Analysis: Ranking Seahawks Top 10 Day Three Draft Selections

While first-round picks receive the headlines on draft weekend, championship teams in the NFL are largely built on the backs of players drafted in later rounds. Which day three selections stand out as Seattle's best?

In their 47-year history, the Seahawks have had plenty of iconic stars who were selected in the first round of the NFL Draft. From Hall of Famers such as Walter Jones and Cortez Kennedy to MVP winner Shaun Alexander to ball-hawking safety Earl Thomas, the team has struck gold on several top picks over four-plus decades.

While Jones, Alexander, and Thomas were all integral contributors for eventual Super Bowl-bound squads in Seattle, however, championship teams aren't build solely on top draft selections. In fact, one common thread all Super Bowl winners share in common is the fact that the backbone of the roster has to be constructed around late round draft picks and undrafted signees.

The Seahawks, of course, haven't been an exception to that rule. All three of their previous Super Bowl teams featured standout players who weren't drafted in the first round. This was especially true for the 2013 and 2014 squads that featured multiple superstars who weren't selected in the top 32 picks.

Looking back at its franchise history collectively, which day three selections - the fourth round and later - stand out as Seattle's best?

10. Edwin Bailey

Draft Position: Round 5, Pick 114 (1981)

Career Stats: 121 starts in 11 seasons

After a stellar career at South Carolina State, Bailey immediately found his way into Seattle's starting lineup in 1981. Taking one of the more unconventional career paths imaginable, the arrival of veteran Reggie McKenzie pushed him to the bench for the next two seasons before returning to the starting lineup for good in 1984. In more than a decade with the team, he participated in four playoff runs with the Seahawks and played a critical role in helping star running back Curt Warner rush for 1,000-plus yards four times in the 80s. As a key cog in the trenches, the team finished in the top six in scoring three times with him as a full-time starter.

9. Rocky Bernard

Draft Position: Round 5, Pick 146 (2002)

Career Stats: 283 tackles, 29.0 sacks in 103 games with Seattle

While he never earned Pro Bowl recognition in seven seasons with the Seahawks, Bernard made an immediate impact as a rotational reserve after being drafted out of Texas A&M in 2002. Following three productive seasons to open his career, he broke out as an unheralded contributor during the team's Super Bowl run in 2005, finishing with a career-best 8.5 sacks and 16 tackles for loss despite starting only seven games. In three additional seasons with the team, he started 44 games while amassing 93 tackles and 11.0 sacks. Often forgotten when looking back at the great teams from the mid-2000s, his ability to stop the run and rush the passer from the interior made him one of the best value picks in franchise history.

8. Dwayne Harper

Draft Position: Round 11, Pick 299 (1988)

Career Stats: 354 tackles, 13 interceptions in 94 games

Selected before the NFL shrunk the draft down to seven rounds, Harper joined the Seahawks as an 11th round selection and over the next six seasons, he missed a grand total of two games and started 16 games three times. Though he never made a Pro Bowl, he produced at least three interceptions in three consecutive seasons from 1990 to 1992 and surpassed 60 tackles four different times, providing stability in the secondary in the post-Dave Brown years. A reliable, consistent asset at the cornerback spot with a sound all-around game, he achieved what few 11th round picks could by quickly emerging as a viable NFL starter and enjoying a productive 12-year career with three different teams.

7. Chris Carson

Draft Position: Round 7, Pick 249 (2017)

Career Stats: 3,502 rushing yards, 31 combined touchdowns in 49 games

Playing second-fiddle to starter Justice Hill, Carson never rushed for more than 557 yards in two seasons at Oklahoma State. But the Seahawks loved his physical, bruising running style and took a flier on him late in the 2017 NFL Draft. By the end of his first training camp, he had positioned himself to earn a starting nod over Eddie Lacy and Thomas Rawls, only to miss most of the season with a fractured ankle. Upon his return, he posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and scoring 16 rushing touchdowns in 2018 and 2019. He's also been an underrated receiver, snagging 107 passes in five seasons. Injuries slowed him down in recent years and limited his production as a result, but when healthy, he's been arguably the best seventh round selection in team history.

6. Michael Sinclair

Draft Position: Round 6, Pick 155 (1991)

Career Stats: 73.5 sacks, 25 forced fumbles in 144 games

Selected out of tiny Eastern New Mexico, Sinclair hardly played as a rookie, but he surfaced as a standout pass rusher in his sophomore season by producing 8.0 sacks in only nine games. From there, he evolved from a situational defender into one of the NFL's most feared quarterback hunters. Though his peak was relatively short compared to other top pass rushers, from 1996 to 1998, he racked up a remarkable 41.5 sacks and 15 forced fumbles, earning three consecutive Pro Bowl nods. He led the NFL with 16.5 sacks and six forced fumbles in 1998, receiving Second-Team All-Pro distinction. He endured a steep decline over the next three years, but still finished his time in Seattle with four seasons of eight or more sacks and ranks second behind only Jacob Green in that category.

5. John Harris

Draft Position: Round 7, Pick 173 (1978)

Career Stats: 41 interceptions, 11 fumble recoveries in 119 games

One of the pillars for the Seahawks defense during their early years as a franchise, Harris became a day one starter after being selected in the seventh round out of Arizona State. Wasting little time making a difference, he picked off four passes while starting all 16 games as a rookie. Over the next seven seasons, Harris emerged as one of the best free safeties in the league, intercepting six or more passes four times. After breaking out with six picks in 1980, he enjoyed the finest season of his career in 1981, intercepting 10 passes and returning two of them for defensive touchdowns. Along with being one of the most productive safeties in the NFL during the regular season, he also found tremendous success in the postseason with the Seahawks, intercepting four passes in five career playoff games. Somehow, he never made a Pro Bowl or earned an All-Pro honor in the shadow of star safety Kenny Easley.

4. Chris Warren

Draft Position: Round 5, Pick 114 (1981)

Career Stats: 120 starts in 11 seasons

Drafted in the fourth round out of tiny Ferrum College, Warren received just 17 carries in his first two NFL seasons, but he became an instant contributor on special teams and returned a kickoff for a touchdown in 1991. Thrust into the starting lineup in 1992, he broke out with his first 1,000-yard season despite starring for a bad two-win squad. He rushed for over 1,000 yards, garnered Second-Team All-Pro recognition twice, and earned Pro Bowl honors each of the next three seasons, including rushing for a career-best 1,545 yards in 1994 and scoring 15 rushing touchdowns in 1995. He also evolved into a threat out of the backfield as a receiver, catching 91 passes for 669 yards and three touchdowns during that span. By the time he departed in free agency after the 1997 season, he had surpassed Curt Warner as the franchise's all-time leading rusher and currently ranks second behind only Shaun Alexander.

3. Kam Chancellor

Draft Position: Round 5, Pick 133 (2010)

Career Stats: 607 tackles, 12 interceptions in 109 games

The alpha dog of the vaunted "Legion of Boom" secondary, the 6-foot-3, 225-pound Chancellor quickly became one of the most feared defenders in the NFL dishing out punishing, bone-crushing hits to every ball carrier that laid in his path. When he wasn't obliterating running backs, receivers, and tight ends, he also proved himself to be an underrated coverage safety, as he generated 44 passes defensed and 12 interceptions in eight NFL seasons. Beyond the numbers, however, "Bam Bam" will always be remembered most for iconic plays such as blasting 49ers tight end Vernon Davis into oblivion, wrecking Demaryius Thomas in Super Bowl XLVIII, returning a pick-six against Cam Newton in the 2014 Divisional Round, and punching the ball out of Calvin Johnson's hands at the goal line on Monday Night Football. A true leader by example, he left an indelible mark on the franchise and changed what teams look for at safety.

2. K.J. Wright

Draft Position: Round 4, Pick 99 (2011)

Career Stats: 941 tackles, 13.5 sacks, six interceptions in 144 games

Chosen in the fourth round out of Mississippi State, Wright jumped into the starting lineup early in his rookie year and became one of the unheralded pinnacles of Seattle's dominant defenses in the mid-2010s. In his first three seasons alone, he stuffed the stat sheet with 243 total tackles, 22 tackles for loss, nine quarterback hits, 4.5 sacks, 12 pass deflections, two forced fumbles, and one interception. While he was often overshadowed by his "Legion of Boom" counterparts and All-Pro Bobby Wagner, few linebackers were more consistent stopping the run, stuffing screens, and playing coverage than Wright, who averaged 94 tackles and 5.5 passes defensed per year in 10 seasons with the Seahawks. Ending his tenure on a strong note as the only player in the NFL with double-digit tackles for loss and pass breakups in 2020, he currently ranks third in franchise history behind Wagner and Eugene Robinson for combined career tackles.

1. Richard Sherman

Draft Position: Round 5, Pick 154 (1981)

Career Stats: 368 tackles, 32 interceptions in 105 games

Carrying a permanent chip on his shoulder, Sherman never forgot the criticisms offered up by draft analysts when he came out of Stanford and used them to fuel one of the most unlikely superstar careers in NFL history. A notorious trash talker who loved to get under the skin of his opponents, he impressed immediately as a rookie, generating 17 pass breakups and four interceptions. From there, he promptly became a household name as one of the league's premier shutdown corners and made sure everyone knew it, earning First-Team All-Pro honors three consecutive seasons while registering 20 interceptions and 48 passes defensed from 2012 to 2014. In the midst of that extended run of dominance, he famously made "The Tip" at the end of the 2013 NFC Championship game against the 49ers, allowing the Seahawks to advance to their second Super Bowl. An anchor for the NFL's top scoring defensive in four straight years, he may have his bust in Canton someday and will certainly be inducted into the team's Ring of Honor.

Honorable Mention: Malcolm Smith, Byron Maxwell, Phillip Daniels, Michael McCrary, J.R. Sweezy, Ron Essink

A seventh-round pick out of USC, Smith earned Super Bowl XLVIII MVP honors after recording a pick-six against Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning... Maxwell, a sixth-round pick out of Clemson, picked off seven passes and had 33 passes defensed in five seasons with Seattle... Starting 41 games in four years as a Seahawk, Daniels posted 21.5 sacks as a former fourth-round pick out of Georgia... A seventh-round pick out of Wake Forest, McCrary broke out with 13.5 sacks in his lone season as a starter in Seattle in 1996 and produced 71.0 sacks in 10 NFL seasons... Sweezy evolved from a seventh-round defensive tackle into a long-time starting NFL guard and started in both of Seattle's Super Bowl appearances in 2013/2014... Coming from tiny Grand Valley State University, Essink developed into a five-year starter after being drafted in the 10th round in 1980.