pick 9 overall: Trevor Penning, OT, Northern Iowa
I'm not sure if he'll go this high, but if not, the Hawks could trade down a bit, acquire another pick, and take Penning later than #9.  He's a stud, and I'll bet he'll be a Pro Bowler someday.

The Seahawks actually took Charles Cross, who was a higher-graded tackle.  Penning ended up being drafted at #19 to the Saints.  I'd call this a win.  We'll see how each of their careers pan out.

Rd 2 Pick 40 overall: Logan Hall, DE, Houston
I was torn between Hall and Arnold Ebiketie, but I went with Hall because he's more like the Michael Bennett type D-lineman that can line up at end for running downs or at d-tackle for passing downs, whereas Ebiketie is lighter and is more like Darrell Taylor, who we already have of course.  I'd be happy with Logan Hall, who could learn from Shelby Harris and fill in for him.  

Logan Hall went #33 Tampa Bay, so the Hawks had no shot.  They ended up taking Boye Mafe at #40, so again I picked the right position, but not the right player.  We'll have to compare their careers and see who came out on top.

Rd 2 Pick 41 overall: Desmond Ridder, QB, Cincinnati
I do not expect the Hawks to take a QB in the first round.  I think they'll want to try to find another diamond in the rough, and I think it could be Desmond Ridder.  I like what I've seen from him.  Draft him, have him compete with Locke just like Russ competed with Matt Flynn.  The Hawks will likely draft a quarterback, and I'd put money on it being in the 2nd, maybe the 3rd round.

Well the entire media and I were thinking the Hawks would want to add another QB, but they did not.  Instead, they drafted Kenneth Walker, which shows they want to be a run-first offense.  If Walker has a solid career and guys like Ridder and Malik Willis don't pan out, I'd call this a win.  Ridder went to the Falcons at pick 74.

Rd 3 Pick 72 overall: Luke Goedeke, G, Central Michigan
Luke Goedeke has got good measurables and some scouts even like him better than his teammate who is likely a first round pick.  He's played tackle and guard, so he's versatile, and the Hawks could plug him anywhere.

Again, the Hawks went with an offensive lineman when I predicted them to, but instead of a guard, they snared another tackle in Abraham Lucas.  I like that pick.  Again, we'll have to compare Lucas to Goedeke.  Goedeke went #57 to Tampa (hey did the Tampa GM see this?), so the Hawks had no shot at him.
 
Rd 4 Pick 109 overall: Tariq Woolen, CB, Texas-San Antonio
This is a bit wishful thinking, but he's got the size (6'3") that Carroll likes, and he's athletic for his size, too.  The reason he's not graded higher is because he has some background and medical concerns, but I think Carroll and Schneider can work past that with him.

The Seahawks took CB Coby Bryant here, but the craziest thing is, they did end up taking Tariq Woolen, but later at pick 153.  He's the only pick I called; I just knew Carroll would love his size and speed.  

Rd 5 Pick 145 overall: Jesse Luketa, ILB, Penn State
The Hawks will very likely draft a linebacker who could play the mike position.  With Brooks and Barton stepping up after Wagner's departure, that means the Hawks will need to fill in the backup spots.  Jesse Luketa has great size but isn't outstanding athletically, but could definitely learn and develop in the Hawks' system.

The Seahawks traded this pick down and ended up taking DE Tyreke Smith.  Luketa went at #256 to Arizona.  Yikes.  At least I was right about taking a defensive player.

Rd 5 Pick 153 overall: Marquan McCall, DT, Kentucky
It wouldn't hurt the Hawks to get some depth at defensive tackle, because honestly, I can't remember anyone after Poona Ford and Al Woods.  McCall is a beast, almost 350 pounds.

This is where the Hawks drafted Woolen, and hopefully it will be a steal.  Marquan McCall went undrafted but signed with Carolina.

Rd 7 Pick 229 overall: Jordan Mason, RB, Georgia Tech
I got to this pick and realized that I didn't have the Hawks taking any offensive skill players; that would be so unlike them.  I could perhaps see a late pick on a running back, as I'm not sure what Chris Carson's future is.  Jordan Mason was overshadowed in college (wasn't a starter), so the Hawks may take a chance on him.

The Hawks did take a RB, but in the 2nd round.  They did, however, take an offensive skill position player here in WR Bo Melton.  Jordan Mason went undrafted but signed with San Francisco.

I think this is a fairly realistic draft for the Hawks.  The front of it is slightly stacked towards the offense, but the Hawks need offensive linemen and a quarterback they could develop.  I don't have the Hawks taking any offensive skill players until their final pick because they really shouldn't be wasting a pick on those positions.  Remember Dee Eskridge?  Sure could've used Creed Humphrey instead.  Let's hope Pete and John draft well this coming draft and hey, maybe they'll take one of my guys.  We'll see.

And just for the heck of it, why not take a look at what the roster might look like?  

QB: Drew Lock, Desmond Ridder
RB: Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny, Deejay Dallas, Jordan Mason, Travis Homer
WR: DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, D'Wayne Eskridge, Penny Hart, Freddie Swain
TE: Noah Fant, Will Dissly, Colby Parkinson
T: Trevor Penning, Jake Curhan, Stone Forsythe
G: Luke Goedeke, Gabe Jackson, Damien Lewis
C: Austin Blythe, Kyle Fuller
DE: LJ Collier, Logan Hall, Shelby Harris, Alton Robinson, Darrell Taylor
DT: Poona Ford, Quinton Jefferson, Al Woods, Marquan McCall/Bryan Mone
OLB: Jordyn Brooks, Uchenna Nwosu, Ben Burr-Kirven/Jon Rhattigan 
ILB: Cody Barton, Jesse Luketa, Joel Iyiegbuniwe
CB: Tre Brown, Sidney Jones, John Reid, Justin Coleman, Artie Burns
FS: Quandre Diggs, Ugo Amadi
SS: Jamal Adams, Ryan Neal/Marquise Blair
And we know who the special teamers are. Honestly, that's not a bad roster, and one I could see winning at least 6 games.  

All of the Careers I have ever considered and why I haven't done them

Right now, I am at a point in my life where I need to figure out what I want to do for a career.  I currently work at Safeway as a food clerk, but I can't work there forever (unless I decided I wanted to be a manager there).  One of the things I get from my mother is not knowing what I want to do with my life for a career.  She got a job as an 18 year old with a telephone company (Pacific Northwest Bell which became US-West which became Qwest which became Century Link).  She worked there for about 30 years.  I know I don't wanna be stuck in the same job for 30 years, and I do plan on going back to school, but what for?  Here's a look at what I've considered for careers, in (somewhat) chronological order:

- Fireman
As a kid, I never really expressed it to anyone, but I wanted to be a fireman.  I heard once my dad almost became a fireman but didn't because of his horrible vision, so I wanted to maybe do what he didn't.  However, I was always short for my age and I felt a good firefighter is someone who can lift and carry the average sized man, which I can not.  Maybe I"ll get in shape and become a volunteer firefighter someday.  That would fulfill this passion.  But I don't think I could ever become a full-time fireman.

- Computer Scientist/Technician
In my late high school years and early college years, I wanted to do something with computers.  I was fascinated by them.  So as my "major" at Bellevue Community College, I chose Computer Science.  My first Computer Science class, CS101, was a blast.  I did well and I had a great instructor.  However, my next Computer Science Class was nowhere near what I was expecting.  It involved a lot of programming (including Javascript and C++), something I couldn't get my mind to understand, no matter how hard I tried.  The instructor was not helpful and I ended up doing pretty poorly in the class, as well as not enjoying it.  After that class, I gave up on computers, because I don't think I'll ever be able to learn programming and coding.

- Math Teacher
Shortly after giving up Computer Science, I thought about teaching Math because I like math so much.  And BCC had an Associate's for Mathematical Education.  However, after some thinking, I decided not to do it.  I do like teaching, but I get easily frustrated when someone doesn't understand, and I'm still not good speaking in front of groups.  Plus, teachers have never been paid well (although they should be).

- Professional singer/entertainer/comedian
I never seriously considered these careers, but if I had the talent, I so would.  If I worked hard enough I could be a decent enough of a comedian, but not anyone real well-known.  I'd love to be a singer, but my vocal range is very limited (thanks puberty) and my lack of confidence can get to me at times.

- Sports marketing
I would love a career that has to do with sports, because sports is one of my passions.  So, I looked into it and I found a school (Full Sail) that offers a Sports Marketing Online degree.  I applied and even went through all of the enrollment processes and tasks, but I couldn't officially start, because my heart wasn't in it.  Why?  Because I just couldn't see myself in it.  I also realized that I didn't want to ever dislike sports.  I felt like if I got a job in sports marketing and I didn't like it for some reason, then I would start to dislike sports.  Sports are something that I can enjoy outside of my work and personal life and I want it to stay that way.

- Professional YouTuber/LP'er
One of the things I really think I could do is being a professional YouTuber.  Yeah, I know I harped on Google/YouTube in an earlier post, but I think I would certainly enjoy this and be good at it.  I've already put out some LP's (Let's Play's--You play through a game in hopes of having your viewers play along with you), but I would like to do other things, such as pranks, vlogs, and comedy/sketch videos.  And it is certainly possible to make a living off of YouTube.  One YouTuber I'm subscribed to, Jonathan Paula, makes a living solely off the views and subscribers he gets on YouTube.  It helps to have a show ("Is it a Good Idea to Microwave This?") that has a total amount of views over 20 million, but you get my point.  However, it's hard to get started and make enough money to support yourself.  Also, many would not see this as a smart or viable career choice.  It's not something that I've completely shut the book on like other career choices.  I'm thinking I'll just keep this as a hobby until one day I do an LP that gets me a boatload of subscribers.

- Writer
One of the more recent careers I've considered is writing.  Which type?  Hard to say.  I feel like I could write anything I needed to, whether it be newspaper/magazine articles, screenwriting, or even novelizations.  The thing that's kept me from pursuing this career is I read from a former writer that when he started writing for a newspaper that writing lost its interesting and became a chore more than a hobby.  You have to meet deadlines and you have to keep readers interested.  Much more stressful a career than it seems.  I've watched Californication on Showtime and the character of Hank Moody (played by David Duchovny) is a writer and he seems to hate it.  I think I can be a decent enough of a writer, but not so talented that it would get me through all the stress and deadlines.

One of my problems is that I've never striven to be extraordinary.  A huge part of me just wants to be ordinary.  I want an ordinary family, job, house, life, you name it.  I want a normal 9-5 job in a cubicle somewhere, if it'll be enough to get me by.  I do feel like I'll make a name for myself someday.  What I really want to be more than anything is to be an amazing father.  I want my kids to call me the best dad in the world.  I want to make them into really incredible people.  But in order to do that, I have to get a career where I can afford kids, so that is what I will work on.  I want to be a father more than anything, but unfortunately that job doesn't pay.  But it pays in terms of life fulfillment, which is something money can't buy.  I'll just have to wait until that day comes.