The Seattle Seahawks' selection of Bruce Irvin surprised a lot of people around the country, including those stationed in the New York Jets' "war room." The pick seemed out of nowhere in part because the draftnik industrial complex didn't understand how popular Irvin was with NFL teams.
Seahawks general manager John Schneider admitted the lack of conversation about Irvin didn't sit well with him.
"The only problem is, (Irvin) was so quiet — people weren't talking about him. And quite honestly, that made me uncomfortable," Schneider told KJR-AM via SeattlePI.com.
Teams talk about the players they don't want. They try to stay quiet about the guys they hope fall in the draft.
Schneider also admitted he saw three defensive players standing apart from the pack in this draft: safety Mark Barron, linebacker Luke Kuechly and Irvin. He swears that Irvin ranked the highest of the trio. Teams always say that sort of thing, but Schneider is more credible because he was so open about Seattle's other first-round options.
Yep, Schneider admitted there was a "strong possibility" the team would have drafted the Ryan/Lauren Tannehill experience if it was available at the No. 12 spot. Instead, Seattle wound up with Irvin and promising third-round quarterback Russell Wilson. We suspect the Seahawks are better off with the Irvin/Wilson combo platter.
"And if we didn't come out of the draft with Bruce Irvin and Russell Wilson, we would not have felt good as a group," Schneider said. "Those are the two guys that really stood out, sure."