Gordon: Seahawks set standard for player development

Tipsheet: Seahawks set standard for player development

By Jeff Gordon

http://www.stltoday.com/sports/columns/jeff-gordon/tipsheet-seahawks-set-standard-for-player-development/article_e793b339-6cd8-56d8-ab09-2cbcdee6d6d3.html

Jeff Fisher, Les Snead and Co. have done a good job rebuilding the Rams talent base. The selection of rookie defensive tackle Aaron Donald to the Pro Bowl is another indicator of that.

The 2014 draft class was especially good, with Tre Mason emerging as an explosive weapon for the running game and former Mizzou cornerback E. J. Gaines panning out as one of the best late-round picks league-wide.

If offensive lineman Greg Robinson learns how to pass block, this group could become the turning point the franchise has so desperately needed. Lamarcus Joyner had some success in the nickel back role before getting hurt and safety Maurice Alexander showed promise on special teams.

Alec Ogletree, Tavon Austin, T.J. McDonald, Stedman Bailey, Zac Stacy, Michael Brockers, Brian Quick, Janoris Jenkins, Trumaine Johnson . . . there is plenty of talent to work with from the last three drafts.

But the Seahawks have done an even better job in recent drafts, mining the late rounds for impact players while putting elite teams on the field.

They are proving that NFL teams can win and retool at the same time. Teams don’t need to tank for a decade to get better.

SI.com’s Peter King credits Seattle general manager John Schneider for outworking his peers since arriving in 2010. In Schneider’s first four drafts, he found 10 impact players in the third round or later.

King highlighted these players, citing their work Sunday at Arizona in his assessment:

Quarterback Russell Wilson (third round, 2012) amassed 427 passing and rushing yards in the 35-6 win Sunday night.
Tight end Luke Willson (fifth round, 2013), a former Toronto Blue Jays minor-league slugging first baseman, had a career-best 139 receiving yards and two touchdowns, outrunning safety Rashad Johnson on the 80-yarder for the first one.
Wide receiver Doug Baldwin (undrafted, 2011) caught seven balls for 113 yards.
Cornerback Richard Sherman (fifth round, 2011) had the game’s only interception plus four tackles.
Strong safety Kam Chancellor (fifth round, 2010), the blitzing enforcer of the Seattle secondary, had two tackles and a pass defensed.
Linebacker K.J. Wright (fourth round, 2011), rewarded last week with a new four-year contract, had four tackles and a pass defensed.
Defensive tackle Jordan Hill (third round, 2013), an increasingly important member of the rush rotation on the line, had a sack and three tackles.
Guard J.R. Sweezy (seventh round, 2012), playing on a sprained ankle, kept Wilson clean and cleared holes for the running game.
Cornerback Byron Maxwell (sixth round, 2011) and nickel back Jeremy Lane (sixth round, 2012) helped shut down the Arizona pass game with three passes defensed.

How many teams in the NFL have a starting quarterback, the top wideout, the best guard on the team, the starting tight end, a top prospect interior rusher, a long-term linebacker, and four key defensive backs procured in four years … without the benefit of a first- or second-round pick, or a free-agent acquisition, for any of them?

That’s why Seattle is dangerous right now. The Seahawks are confident in their personnel staff, and Schneider is confident in his scouting ability, and coach Pete Carroll has no problem with playing kids early. That’s a great recipe for success.

That latter point is critical. What do you suppose Carroll and his staff could have done with some of these young Rams?

That question hangs over the Rams operation as it heads into Year 4 of the Fisher Regime.