5 things to know about Seahawks’ 2nd-round pick Bud Clark

The Seattle Seahawks sure have a type when it comes to defensive backs.

Why draft analyst calls fifth-round OL his favorite Seahawks pick

It’s not the 34-inch arms on corners the Carroll-era Seahawks favored; rather, it’s more clear in set of traits. Confidence, energy, and versatility. That’s obvious with a former fifth overall pick like Devon Witherspoon, but also the case for a second-round safety like the one Seattle took this past weekend.

Meet Jadarius “Bud” Clark, a TCU product whose 15 interceptions left him fourth all-time in school history. To help us learn more about Clark, we brought on a coach who knows him well:
TCU defensive coordinator Andy Avalos.

Here are 5 things we learned.

Clark brings the energy.

Again, the Seahawks certainly have a type here. Witherspoon is one of the biggest talkers at camp, and Clark brings charisma, too. Avalos said it’s one thing Seahawks fans will see early on.

“Bud’s gonna light up a room when he walks in. He’s just got that infectious personality, whether it’s with teammates, coaches, whoever it may be. We miss that already. Being a morning operation practice and meeting team, it’s always nice to have guys around you like that. We’re gonna miss that, but we’re excited Seattle decided to take him. We’re huge fans of what John Schneider has done there.”

Bump: A lot to like in Seahawks pick Bud Clark

No, literally… Clark is constantly moving.

“Let me just say this,” Avalos added. “They all wear GPS (devices) at practice and workouts and things. And I think in the two years we were together I can’t remember a time when we take a look at those reports and there’s anyone that has a higher GPS than Bud. Bud just goes. Bud works. Jokingly, he hasn’t gained a ton of weight in the last couple years, and it’s not due to not trying or lifting or working hard, he just goes. Burns a lot of calories, he’s always moving. That’s one thing we definitely miss — not only what he brings in his skillset at his position, but again, it’s infectious to our group and our team and that’s the kind of leader he was.”

A few NFL teams were interested in Clark as a corner.

“He’s a guy that we can create matchups with. His man ability as a safety is really good. In fact, there’s more than a few NFL teams that asked and inquired about his ability to play corner. I think it’s really cool that the Seahawks are gonna have the opportunity to put him where they see fit, whether that’s safety or if he plays corner for them. They do something pretty creative stuff on defense that I think, being a multiple defense, Bud’s going to fit into that stuff well.”

Watch his game from Week 1 of the 2025 TCU season.

Avalos pointed to TCU’s season opener against North Carolina.

“We were in a third-and-medium situation and we put him in a man, and they tried to stack up a couple wide receivers. He had to work through a route, and he played the route, came out of the break, brought his eyes back to the ball and picked (the ball) and took it for a touchdown.”

Need a little more film study? Avalos loved Clark’s game against Iowa State (he had two interceptions!) in part because of the work Clark put in during the bye week preceding that game.

Coaches had a (good natured) joke about Clark’s size.

Clark is a versatile player but looks more like a lean corner and less like a hard-hitting, tough safety at just 188 pounds. And coaches didn’t shy from ribbing him for it. Avalos laughed when asked about how we could tease Clark.

“I’d walk through the dining hall no and be like ‘Bud, let’s eat a bit more, a little less chatter, come on, buddy,'” Avalos said. “You’ve just got to get Bud goin’, now. He’s one of my favorites I’ve ever gotten a chance to coach, but I told him until he got to 195 I was going to call him Jadarius. You can have fun with him on a variety of things. He’s very smart, intelligent, he’s a fun person to talk to. I hope you guys have a great time covering him.”

Hear the full Brock and Salk conversation with TCU defensive coordinator Andy Avalos at this link. Catch Bump and Stacy from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays on Seattle Sports.

More Seattle Seahawks NFL Draft reaction

• Daniel Jeremiah says Seahawks had ‘boringly good’ draft
• Bump: How sixth-round WR can impact Seahawks
• A Seahawks draft pick you can expect to make immediate impact
• Why RB Price passed up more money to stay at Notre Dame
• A big Seattle Seahawks question remains after NFL draft

Related

Seattle Sports Radio Info: How to find Saturday’s Seahawks, Mariners gamesSeahawks WR Tory Horton elaborates on last year’s ‘weird’ injuryReport: Seahawks make Devon Witherspoon NFL’s highest-paid CBSeahawks’ DeMarcus Lawrence says 2026 will be his final seasonMacdonald: Seahawks did ‘due diligence’ on CB Terrion ArnoldSalk: What’s enlightening about Seahawks going into this season