Seahawks Draft Profile: Troy Andersen
With the 2022 NFL Draft set to kick off in Las Vegas on Thursday, April 28, the Seahawks will have a chance to kickstart a new era for the franchise with eight selections, including a top-10 pick and four picks total in the first three rounds.
Over the next month leading up to draft weekend, the AllSeahawks writing staff will dish out in-depth profiles on numerous prospects who could be targets on Seattle's big board.
Next up in the series is Montana State's Troy Andersen—a highly-athletic linebacker who's tested off the charts in the buildup to this month's draft.
Background
Andersen began his collegiate football career as a quarterback/running back/safety hybrid. His 21 rushing touchdowns in 2018 set a single-season record for Montana State—all coming as the school's starting quarterback that year. But as his body continued to fill in, he transitioned to a more full-time role at linebacker in 2019 while playing some fullback on occasion, racking up a career-high 6.5 sacks in 11 games played. After a COVID-cancelled 2020 campaign, the Dillon, Montana native returned for his senior year in 2021 and earned FCS All-American and Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year honors for his efforts.
Strengths
As noted, Andersen has been a pre-draft darling for his testing numbers. His 4.42-second 40-yard dash time, 1.51-second 10-yard split and 128-inch broad jump at the combine ranked in the 98th, 97th and 94th percentiles for linebackers, respectively, earning him physical comparisons to the likes of Clay Matthews and Kenneth Murray.
That athleticism shows up on tape as well. Boasting remarkable sideline-to-sideline speed, the 6-foot-3, 243-pounder is one of the draft's best defenders out in space. He closes in on ball-carriers in a flash and has a knack for sniffing out screens on a consistent basis.
Perhaps there is a team or two out there that views him as someone that can impact the game in all three phases. His experience running effectively out of direct snaps may be an asset in short-yardage situations, and his speed and physicality should make him, at the very least, a core special-teamer on day one.
Weaknesses
Considering that he's only appeared in 24 games at linebacker, Andersen is still very much green when it comes to playing the position. Evidently, despite his ideal build, he struggled to take on blocks and fit his gaps. He'll need to improve his recognition and quickness off the snap, as well as learn to play more within his stature, to succeed at the highest level.
From a technique standpoint, there's quite a bit of work to be done as well. While his above-average athleticism points to a great deal of upside in pass coverage, his application certainly needs refining, particularly with zone awareness. At the end of the day, however, it appears those issues are more a matter of comfortability than ability, given the relative newness of his duties.
Fit in Seattle
Andersen may benefit from taking a year to sit and hone his skills as a linebacker some more. He would have an opportunity to do just that with the Seahawks, who are currently slated to start Jordyn Brooks and Cody Barton in 2022. Not being able to pick the brain of the departed eight-time All-Pro Bobby Wagner hurts, but the mentorship of longtime linebackers coach John Glenn should help get Andersen on the right track.
As mentioned, Andersen should be capable of being a special teams stud right out of the gate. Pairing him with the likes of Nick Bellore, Joel Iyiegbuniwe, Ryan Neal and company would make an already fearsome kick coverage unit all the more daunting to run into.
Eventually, Andersen should be able to work his way into a starting role in Clint Hurtt's defense before he enters the latter half of his rookie contract. He's more likely than not to be a WILL if concerns about his play in between the tackles persist, which would constitute a potential move inside for Brooks. That said, it would be interesting to see if Seattle would look to take advantage of Andersen's burst and rotate him off the edge at SAM with Uchenna Nwosu.
Of course, the common comparisons to Matthews—a star pupil of Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll's at USC—certainly helps.
Previous Seahawks NFL Draft Profiles
Sam Howell, QB, North Carolina | Tyler Linderbaum, C, Iowa | Arnold Ebiketie, EDGE, Penn State | Tyler Allgeier, RB, BYU | Desmond Ridder, QB, Cincinnati | Tariq Woolen, CB, UTSA | Cameron Thomas, EDGE, San Diego State | Trevor Penning, OT, Northern Iowa | Hassan Haskins, RB, Michigan | Abraham Lucas, T, Washington State
