Interesting Take on Draft Picks

by: Michael Steffes

Danny O"Neil has written an interesting article taking a look at the Seahawks first round draft picks. When Marcus Tubbs was released this week, it tallied the 6th out of 10 first rounders since 2000 who is no longer with the team. Marcus Trufant is the only holdout Holmgren first rounder. He and the three Ruskell picks, Spencer, Jennings and Jackson are the four.

This first round success rate is compared in the article to the Niners and Rams. It is much worse than the teams whose success on the field the Seahawks compare to. O'Neil uses this to point out how good the Hawks have done in free agency and the mid rounds. He also points out how good the Hawks would be if they had stuck it big with any of the guys such as Stevens, Robinson, or Tubbs. To the credit of the Hawks, they did get it right with Shaun and Hutch, and neither are with the team, but those issues have been discussed.

The one thing the article does not cover is the trade of a first for Deion Branch. Say what you want, but when you look at the trade, it still makes sense. First rounders aren't sure things, not even for Tim Ruskell. But guess what, neither are trades for proven players. Sometimes moves just don't work out. It is how the organization responds that makes up for this. They don't compound bad luck with bad moves. One of the reasons you can bet that Terry Glenn or Joe Horn won't be coming here just because Bobby got injured.

My final thought would be this. Imagine once this team starts getting first rounders to stick around. Maybe Spencer comes into his own, and Jennings progresses. Then two years from now, this team is littered with first rounders that have panned out. It would allow the team to maintain their success right into the next decade. ~END~