RENTON — The Seattle Seahawks pulled off a unique double Thursday night in the first round of the NFL draft.
First, they managed to execute their annual feat of trading their first-round pick.
Second, they still managed to fill their biggest need.
The Seahawks traded down in the first round and selected Texas A&M tackle Germain Ifedi with the 31st — and final pick — of Thursday’s first round.
Seattle entered the night holding the 26th overall selection. However, for the fifth straight year the Seahawks dealt away their first-rounder, trading it to the Denver Broncos in exchange for the 31st pick and adding a third-rounder in the process.
Seattle then selected Ifedi at 31, addressing the team’s need on the offensive line.
“For us to be able to get Germain is a big deal,” said Seahawks general manager John Schneider, who added that he was looking at adding to either the offensive or defensive line in the first round.
“He’s a great dude,” Schneider added. “He was a three-year starter, really tough, really competitive, gritty, smart, he’s got his degree. He really brings an attitude and a toughness.”
Seattle under Schneider and coach Pete Carroll isn’t known for using its premium draft picks on what pundits declare to be positions of need. However, the Seahawks already had a limited amount of resources devoted to the offensive line, then lost starting left tackle Russell Okung and starting right guard J.R. Sweezy to big-money free-agent contracts. Therefore, Ifedi is just what the doctor ordered.
“I couldn’t be in a more ideal situation than Seattle,” Ifedi said via teleconference from his home in Houston.
“I always had a feeling Seattle was a good fit for me, Seattle was a place where my skill set fit,” added Ifedi, who had an inkling he may be picked by the Seahawks despite not being brought in for a personalized workout. “I heard all the rumors, I heard all the chatter, but I knew there was always a shot. Once it got down to the end of the first round it was Seattle or bust and Seattle was the place for me. Seattle’s the place I look best.”
Ifedi is a specimen. He measures in at 6-foot-6 and 324 pounds, with 36-inch arms and a 7-foot wingspan, and he’s described as being athletic. He was named second-team All-SEC last season as a redshirt junior.
Ifedi began his collegiate career at right guard, then moved to right tackle his final two seasons. Going into the draft there were questions whether Ifedi would stick at tackle in the NFL or be better suited for moving back to guard. However, the Seahawks intend to keep him at tackle, competing for time on the right as last season’s starter at right tackle, Garry Gilliam, transitions to the left side.
“He’s played a lot of right tackle, and the fact he has played some guard helps, it gives him flexibility,” Carroll said. “We see him being a right tackle coming in and we’ll see how it works out.
“The way he plays is what was really important because he’s really physical, he likes to get after it, he mixes it up, and that style is right at home with us,” Carroll added. “So we’re excited to add that to our team.”
Ifedi said he believes he has a lot to bring to the Seahawks.
“I’m a football player,” Ifedi said. “That’s kind of cliche, but that’s how I describe myself. I don’t say I’m a tackle, I don’t say I’m a guard, I say I’m a football player. If a team brings me in and tells me I have to play this, then I’ll play that. I think that I’m physical, I’m aggressive, I’d say I’m a good athlete, but there’s always something to grow as a player.”
In trading down five spots in the first round the Seahawks received a juicy return in the form of the third-rounder from Denver, which is 94th overall. That gives Seattle three third-round picks and five picks in the top 97. The Seahawks haven’t had that many selections in the top 97 since 1977.
“It’s huge for us,” Schneider said. “Picking a few times in the third round, we pick at 56th tomorrow in the second round. We have nine more picks, so that’s really exciting for us. We talked the other day about how we feel it’s a solid draft all the way through.”
The trade marked the fifth straight year the Seahawks traded away their top draft pick. Seattle traded down in both 2012 and 2014 to acquire additional picks, trading out of the first round completely in 2014. The Seahawks dealt their 2013 first-rounder to Minnesota in the trade to acquire receiver Percy Harvin, then traded their 2015 first-rounder to New Orleans in the deal that landed tight end Jimmy Graham.
The Broncos selected Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch at 26 with the pick acquired from Seattle. It was the second time in three years a team made a deal with the Seahawks to draft a quarterback in the first round. When the Seahawks traded out of the first round in 2014, the Minnesota Vikings used the pick acquired from Seattle to take QB Teddy Bridgewater.
Rounds 2 and 3 of the draft are Friday beginning at 4 p.m. Rounds 4-7 take place Saturday.
Extra points
The Seahawks made a handful of low-level roster moves Thursday prior to the start of the draft. They signed a pair of free agents — defensive end Tavaris Barnes and tight end Brandon Williams. Barnes, 24, spent last season with the New Orleans Saints after being undrafted out of Clemson. The 6-foot-3, 275-pounder had five tackles in 12 games before being waived last week. Williams, 28, is a three-year veteran who was undrafted out of Oregon. The 6-foot-4, 255-pounder spent two-plus seasons with the Carolina Panthers, catching four passes for 44 yards in 25 games. He finished last season with the Miami Dolphins, appearing in four games without a reception. … Seattle also waived quarterback Phillip Sims, who was signed by the team to a futures contract in January. The waiving of Sims leaves the Seahawks with just one quarterback on their roster: starter Russell Wilson.
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