Why Seahawks GM Schneider made draft day trade with Broncos

After taking outside linebacker Derick Hall and running back Zach Charbonnet in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks were prepared to make their third-round pick at No. 83 overall.

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But instead of selecting what would have been their fifth player of the draft’s first two days, the Seahawks traded down – and not just with any team. They made a deal with the Denver Broncos, who the Seahawks had already received a massive haul from last year – including two of the four picks they had already used in the draft – in exchange for quarterback Russell Wilson.

This draft trade won’t get nearly the same notoriety as the Wilson deal, but it was one that appears to be pretty lopsided in favor of Seattle as the Seahawks received a fourth-round pick (108 overall), which they used on LSU guard Anthony Bradford, as well as a third-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

So why did that trade come to be? Seahawks general manager John Schneider broke it down this week during a visit with Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob.

“We had an upset right in there,” Schneider said. “We had a player we were getting ready to take, and that player was selected – and that happens. That happened to us a couple of times. But, hey, like we talked about before the draft, you have to be pliable and be ready to move.”

The good news, though, was Seahawks director of pro personnel Willie Schneider was working the phones and got a deal rolling with the Broncos.

“Thankfully Willie did a great job working with the Broncos and we had an option to go back,” Schneider said. “One of our goals going in was to acquire some picks for next year’s draft. Next year’s draft in sheer numbers is supposed to be heavier than this year’s draft, more similar to the 2022 draft. So that was a goal of ours, and (Willie Schneider) did a great job communicating with those guys and got the offer (that we accepted). We went back and forth a little bit, and it was just a real smart move, in my opinion, to be able to get out of there.”

Listen to the full Wyman and Bob conversation with Schneider in the podcast below.

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