How Seahawks Top Draft Picks Have Fared in Week 1 Debuts
Through seven training camp practices, the Seahawks have liked what they've seen thus far from first-round pick Jordyn Brooks. He's fast, plays with great leverage, and looks the part of a five-year NFL vet. While he's battling for snaps with Seahawks legend K.J. Wright, Seattle won't rule him out as a starter in Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons. And why would they?
After all, one of the tenants of Pete Carroll's uber-successful philosophy has been to play young guys early, so when December rolls around, they have the necessary snaps to not feel overwhelmed by the moment. But how have the high draft picks of the Carroll era performed in these opportunities? Most notably, how have they performed in Week 1? Let's take a look.
2010
In Pete Carroll and John Schneider's first offseason with the Seahawks, the team actually had two first-round picks and used them on tackle Russell Okung and safety Earl Thomas. The two players would go on to become key cogs on Seattle's Super Bowl teams, with Thomas turning into a Hall of Fame caliber player. But they didn't exactly roll off the bus and look like Pro Bowlers in Week 1.
In fact, Okung didn't get off the bus. He would miss his first chance to play due to injury and wouldn't make his NFL debut for another three weeks.
Thomas did make his debut in Week 1 and performed admirably well in the Seahawks 31-6 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. He racked up seven tackles, five solo tackles, and one tackle for loss. Thomas wouldn't record his first interception until Week 3, but he gave a great effort in his first taste of NFL action.
2011
In 2011, the Seahawks made a shocking selection in the first round. Coming off an equally surprising division title and playoff victory despite their 7-9 losing record, they were looking for a quarterback after the Matt Hasselbeck era came to a close.
Still, with Andy Dalton still on the board, Seattle took an Alabama offensive tackle very few had heard of in James Carpenter. The surprising first-round pick did make the start in Week 1 and it began an inconsistent four-year run for him with Seattle.
2012
The Seahawks' 2012 class would eventually prove to be one of the greatest draft classes in NFL history. Seattle selected Bruce Irvin, Bobby Wagner, and Russell Wilson with their first three picks. We can safely say those choices worked out well.
However, Irvin did very little in his debut. He didn't get the start but did play 53 percent of the snaps in the Week 1 loss to the Cardinals. He didn't record a sack or tackle, but he did record one quarterback hit. Wagner got the start but actually only played 52 percent of the snaps and recorded just four total tackles in his debut.
Wilson made his first NFL start and was rather mediocre, to say the least. Wilson completed just 52 percent of his passes for 152 yards, gained 20 rushing yards on eight attempts, and threw one touchdown and one interception each. Better days would be ahead for this trio, but Week 1 was a rough one.
2013
The Seahawks had no first-round pick in 2013 after trading it to the Vikings for wide receiver Percy Harvin. Their first selection that year was actually running back Christine Michael late in the second round. Michael would only appear in four games in his rookie season and Week 1 wasn't one of those games.
2014
Seattle was once again without a first-round pick in 2014, but they did take two players in the second round: wide receiver Paul Richardson and offensive lineman Justin Britt. The latter would make his debut in Week 1 of his rookie season and played every single offensive snap for the Seahawks, a feat he would repeat for the next 15 regular-season games.
Richardson also saw the field in Week 1, but didn't record a catch or target and only played 14 percent of the snaps. He wouldn't get his first catch or target until Week 3.
2015
Another year without a first-round pick, the Seahawks actually made two great selections in this draft class, snagging Frank Clark with their first pick and then trading up to select Tyler Lockett with their second pick. Clark was eased into action in Week 1, playing just 14 snaps without recording a single statistic.
Lockett really burst onto the scene in his debut, snagging all four of his targets for 34 yards while returning two kicks for a total of 56 yards and returning two punts for a total of 63 yards, including taking one all the way back to the house for his first career touchdown.
2016
The Seahawks finally made a selection in the first round for the first time since 2012 and they selected Texas A&M tackle Germain Ifedi. Unfortunately, Ifedi wouldn't make his debut until Week 4 due to an ankle injury suffered in training camp. Fair or not, he would spend the next four years serving as a punching bag for many fan's frustrations.
2017
The Seahawks traded out of the first round and ultimately selected Malik McDowell from Michigan State. Unfortunately for the Seahawks and McDowell, he would get into a serious ATV accident before camp and would never play a snap in the NFL. The 2017 draft class was salvaged by the selection of Shaquill Griffin and Chris Carson, but it would take a few years to recover from the McDowell selection.
2018
In 2018 the Seahawks made one of their most controversial selections in the Carroll/Schneider era, selecting San Diego State running back Rashaad Penny late in the first round. Penny suffered a finger injury that wiped out most of his pre-season but he did make his debut in Week 1, gaining just eight yards on seven carries. Penny did record four catches for 35 yards, but it was a rather disappointing day overall.
2019
Last year, the Seahawks selected L.J. Collier with the pick they acquired for trading Frank Clark to the Chiefs. Like Penny, Collier suffered an injury (high ankle sprain) that wiped out all of training camp and the preseason and he never got on track. He wasn't active in Week 1.
But Seattle did add a first-round talent late in the second in the form of DK Metcalf. In his Week 1 debut, Metcalf caught four passes for a team-record 89 yards in a debut by a rookie and played 78 percent of the snaps.
When you go through this list, what you don't see are a lot of overwhelming debuts. But what you do see are three future Hall of Famers, a 10-year starter, an eight-year starter, and a host of quality NFL players with Pro Bowl upside. So whether or not any Seahawks rookies get serious run in Week 1 this year, it doesn't have any correlation to how good they'll be for years to come.
Being a rookie in the NFL is tough. Surviving more than a few years is even tougher. So remember this when you sit down to watch Jordyn Brooks or Damien Lewis against the Falcons: things will almost assuredly get better.
