The Seahawks’ draft class raises the floor in 2025, but it also has a sky-high ceiling

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At first glance, Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider and coach Mike Macdonald seem to have achieved their goal of acquiring “darn good” football players in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Between guard Grey Zabel in the first round, defensive back Nick Emmanwori and tight end Elijah Arroyo in the second, and fullback Robbie Ouzts in the fifth, a handful of Seattle’s selections have fairly direct paths to contributing as rookies. If that proves to be the case, the Seahawks will have taken a step toward reaching their lofty expectations, which Macdonald reiterated Saturday afternoon.

“We’re competing for championships this year,” Macdonald said. “That’s what we want to do. I’m really confident that we’re going to have that opportunity. That’s the expectation for us.”

The trenches were always going to be the key to building toward that goal in the 2025 draft. There are many reasons Seattle hasn’t won a playoff game since 2019 or advanced beyond the divisional round since 2014, and chief among them is the inability to own the line of scrimmage against quality opponents. Schneider knows this, which is why the offensive and defensive lines command his attention when watching Seattle play live. Talented trenches are a prerequisite for being considered a contender.

The early returns appear good but not spectacular. Zabel should be a Day 1 starting guard, which would make him a home run draft pick, given how difficult acquiring such a player has been for Seattle. Defensive tackle Rylie Mills, guard Bryce Cabeldue and offensive tackle Mason Richman seem unlikely to be difference makers as rookies (Mills is rehabbing a torn ACL and the team is hopeful he can be added to the mix “later” in the season, Schneider said). Some of the other offensive picks, such as receiver Tory Horton and running back Damien Martinez, added depth where it was needed.

The real intrigue with this class, though, comes in looking at the high-upside players who could change the team’s future and make this a special haul.

Emmanwori was an interesting player to evaluate ahead of the draft because it wasn’t clear what the ideal NFL role would be for the 6-foot-3, 220-pound safety. He was listed as a free safety but often played in the box and even in the slot as a man-coverage defender against tight ends. He’s an excellent athlete — “One of the best (scouting) combines I’ve ever seen,” Schneider said — but there are questions about his change-of-direction skills. While gushing about Emmanwori after trading up to grab him at No. 35 on Friday night, Schneider and Macdonald didn’t even specify a role for him.

It wasn’t until Macdonald was asked on Saturday that he attempted to offer a projection.

“This is interesting because you’ve got to let it happen (and see) what he’s going to do well,” Macdonald said. “A safe bet is going to be at the second level initially, like at nickel, some dime reps. But he’s going to train to be a safety, too, and give us the flexibility there. It’s kind of like offensive line where you start a guy with an idea, see how those guys jell, who does what well.

“The competition at linebacker, too. It’s kind of like with tight ends, fullbacks, receivers — you’re just not competing against your position group; you’re competing against your productivity and how well the unit operates when you’re out there. That’s kind of where we’re going to let it start. We’ll see how it evolves as it goes.”

In response to a question Friday about how Emmanwori’s testing numbers translate to the field, Schneider said: “The way I was raised in this business was with (former Packers GM) Ron Wolf: Why couldn’t he be a corner? He has coverage skills.”

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Unsurprisingly, Schneider and Macdonald listed every back-seven spot on defense. Emmanwori is that unique. And that’s what makes him so fascinating. If he reaches his potential at one of those positions — or two, in a perfect world — Seattle will have drafted another blue-chip defensive weapon. It’s the blue-chippers who tend to make the difference when playing meaningful football in January.

As a safety, Emmanwori triggers downhill with speed and force in run support and pass coverage (he’s reminiscent of Jamal Adams in that way). As a potential corner, he has good length, strength, ball skills and footwork. It remains to be seen how that would translate against shifty NFL wideouts, but he should fare well against outside receivers. And those skills should allow him to play a “big nickel” role on early downs against the run while guarding tight ends near the line of scrimmage (this is reminiscent of Jalen Ramsey, a big outside corner who transitioned to a “star” role near the line of scrimmage to maximize his impact).

This is why Macdonald said it’s impossible to watch Emmanwori and not fantasize about his potential.

“It’s our job to make it come to life,” Macdonald said.

Quarterback Jalen Milroe, whom the Seahawks picked in Round 3 (No. 92), is arguably further from reaching his potential but has a similarly high ceiling if it all “comes to life,” as Macdonald might say.

The 6-1, 216-pound quarterback has game-altering speed and a big-time arm. Not many players can produce a 70-yard touchdown with their arm and their legs. Milroe needs to work on layering his passes and throwing with anticipation at all three levels, but as The Athletic’s Dane Brugler wrote in his draft guide, “He is a dynamic athlete with a unique blend of speed, arm strength and intelligence, making him an intriguing developmental option for a patient coaching staff.”

On Friday, Macdonald was asked about having patience with Milroe.

“We don’t use patience a lot around here,” Macdonald said. “There’s always going to be an urgency in how we’re developing our players, how we’re training them. Jalen is going to be right there with everybody else.”

Macdonald went on to imply that while quarterback Sam Darnold would play most of the snaps, Milroe will have an opportunity to earn a unique role in certain situations. Schneider said Seattle “added an explosive weapon while (Milroe) develops as a quarterback.”

But Milroe is not the new Taysom Hill, Macdonald said.

“The way (the Saints) used (Hill) was more in a tight end-fullback hybrid role, sometimes taking snaps; Jalen is a quarterback through and through,” Macdonald said. “He’s going to be trained to play quarterback for us. When he’s in there, he’s going to be playing quarterback. But the athleticism is going to come to life when he’s on the field.”

Shooting down the Hill comparison is notable because Milroe is indeed a quarterback, albeit a raw one. The upside with him, and the potential to be an elite player, is not in creating a package of plays, like San Francisco initially installed for Trey Lance and Pittsburgh did with Justin Fields last season after Russell Wilson took over as the Steelers’ starter. Gadget players are fun, but high-level quarterback play can truly change a team’s fortunes. Milroe needs legitimate live reps to see if that’s what he can become.

If he does, Seattle’s long-term outlook would be entirely different. Currently, the Seahawks are betting on recreating a version of the 2024 Minnesota Vikings: A dominant defense with a quarterback-friendly offensive setup that gave Darnold nearly everything he needed to be great. The end of the Vikings’ season showed the limitations of that setup. Even if the 27-year-old Darnold improves over the next couple of years, it’s fair to question whether he’ll be the type of guy to lead Seattle to the promised land.

A higher-ceiling quarterback, at least in theory, could change the math. There’s a chance that Milroe will be more Lance than Jalen Hurts, the reigning Super Bowl MVP and a friend of Milroe’s. But the fact that there’s also a chance he projects as something similar to the other Jalen from Alabama — a comparison Brugler made in September — is why Seattle’s 2025 class could end up being one of Schneider’s most important hauls of the last decade.

(Photos of Jalen Milroe, left, and Nick Emmanwori: Gary Cosby Jr. and Kevin Jairaj / Imagn Images

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