The Seattle Seahawks abided by the fans' wishes and didn't come away with Ryan Tannehill in the first round, which is a plus. But instead, the front office left fans scratching their heads with their somewhat bizarre selections over the first three rounds.
Though their moves weren't expected, the under-the-radar players have the fortitude it takes to end up being the good kinds of surprises.
In most mock drafts, the Seahawks were expected to take a defensive end in the first round—maybe Chandler Jones or Melvin Ingram—but they went in a completely different direction and selected Bruce Irvin with their No. 15 pick, a guy who wasn't expected to go in the first round at all.
Irvin, a West Virginia outside linebacker and defensive end, was ranked as the third-best linebacker and the 56th best overall player. Though he has good speed and the right frame for an NFL player, he's below average in terms of bulk (6'3", 245 pounds). That, however, isn't the primary reason that he's a risk: There are an abundance character concerns stemming from his history over the last several years.
Irvin was arrested in March after his pro day workout for disorderly conduct and destruction of property after he allegedly broke a sign at a Jimmy John's shop in Morgantown, and in high school, he dropped out, lived on the streets and spent time in a juvenile detention center, according to ESPN.com.
He earned his GED in 2007, tried to walk on to the football team at one community college but didn't make it, then tried his hand at Mt. San Antonio Community College. After a couple of years there, he de-committed from both Tennessee and Arizona State before ultimately choosing to continue his career at West Virginia.
Though they chose the riskiest possible player, the Seahawks seem confident in Irvin's abilities, especially head coach Pete Carroll, who told the Washington Post's Cindy Boren that while he was the head coach at USC, he recruited Irvin out of junior college and is ecstatic with the pick. He said:
We recruited him and we knew him very well. We had a very close relationship through the recruiting process. I’ve known this guy for a long time. I know what he brings to a football team, the excitement that he generates. The speed that he brings is so unique and so rare.
Fans are still scratching their heads as to why the Seahawks seem fixated on a prospect who is a colossal risk and, though good, isn't better than the other defensive ends and linebackers still on the board when they made their selection. Hopefully, the organization's close relationship with Irvin will prove to pay off and keep him focused—and on the field.
In the second round, the Seahawks chose Utah State linebacker Bobby Wagner, who was recruited by only one school out of high school. He didn't begin playing football until his junior year of high school but has above-average instincts and is an excellent tackler. The Seahawks seem impressed by his motivation despite doubts throughout his entire career, and he's a durable, hard-working prospect with the toughness to succeed if he maintains the same effort levels.
The Seahawks' third-round selection, Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson, is also an overcoming-the-odds type who was told that, at 5'11", he was too short to play in the NFL. According to the Bellingham Herald's Steve Kelley, Wilson began his college career at NC State, abandoned football for a while to play in the minor leagues for the Colorado Rockies, then returned to Wisconsin for one more season.
Rated as the eighth-best quarterback on the board, Wilson has excellent pocket mobility and good arm strength, and though his size remains a substantial concern, his production—3,175 yards, 33 touchdowns and just four interceptions last season—belies those worries.
All of the Seahawks' draft picks, in their own ways, are risks, but if nothing else, they all share one common quality: the motivation to do whatever it takes to shed that label.
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