BRADY HENDERSON

Seahawks add another S, Colorado’s Tedric Thompson in fourth round

Apr 29, 2017, 10:32 AM | Updated: 5:28 pm

Tedric Thompson picked off 13 passes over the last three years, including seven in 2016 to lead the...

Tedric Thompson picked off 13 passes over the last three years, including seven in 2016 to lead the Pac-12. (AP)

(AP)

RENTON – With the first of their five selections on the final day of the draft, the Seahawks chose Colorado safety Tedric Thompson in the fourth round, No. 111 overall.

Thompson primarily played strong safety in college and operated quite a bit in the box, but he would seem to project more at free safety. He’s listed at 6 feet 1, 205 pounds and his college resume suggests the strength of his game is his coverage ability.

He’s the second safety the Seahawks drafted this year following Delano Hill from Michigan in the third round, and he’s the third defensive back, with Seattle using another third-round pick on cornerback Shaquill Griffin from Central Florida. They later used a sixth-round pick on Cincinnati safety Mike Tyson, who will get a look at cornerback, so the Seahawks have restocked their secondary.

Seahawks draft tracker | 710Sports.com draft page

The upside: Thompson has a pretty extensive college resume as a playmaker. He made 37 starts over his four seasons at Colorado, all but three of them at strong safety. He picked off 13 passes over his final three seasons, including seven as a senior in 2016 to lead the Pac-12. He recorded 16 pass breakups last year to give him 23 passes defensed, tied for the most in FBS. The Seahawks need playmakers for a defense in general and a secondary in particular whose takeaway totals have steadily declined in recent seasons. Thompson looks like someone who could help that.

The risk: This feels like a fairly safe pick given where Seattle made it and Thompson’s strong track record in college. He did miss the final four games of the 2014 season due to lingering effects of a concussion.

STATS scouting report: “Thompson has adequate size and above average ball skills. Good quickness and agility. He plants and drives on the ball and is not afraid to take chances. His coverage ability is better than some defensive backs available in the draft. Times and highpoints the ball exceptionally well with solid hands. Is not afraid to hit and lowers to his shoulder looking for impact blow to defender. Good angles to the ball and flies around the field. Plays fast and excels at getting the football. His size is not ideal and he plays much bigger than his height/weight. A product of his own success, he can take too many chances and get beat by being to aggressive is pass coverage. May struggle with more man-to-man concepts at the next level. Better discipline back pedaling and reducing some choppiness in his steps should be improved.” -STATS

Personal file: Thompson is from Valencia, Calif. His school bio says he’s on track to graduate next month with a degree in sociology. His older brother, Cedric, played safety at Minnesota and was a fifth-round pick by Miami in the 2015 draft.

Bigger picture: The Seahawks entered the draft with only three true safeties on their roster: Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor and free-agent addition Bradley McDougald. It’s no coincidence that Seattle loaded up at the position in the draft with Thomas coming off a serious injury and Chancellor entering the final year of his contract.

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Seahawks add another S, Colorado’s Tedric Thompson in fourth round