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NFL Draft Primer: Seattle Seahawks

See who the Seattle Seahawks may target in the 2015 NFL Draft.

Mark Gunnels

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Team needs: Center, Wide receiver, Cornerback, Offensive line, Running back and Return specialist.

Seahawks’ selections:

Round 2 – 63rd overall

Round 3 – 96th overall

Round 4 – 112th overall

Round 4 – 130th overall

Round 4 – 134th overall

Round 5 – 167th overall

Round 5 – 170th overall

Round 6 – 180th overall

Round 6 – 209th overall

Round 6 – 214th overall

Round 7 – 248th overall

Good fits early:

Hroniss Grasu: For a team that’s been to back-to-back Super Bowls, there isn’t many blatant areas of need. However, if you were to pick one position as high maintenance, it would be the center spot. Seattle parted ways with Pro Bowl center Max Unger as part of the Jimmy Graham trade and his potential replacement, Stephen Schilling, decided to retire.

Considering this is a very weak draft when it comes to centers, Seattle may have to snag Hronnis Grasu with their first pick. He’s projected as the second best center in this class, according to many scouts. Grasu provides stability and durability, as he never missed a start during his four seasons at Oregon. The 6-foot-3, 297 pound specimen could be a starter from day one.

Nelson Agholor: For as efficient as Seattle’s offense has been over the years, they’ve never had a game changer at the receiver position. Their rushing attack with Marshawn Lynch has been able to open things up for them in the air.

Although Lynch just recently received a new two-year deal, the back is nearing the daunting age of 30, which means they must prepare for life without him soon. While Seattle will do their due diligence in finding running backs, they must also look for a dynamic receiver. Nelson Agholor from USC just may be that guy.

At 6-foot, 198 pounds, Agholor possess speed and a unique feel for the game. Last season, Agholor caught 104 passes for 1,313 yards and 12 touchdowns. Also, Agholor could help Seattle in the return game. He returned two punts for touchdowns last season.

Michael Bennett: In this pass happy league, you can never have too many pass rushers. While Seattle may not be hurting for help up front, if you’re able to get a steal in the second round, you probably should take it.

Michael Bennett from Ohio State would be a safe pick. He was a four-year player at Ohio State, where he received third-team All-American honors this past season. The 6-foot-2, 293 pound lineman possess a good initial attack with solid use of his hands.

On the downside, Bennett has shown signs of fatigue, but that shouldn’t be a problem in Seattle, as he would be one piece of a deep rotation.

As mentioned before, Seattle will most likely look to address depth at the running back position at some point during this draft. However, don’t be surprised if it comes with their first pick. If guys like Jay Ajayi and Ameer Abdullah are on the board at 63, it may become too tempting for Seattle to pass up. Both of these backs give Seattle a change of pace and both are capable pass catchers from the backfield, which could cause mismatches in the open field.

Potential late-round targets:

Dexter McDonald: Yes, Richard Sherman could use a little help. Seattle lost Byron Maxwell in free agency and while they signed Cary Williams and Will Blackmon to fill that void, something tells me this organization wouldn’t pass up on Dexter McDonald in the later rounds.

Its actually pretty bizarre that McDonald isn’t rated higher. McDonald was very impressive in his athletic testing, as he ran a 40-time of 4.34 and jumped 40.5 inches on his vertical. When you couple that explosiveness with his size of 6-foot-1, 205 pounds, you appear to have the ideal corner. Its also important to mention that he would learning from the best in the game, which could only help his maceration process.

Laurence Gibson: In a draft that’s very deep when it comes to offensive line, it seems likely for Seattle to go this route late. A viable option could be former Virginia Tech tackle Laurence Gibson. He’s listed at 6-foot-6, 305 pounds.

Gibson is someone that has solid athleticism, which allows him to pull and provide running alleys on the edge. However, Gibson is still very raw, as he lacks the desire core strength to be a consistent guy up front in this league.

Bryce Petty: Russell Wilson and the Seahawks are still in ongoing contract negotiations. They’ve been unable to strike a deal to this point, but it will most likely be resolved sometime this summer. With that being said, when you look behind Wilson, there’s little to desire.

While we hope Wilson stays healthy, if he were to unfortunately go down with an injury, Seattle may be in deep trouble, which is why I wouldn’t be surprised to see them draft a quarterback late. Bryce Petty from Baylor could be an option.

Petty completed 63 percent of his passes in 2014 for 3,855 yards to go along with 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also rushed for six touchdowns.

No team in the salary-cap era has ever been to three consecutive Super Bowls, which makes sense. It’s hard to retain your top players nowadays when a lot of guys are looking for their next big payday. In this case, however, Seattle has been able to maintain their core group, while adding the likes of a Jimmy Graham.

If Seattle wants to make their third straight Super Bowl appearance, the first step is to leave the past in the past. The way Seattle lost the Super Bowl this past year was disheartening to say the least, but if they’re able to use that as motivation, don’t be surprised to see them right back in the same position next February.

Mark Gunnels is an NFL columnist for Football Insiders. He has several years of experience covering the NFL and NCAA football. He's the radio color commentator for Lincoln University football. Mark's work has been featured on Sports Illustrated, Fox Sports and Yard Barker.

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