Nick Saban: Seahawks ‘got a steal’ with DT Jarran Reed
May 16, 2016, 12:26 PM | Updated: 2:52 pm
Seahawks rookie DT Jarran Reed can be an everydown player in the NFL, says his former coach Nick Saban. (Photo from Seahawks.com)
(Photo from Seahawks.com)
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said he considers both Germain Ifedi and Jarran Reed as first-round caliber players, even though Reed fell to pick No. 49.
Reed’s former head coach at Alabama, Nick Saban, agrees.
“I think they got a steal to be honest with you because I really felt like (Reed) was a first-round guy …” Saban told “Brock and Salk” on Friday. “Because I do think he’s an every-down player. The guy can play the run, he’s athletic, he’s a really, really good competitor and I do believe that he can pass rush enough, and continue to develop his pass rush ability, to be a good inside rush guy. I think they got an outstanding player.”
The Seahawks moved up seven spots in the second round to pick Reed, the Alabama defensive tackle who was rated as the 13th best player overall in the draft by ESPN’s Todd McShay.
The 6 feet 4, 313-pounder is considered a textbook run-stuffer in the mold of Seattle’s departed free agent Brandon Mebane. What Reed can muster as a pass rusher on the inside is the main question, as he recorded only two sacks in two seasons after transferring to the Crimson Tide from junior college.
Saban described Reed as an integral piece of the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship-winning squad, who fits the mold athletically for interior defenders in the increasingly pass-happy NFL.
“I think he is a disruptive player,” he said. “I think we play a defense here where our defensive linemen control blockers, so they learn how to control blockers, but they also do a lot of movement, stunts and penetrations.”
Much like the philosophy touted by Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, Saban said that finding quality character players is important. He said Reed matured during his tenure at Alabama and that he, and fellow defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson, who was picked 46th by the Lions, were leaders of the Crimson Tide defense.
“Which is a little bit unusual,” Saban said. “Usually it’s a linebacker or safety who does that on defense, but those two guys were sort of the sergeant-at-arms this year for our defensive teams and they affected our entire team with their toughness and their aggressiveness.”
