How examining other teams helps Seahawks’ draft prep

The NFL Draft is ultimately one giant puzzle for the Seattle Seahawks and the rest of the teams in the NFL.

Seahawks 2026 NFL Draft Tracker: Keep up with picks and trades

One piece of that puzzle is trying to figure out which directions other teams will go with their picks. It helps teams get a better understanding of who will be available when they’re on the clock and just how far they can trade back while still leaving themselves a chance to land a desired prospect.

Just hours before the first round of the 2026 draft on Thursday, Seahawks general manager John Schneider and director of pro personnel Willie Schneider shed some light on that process during a conversation with Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob.

For the Seahawks, preparing for what those around them in the draft might do included a big meeting on Wednesday where Willie Schneider and his pro personnel group detailed the needs and potential draft fits for each NFL team.

“We go through team by team and we talk about what their team needs, who do we see them drafting,” Willie Schneider said. “And it kind of gives John a lay of the land for as we proceed tonight and throughout the weekend of who’s ahead of us, who’s behind us, who could be coming up for so and so, who needs the same thing that we do.

“So just kind of always trying to create a big picture (of) what’s out there, who’s up next, what are other teams looking at – trying to get in the minds and think like the other teams.”

John Schneider said the information from that meeting is particularly helpful for potential trades in the first two rounds. He recently expressed the team is open to trading back from their pick at No. 32 overall in Thursday’s first round.

“Our draft board is right in front of us, we can look to the left, we can see who’s coming… down the road like 10 picks away or five picks away. And people look at that team and say, hey, these are their top five, six needs,” John Schneider said. “And then especially in the first round, I’d say the first two rounds really, it’s like, well, if we move behind this team, we might be losing out on that player or that player. So it’s just a really cool whole room that ends up looking like a big map.”

Details: Seahawks 2026 NFL Draft coverage from Seattle Sports

But what if another team isn’t just drafting based on needs? Willie Schneider’s group is also involved in college scouting, so they have an understanding of which players may be too good for a team to pass up even if they don’t fill current positional needs. They’re also looking at which players on other teams have contracts ending in the next few years to gauge if a team may be willing to draft for a future need because there is a talented player at that position on the board.

“It’s cool because the meeting yesterday is basically like, yeah, these are their needs, but then they say, alright, but I could see this guy’s coming up, he’s got a contract coming up… I could see them taking (a potential replacement),” John Schneider said.

Seattle Sports’ coverage of Day 1 of the NFL Draft begins at 5 p.m. Thursday on Seattle Sports 710 AM, the Seattle Sports app and the Seattle Sports YouTube Channel. Day 2 coverage on Friday is from 4 p.m.-9 p.m. and Day 3 on Sunday from 8 a.m.-10 a.m.

More Seattle Seahawks NFL Draft coverage

• Brock names Notre Dame RB Jadarian Price his top Seahawks draft fit
• Daniel Jeremiah’s draft take: How far can Seahawks trade back?
• Brock: One school, two draft fits at edge rusher for Seahawks
• An under-the-radar need for the Seattle Seahawks
• NFL Draft: What – and who – Seahawks could get by trading back

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