Seattle Seahawks GM recalls remarkable turnaround by former first-round RB

The Seattle Seahawks' selection of running back Rashaad Penny at No. 27 overall in the 2018 NFL Draft surprised not only pundits, but in a way, even themselves.

Penny was a strong prospect coming out of San Diego State as he rushed for 2,243 yards and 22 touchdowns in his final season, but very few expected him to go in the first round. Any running back going in the first round is rare in the modern NFL, especially one from a smaller school.

Seattle Seahawks running back Rashaad Penny runs against the Denver Broncos — Sep 12, 2022; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Rashaad Penny (20) rushes against the Denver Broncos during the first quarter at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images | Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

Even Seahawks general manager John Schneider found himself doubting Penny initially, as he revealed on Seattle Sports' "John Schneider Show." When the research and analytics department gave an impressive review of Penny, Schneider questioned why.

“The first time I studied him, I was basically like, well, level of comp isn’t very good and he’s got these huge lanes that he’s running through, and he’s big and he’s super fast, really explosive. And so I had kind of graded him down a little bit.

“Patrick [Ward] and his group, the analytics guys were like, he’s actually the No. 1 running back on our board after contact. And I was like, I disagree with that. We got into it a little bit. I was like, nah, I don’t see that. So I was like, you know what? I’m gonna go back.”

Upon further inspection, though, Schneider realized where his analytics department was coming from.

“You just watch all those plays and you’re like, I didn’t see that,” Schneider continued. “So you can have an opinion going in just based on level of competition or what you’ve seen, or you’ve seen him play on TV and you have a preconceived notion of what the player is before you sit down and actually study him, right? So it’s like, whoa… I wouldn’t have thought that.”

Unfortunately, Penny didn't pan out like Schneider and co. hoped. He was plagued by injuries throughout his time in Seattle, only playing more than 10 games once in five years. He showed flashes of brilliance, such as when he rushed for over 130 yards in four of the Seahawks' final five games in 2021, but they just weren't consistent enough to avoid the bust status.

Penny suffered a season-ending leg injury in Week 5 of the 2022 season, bringing his Seahawks career to an abrupt end. After playing just three games for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023, he hung up his cleats for good.

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