Carroll wants to re-stock Seahawks RB depth. Draft--and a trade option?--fit his style
Chris Carson is coming off a season-ending injury. So is Rashaad Penny.
No wonder Pete Carroll says he wants to build more depth among Seahawks running backs.
And now the annual depth builder is here.
The NFL draft April 23-25 has bullish, Seattle-style running backs, change-of-pace backs, all varieties of backs for one of the league’s remaining old-school coaches that believes a run-first offense wins.
Saturday brought news of another potential, more-proven option at running back: Jacksonville lead rusher Leonard Fournette. The Jaguars are fielding trade offers from other teams regarding, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported citing league sources.
Fournette’s base pay for this year is scheduled to be $4.17 million, the final year of the rookie contract for the fourth-overall pick in the 2017 draft. Carroll and general manager John Schneider pride themselves on keeping the Seahawks involved in all potential trade options and signings. So, yes, expect Seattle to be in on talks with the Jaguars, at a minimum to see what it might take to acquire Fournette to a position Carroll wants to restock.
But will Carroll and the Seahawks again go against the modern NFL and spend their top draft pick on a running back, for the second time in three drafts? Or, in the case of Fournette, will they trade top assets to acquire a 25-year-old lead back at a position proven to have such a short shelf life in the league?
Probably not. Not with the team’s year-defining need for an impact pass rusher, plus other, more pressing issues at defensive tackle, nickel defensive back and offensive tackle.
General manager John Schneider and Carroll traded down in 2018 and selected Penny in the first round. The idea was Penny as a potentially impacting insurance plan because Carson had yet to play a full season injury-free since junior college.
He still hasn’t. Carson is recovering from a cracked hip in December. He said in January of being back in time for the start of the 2020 season: “That’s the plan.”
There’s another factor besides durability with Carson, who turns 26 in September. His rookie contract ends after 2020. The Seahawks are likely to wait until their leading rusher who’s romped for 2,300 yards the last two seasons proves he’s all the way back from the hip injury and playing again before putting plans for a contract extension into any real motion.
Penny’s return is a longer-range projection. He is recovering from torn knee ligaments following a non-contact injury in Seattle’s loss at the Los Angeles Rams in early December. A month ago, he posted footage online of him chopping steps through an agility ladder while pulling weight. He described them as “baby steps.” He added an emoji of fingers crossed as he continued his recovery from reconstructive knee surgery.
“One of the issues is, we’ve got to get Penny back and him to compete,” Carroll said.
The Seahawks have not signed a running back in free agency. That further increases the chance they will draft one.
TOP RUNNING BACKS IN 2020 NFL DRAFT
1. Jonathan Taylor, Wisconsin
2. J.K. Dobbins, Ohio State
3. D’Andre Swift, Georgia
4. Clyde Edwards-Helaire, LSU
5. Zack Moss, Utah
Jonathan Taylor has the size at 226 pounds, speed (an unofficial 4.39 seconds in the 40-yard dash) and power Carroll wants in his runners. Taylor just runs through guys. He averaged more than 1,300 yards after contact per season in his college career for Wisconsin. He set an NCAA record in November with his 12th 200-yard rushing game.
Asked at the league’s scouting combine in February what sets him apart from all other backs in this draft, Taylor said: “Really, I think it’s my consistency. I mean, if you look at the next level, what separates the great backs from the elite backs is really them playing on an elite level day in and day out every Sunday.
“I think that’s one of the biggest things that separates me, is my ability to be consistent year in and year out.”
Some teams worry about the wear on Taylor at a position with such a short life span in the NFL; he had 925 carries in just three seasons for Wisconsin. He also dropped many passes in college, alarming pro scouts.
Still, he’s likely to be off the board when the Seahawks likely move down from 27th overall in round one with a trade. Schneider and Carroll have traded their original first-round pick in eight consecutive drafts.
Plus, again, the Seahawks have more pressing issues—did you hear they need pass rushers?—than to draft a running back with their first pick again.
Everywhere outside Seattle, running backs have become devalued in the draft recent years as offenses value passing more. The rise and fall of Todd Gurley as Rams franchise player to out of Los Angeles within two years of L.A. guaranteeing him $45 million doesn’t help the perception that running backs aren’t a worthwhile investment at the top of the draft.
But college running backs who have proven themselves as receivers are valued more than ever in the NFL. That’s why D’Andre Swift of Georgia is likely to get picked early in this draft.
Carroll and the Seahawks are likely to be looking more at power runners for later rounds.
Ke’Shawn Vaughn is 214 pounds. He got many of his college yards plowing after contact. He rushed for 1,000 yards in each of his two years at hometown Vanderbilt, after leading Illinois in rushing as a freshman then transferring. Many believe Vaughn will be available in the third or fourth round because he hasn’t shown a lot in the passing game.
The Seahawks have an even bigger, more bullish back to consider for later rounds. Michael Warren from Cincinnati is 226 pounds. His nickname in college was “The Truck.” His 1,000-yard seasons for Cincinnati came from making defenders roadkill. He also showed pass-catching ability with 21 receptions and two for touchdowns last season.
“The Truck” is projected to be a third-day pick in rounds four through seven because of his lack of speed and poor pass protection. That latter knock is a particular minus for Carroll with young running backs—and for the Seahawks’ offense in general right now after years of quarterback Russell Wilson getting constantly pressured.
Other late-round options to keep in mind if Carroll follows through on his desire to add depth at running back: 221-pound Benny LeMay, a 1,000-yard rusher in each of his final two years at Charlotte who can also catch passes; 220-pound Tony Jones Jr., who had five 100-yard games last season for Notre Dame including 176 yards against USC; and 208-pound Xavier Jones, who had 25 total touchdowns last season for SMU.
Xavier Jones was not invited to the combine, then his pro day got canceled by the coronavirus. So he’s somewhat off the radar. A team that scouted him extensively during recent college seasons have the advantage of seeing his skills in running and receiving in person.
This story was originally published April 17, 2020 at 1:24 PM with the headline "Carroll wants to re-stock Seahawks RB depth. Draft--and a trade option?--fit his style."
