Seahawks Select Tariq Woolen, Tyreke Smith in Fifth Round of 2022 NFL Draft

After executing their first trade of the draft, the Seahawks have taken one of the best athletes in this year's class and added more depth to their pass rushing rotation.

It took all the way until the fifth round, but the Seahawks finally made a trade in the 2022 NFL Draft. Dealing pick No. 145 to the Chiefs for picks No. 158 and No. 233, this was the longest general manager John Schneider has waited to make a draft-day trade during his 13-year tenure in Seattle, per Chris Cluff of Chaw Talk. 

Kansas City turned Seattle's pick, which was acquired via Denver in the Russell Wilson trade, into Kentucky tackle Darian Kinnard. 

With their own fifth-round selection, slotted at No. 153, the Seahawks selected UTSA cornerback Tariq Woolen. Converting from receiver to the defensive side of the ball as a sophomore, Woolen started in his last two seasons with the Roadrunners and earned an All-Conference USA honorable mention in 2021. He recorded an interception and five pass breakups while surrendering three touchdowns, a 57.5 percent completion rate when targeted and an opposing passer rating of 99.5 as a senior. 

Woolen is still very raw as a prospect, but the draw here is his extraordinary athleticism at 6-foot-4, 205 pounds with 33^5/8-inch arms. At the combine, he finished with the second-highest 40-yard dash time amongst all prospects at 4.26 seconds and put up a 42-inch vertical jump. 

Following Woolen to the Pacific Northwest is Ohio State defensive end Tyreke Smith, selected with the pick acquired via Kansas City. Starting 17 of 41 contests for the Buckeyes, Smith produced just 7.0 sacks in his college career and struggled against the run. But despite the low sack totals, he finished the 2021 season with an eye-catching pass rush win rate of 20.2 percent and 36 pressures to his credit. 

Woolen and Smith are the fourth and fifth Senior Bowl invitees taken by Seattle in this draft, respectively. 

By choosing Smith, the Seahawks have now doubled up on three separate positions in this draft: offensive tackle, edge rusher and cornerback. They still have two picks remaining but will have to wait as 76 more prospects come off the board before they're back on the clock at No. 229, barring a trade into the sixth round.