Brock’s Seahawks Draft Profile: Explosive WR Jaylin Noel

The Seattle Seahawks’ wide receiver room looks quite a bit different than it did just a couple of months ago.

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Standout DK Metcalf was traded and franchise icon Tyler Lockett was released, and the Seahawks found replacements in the form of Yakima native Cooper Kupp and down-field threat Marquez Valdes-Scantling.

Even with Kupp and Valdes-Scantling now in the fold alongside 2024 breakout star Jaxon Smith-Njigba, receiver remains a position for the Seahawks to address in the upcoming NFL Draft. In fact, many analysts have started slating a wideout to Seattle with its first-round pick (No. 18 overall) in mock drafts.

In his Seahawks draft profile on Monday during Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk, college football analyst and former NFL quarterback Brock Huard shared a wide receiver he’d like the team to take. But it’s one who could be available in the second and third rounds: Iowa State’s Jaylin Noel.

“He had 80 receptions for over 1,100 yards and eight touchdowns for the Cyclones, as he was a big part of elevating that program to the Big 12 Championship game,” Huard said. “I mean, just an absolute stud.”

Freakish athleticism

Noel is on the smaller side for receivers at 5 foot 10 and 194 pounds, but he makes up for it with impressive athleticism. The 22 year old ran the 40-yard dash at the NFL combine in 4.39 seconds with a 1.51-second 10-yard split, and he was first among receivers with a 41.5-inch vertical jump and 11-foot, 2-inch broad jump.

“That’s just off the charts,” Huard said. “And then to put the little cherry on top, 23 reps of 225 (pounds in the bench press).”

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Noel’s bench press numbers were also tops among receivers at the combine, and he out-repped four of the offensive linemen who competed in the event.

“If you rep 225 (pounds) 23 times … that’s going to be somewhere around a 425 to 450 (pound) max,” Huard said. “I mean, you’re talking twice your body weight on the bench press. So he is a ball of explosive, explosive muscle.”

Production and experience

Noel was a three-year starter and played a significant role for Iowa State in all four of his years on campus. The former three-star recruit amassed 2,855 yards and 18 TDs on 245 receptions during his college career. He also returned 53 punts and 37 kickoffs.

As a senior, Noel posted career bests of 80 receptions, 1,194 yards and eight touchdowns. He added a 15.3-yard average on 13 punt returns. The Kansas City, Mo., native was a first-team All-Big 12 selection and the conference co-special teams player of the year.

In total, he played in 51 career games for the Cyclones.

“He got into the fold and could prove right away to his peers at a hard-fought program that I’m a difference-maker, but tons of experience, unbelievable explosion,” Huard said. “And honestly, if you mixed (Detroit’s) Amon-Ra St. Brown and (former Seahawk) Doug Baldwin together, you would get a lot of Jaylin Noel. That’s high praise, and we’ll see at the NFL level.”

Huard noted that drops were an issue at times for Noel in college, although he didn’t seem to feel it was a big concern.

“The guy is hyper, hyper competitive,” Huard said. “And if he’s sitting there with your third pick, your late second-round pick, he’s sitting there after you’ve addressed (offensive) linemen, I would not hate at all the addition of a guy that’s going to help you in special teams, that’s going to block his butt off, and he’s going to be able to run by people in that slot time and time and time again.”

Noel’s Seattle Seahawks fit

Huard mentioned Noel as a receiver who works out of the slot, which could be a bit of a redundancy with how the Seahawks roster currently stands. Both Kupp and Smith-Njigba have excelled in roles as slot receivers, which there is typically only one of on the field on most plays.

But with Kupp entering his age-32 season, having a history of injuries and being on a contract that only has one year of fully guaranteed money, Huard doesn’t see taking another receiver whose best fit is in the slot as an issue.

“If Cooper Kupp were three years younger then I get it, this would be a little problematic to me,” he said. “I’m looking at many of these signings this year (like) DeMarcus Lawrence and Cooper Kupp as kind of one-year (prove-it deals). I think there’s still prime, near-prime (seasons), (and they) could get a whole bunch out of those guys. But for three years? Probably unlikely.

“And there’d be nothing better for any of these receivers you’re gonna draft this year than to keep learning from Cooper Kupp as well.”

Hear the full conversation at this link or in the audio player near the top of this story. Tune in to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6-10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

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