I think every Seahawks fan was thrilled when Aaron Curry, arguably the top prospect in the entire draft, fell to the Seahawks at #4. Ruskell had masterfully traded away declining Julian Peterson and his large contract to the Lions which reduced the chances that they would draft Curry. We exit the draft with the youngest, most talented trio of linebackers in the NFL. All is good in Seahawks land (sorry, media and Super Bowl referees prove there is no Seahawks Nation yet).
Heading into the draft, though, I was drawn to the idea of getting a young tackle who could be an understudy for Big Walt. We all remember the glory of the Shawn Springs/Walter Jones draft class and how drastic a team’s fortunes can change on the addition of Pro Bowl tackle. It’s unlikely we will ever see a lineman of Jones’ quality again, but Hawks fans are grappling with the real possibility that we will be making due with what we have instead of grooming a new top-line talent.
So I ask the question:
Would you rather have Eugene Monroe, Andre Smith, Michael Oher on the Hawks with David Hawthorne or DD Lewis starting at LB
OR
Curry on the Hawks with no backup tackle options behind Sean Locklear and Ray Willis?
I’ve been a Michael Oher fan for a while, so I may be a little biased, but watching him kick some ass in his first pre-season game for the Ravens did nothing to change that. If Curry explodes onto the scene and becomes a Rookie of the Year candidate and perennial Pro Bowler, this pick will look just fine. But the bar is pretty high because we drafted at a position of strength when we could have gotten talent at a position of weakness. Ask any GM in the NFL and they will tell you a great left tackle is significantly more valuable than a great linebacker.
I certainly hope Curry becomes everything we want him to be, but as a Hawks/Mariners/Blazers fan that has watched picks of Sam Bowie, Greg Oden, Brandon Morrow, Brian Bosworth and alike, I’d be lying if I told you there wasn’t some skepticism in me.