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NFL Draft: How 2022 Running Back Class Stacks Up With Seahawks Size/Athletic Thresholds

Over the years, Seattle has preferred running backs coming from the same mold in terms of size and athletic traits. Which prospects would check off those boxes this year?
Corbin K. Smith|
NFL Draft: How 2022 Running Back Class Stacks Up With Seahawks Size/Athletic Thresholds
NFL Draft: How 2022 Running Back Class Stacks Up With Seahawks Size/Athletic Thresholds

Known for throwing curveballs in the draft, general manager John Schneider has been anything but predictable in his first 12 seasons at the helm. Whether he's reached for a player such as linebacker Jordyn Brooks in the first round in 2020 or traded back up to snag DK Metcalf one year earlier, he keeps analysts and fans alike on their heels.

If there's an area where Schneider and coach Pete Carroll have been consistent in the draft over the years, however, it's been their inclination to pick a running back on a yearly basis. And more times than not, those ball carriers look like carbon copies of one another with similar size and similar athletic traits.

Dating back to 2012, Seattle has drafted at least one running back in eight of its past 10 drafts, most recently using a fourth-round pick on DeeJay Dallas in 2020. Four backs currently on the roster - Rashaad Penny, Chris Carson, Travis Homer, and Dallas - all were drafted in the past five years. With Homer being the lone exception, the other three backs are all between 5-foot-10 and 6-foot and weigh between 215 and 230 pounds.

Athletically, the Seahawks have placed an emphasis on agility and explosion drills at the running back position, tending to draft players who test well on the 3-cone drill, vertical jump, and broad jump. There has been a bit more variance on 40-yard dash times for the backs they have drafted, as top speed hasn't been a top priority in evaluation for the front office and coaching staff.

With limited data to comb through thanks to many prospects choosing not to do agility testing at the combine, what do Seattle's previous history say about which running backs they may draft this year? Check out the video above as reporter Corbin Smith looks back at Penny and Carson's pre-draft testing and how this year's class stacks up with their past size/athletic thresholds at the position.

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Corbin K. Smith
CORBIN K. SMITH

Graduating from Manchester College in 2012, Smith began his professional career as a high school Economics teacher in Indianapolis and launched his own NFL website covering the Seahawks as a hobby. After teaching and coaching high school football for five years, he transitioned to a full-time sports reporter in 2017, writing for USA Today's Seahawks Wire while continuing to produce the Legion of 12 podcast. He joined the Arena Group in August 2018 and also currently hosts the daily Locked On Seahawks podcast with Rob Rang and Nick Lee. Away from his coverage of the Seahawks and the NFL, Smith dabbles in standup comedy, is a heavy metal enthusiast and previously performed as lead vocalist for a metal band, and enjoys distance running and weight lifting. A habitual commuter, he resides with his wife Natalia in Colorado and spends extensive time reporting from his second residence in the Pacific Northwest.

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