JIM MOORE

Moore: Seahawks should trade up to improve chance of getting playmaker

Apr 22, 2020, 12:41 AM

Seahawks Pete Carroll, John Schneider...

Seahawks drafts under John Schneider and Pete Carroll usually start with a trade down. (AP)

(AP)

My co-host Bob Stelton posted a Twitter poll Monday, asking fans what they’d like the Seahawks to do with their first-round pick at 27th overall.

More from Moore: Would Hawks still be comfortable trading for Ngakoue?

The options: Trade down, use it in a package to acquire Yannick Ngakoue, stay put and pick at player at 27, or trade up.

The top vote-getter in the poll was trade down at 44 percent, which is my least favorite choice. The lowest vote-getter in the poll was trade up at 12 percent, which is my top choice.

For the record, trading the pick in a package for Ngakoue was the second choice at 27 percent, and picking at 27 was the third choice at 16 percent.

I’ve been criticized for thinking the Seahawks should trade up, and I’m not sure why. Almost every year, general manager John Schneider trades down, turning his first-round pick into a lower first-round pick or high second-round pick and lower-round picks.

The rationale is sound. If Schneider has a group of players he likes about the same at 27, he figures he can get one of them at 30 or 34 and add more picks later on. Some say if you have more tickets, you’ll have a better chance of winning the lottery.

They also say that Schneider has found gems in the fifth round such as Kam Chancellor and Richard Sherman, and I’d say they’re right, but he’s also picked a bunch of duds in the fifth round too.

You have a better chance of getting a playmaker and a difference-maker the higher you pick. I don’t know why that has to be spelled out. I understand the importance of depth and special teams, but this team lacks stars.

To my way of thinking, they have one, Russell Wilson. Also, in my way of thinking, Bobby Wagner might have been a star but looks more like a fading star now. He’s still a good player, just not one who’s worth $18 million a year based on his play last year.

Name another star. The Seahawks have several good, maybe even borderline Pro Bowl players such as Duane Brown, Chris Carson, Tyler Lockett, K.J. Wright, Shaquill Griffin, DK Metcalf, Quandre Diggs and a handful of guys we could have a debate about. But I think we’d agree that most aren’t stars. I’ll give you that Metcalf could certainly be one in the next couple of years, but who else? Carson, perhaps, if he can stay healthy.

Let me try to explain it another way. Remember when you were a kid at Christmas? You felt fortunate if you got several gifts, but there was always one that stood out above the rest. For me, it was my first bike. I can still remember how I felt when I woke up and saw that Santa brought me a bike. I liked all the other stuff, but I loved the bike.

I don’t want socks and T-shirts in the draft. I want a darn bike. Go ahead and get me socks and T-shirts in the later rounds, but get me a bike in the first round. And get the nicest bike possible by trading up.

Follow 710 ESPN Seattle’s Jim Moore on Twitter.

More Seahawks draft coverage

Huard: Why Boston College RB A.J. Dillon is a good fit for the Seahawks
Clayton: Why Seahawks have found success with draft-day trades
Hawks Mock Draft: What if top RB D’Andre Swift is still available at 27?
Will the Seahawks trade down? Draft expert Tony Pauline thinks so
• Moore: Seahawks should draft Jalen Hurts to back up Russell Wilson
• What can the Seahawks do in the draft to maximize Wilson’s talent?

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