How Draft Experts Graded Seahawks Selection of Darrell Taylor
On Friday, the Seahawks moved up 11 spots in the second round after trading their 59th overall pick and third-round pick (101) to the Jets in exchange for the 48th pick to select Tennessee defensive end Darrell Taylor.
The move helps fill a major roster need as Seattle drafted much-needed pass rushing help in Taylor, who should compete right away for playing time at the LEO position.
The Seahawks are still interested in bringing back Jadeveon Clowney, but have missed out numerous options to improve their pass rushing through free agency waiting for his decision. Taylor can help soften the blow if Clowney doesn't re-sign at some point after the draft.
How did the top media outlets grade Seattle's second-round selection? Here's a look at four wide-ranging opinions of Taylor going to the Seahawks.
Grade: C+
Chris Trapasso: "Seahawks needed more EDGE help and Taylor has first-round flashes because of his burst and pass-rush plan. Thick, long frame. Good power too. Just can disappear for long stretches. Early for him."
Grade: B-
Joe Tansey: "With Jadeveon Clowney's free agent fate still undecided, the Seahawks landed Tennessee defensive end Darrell Taylor at No. 48. Seattle moved up 11 spots and gave up a third-round pick to make the selection, and while it may seem like a reach, it filled pass-rushing depth."
Chad Reuter: "The Seahawks continued to improve their defense by picking a long, strong pass rusher in Taylor. That get-off and toughness is what Pete Carroll wants on the edge. We'll see in time if giving up a third-round pick to move up 11 slots for Taylor, instead of waiting a bit longer or picking Terrell Lewis or another edge player, was a bit too rich".
Grade: C
Eric Edholm: "Seattle slides up into this spot (and pays up plenty to do so) to grab a fascinating pass rusher who has some very Seahawks-y traits and edginess. We viewed him more as a third-round pick, but we can see why they felt the need to add some juice at this position. Will he produce? Taylor wasn’t great last year after many felt he was poised for a breakout season."
Grade: C
Steven Ruiz: "Taylor was a power rusher at the college level who didn’t really have a diverse set of pass rush moves. Will that power play at the NFL level? That’s the key question. You’d think a powerful player would be better against the run, but he did not grade as a good run defender at Tennessee."
Per NBC Northwest, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll views Taylor as a mixture of former Seahawks starts Frank Clark and Chris Clemons.
"He's exactly that," Carroll said. "He's right in that mold. His height, weight, speed thing is there. His aggressiveness is there. His flexibility. His savvy for turning the corner. The things that that position calls for. The power he has to finish. He has speed-to-power moves, and there's enough ability there to drop him (into coverage) on the few times we mix up our looks and all. … We know he's going to have the chance to contribute early."
Taylor played last season with a stress fracture in his lower leg, though he still had an impressive season with 8.5 sacks. However, he did note that if it wasn't for the injury, his numbers could have been even better.
"I still had an impressive year, but I think it could have been better if it wasn't there obviously," he said. "I played through it and I think I had a pretty good season. I made the decision to play in my bowl game and that was one of the best decisions I made because it was the last game that I got to play with my teammates and it was a really cool to have that moment and win that game and to have that experience. Now I'm just trying to get ready to do what I do when I get to Seattle and I'm excited about it and the journey I'm about to take that's in front of me.
"I think the surgery helped me a lot, my body feels so much better and my body is headed in the right direction of healing and everything going through that progression. My rehab is going really great. I'm ready to get back to 100 percent so I can contribute to my team."
