Brock and Salk: Who the Seahawks could target in trades

The Seattle Seahawks are off to an underwhelming 3-3 start in the defense of their Super Bowl title, but they have a chance to bolster their roster before the NFL’s Nov. 10 trade deadline.

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With the potential sellers starting to take shape after the first six weeks of the season, Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk on Tuesday discussed a few players who are thought to potentially be available in trades: Indianapolis Colts running back Jonathan Taylor and guard Quenton Nelson, Los Angeles Chargers edge rusher Khalil Mack and Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquan Barkley.

Seattle’s run game has struggled to get much going this year while dealing with the absence of Zach Charbonnet and an early injury to first-round pick Jadarian Price, in addition to the offseason departure of Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III in free agency. But former NFL quarterback Brock Huard wasn’t sold on the idea of the Seahawks trading for a running back making a sizeable amount of money like both Taylor and Barkley, especially since the team invested a first-round pick on Price, is expecting to get both Charbonnet and Price back soon, and will have other contract extensions to work out past this season like with defensive tackle Byron Murphy II.

“I don’t think that money is going to be spent on an older running back,” Huard said. “Both (are) unbelievably talented, but I would preference Quenton Nelson in this conversation.”

Why Quenton Nelson makes sense

Both Brock and Salk agreed on Nelson being a more desirable acquisition than either of the two running backs. Nelson, a first-round pick in 2018, is a six-time All-Pro and eight-time Pro Bowler. He’s also in the final year of his contract, and the Seahawks have shown under general manager John Schneider that they will trade for players on expiring deals and re-sign them afterwards.

“You get a real look a little bit like Leonard Williams, a little bit like these moves you’ve made in the past with a veteran guy. You get a real look without being on the hook for years and years and years to come,” Huard said. “And that guy, like some of the others that have come before him, may get here and be like, ‘Oh, this is what it’s supposed to be like. Oh, this is a first-class, winning, championship organization.’ (Nelson has) not really been around that.”

If Seattle was to make a deal for a player like Nelson, it would likely mean right guard Anthony Bradford would be bumped from the starting lineup.

“It does offer you an opportunity to get better and better,” Mike Salk said. “Now, all that being said, Anthony Bradford’s coming back and everybody seems really excited about what he brings to the team, but he’s not Quenton Nelson.”

Another factor that could help Seattle make a deal for Nelson is Ed Dodds just took over as the interim general manager of the Colts. Dodds spent 10 years working for the Seahawks from 2007-16, which included seven seasons under Schneider.

A boost for both sides

Mack, who is playing for an 0-6 Chargers team, was the other name that piqued Brock and Salk’s interests. The 35-year-old edge rusher is a four-time All-Pro and nine-time Pro Bowler. He has three sacks and five tackles for loss in six games this year and is playing on a one-year deal, $18 million deal.

“You’ve got Price returning, you’ve got Charbonnet returning. If those guys are who they’re supposed to be, then you shouldn’t need to make a trade for a running back,” Salk said. “But the other two names, I would want heavy consideration around them. Khalil Mack and an opportunity to make this defense even better and get to the passer in key spots? Absolutely. And yeah, Quenton Nelson’s got to be the most interesting name on there because he’s the single best player at his position in the NFL, and adding that to this offensive line pays dividends in so many ways.”

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

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