The Seattle Seahawks were already one of the Super Bowl favorites in the NFL after losing to the Atlanta Falcons in the postseason last year and after their active offseason there is no doubt that the NFC West has two of the strongest teams in the league in the Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers.
Pete Carroll has already added a ton of talent to the roster in free agency through signing Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett and the team pulled off what could be the steal of the year in the Percy Harvin trade from the Minnesota Vikings. The team doesn't have a first round pick this year, but in a draft that is considered to be deeper rather than top heavy, that is not much of a disadvantage and after trading Matt Flynn to the Oakland Raiders, the team has some other picks to work with down the line.
The Seahawks were one of the most balanced teams that made the playoffs last season, as they had a high-powered offense and a top-ranked defense before winning one playoff game against the Washington Redskins and with Russell Wilson at quarterback the team could go even farther this year. Last season the team selected Bruce Irvin, Bobby Wagner and Russell Wilson with their first three picks and all three contributed to the team last year, especially Wilson and Irvin. Wagner also had a great season as a rookie and Pete Carroll has quietly brought in a ton of talent to the team in the draft over the past few seasons, including cornerback Richard Sherman, tackle Russell Okung, safety Earl Thomas and wideout Golden Tate.
Some areas of need for the Seahawks include the defensive line despite signing Cliff Avril, as Chris Clemons will be out for a while following a serious knee injury and one target could be SMU rusher Margus Hunt, as well as someone like Trevardo Williams. Carroll is going to look deep for talent in this draft, including names like Kyle Long, Denard Robinson and Tyrann Mathieu as well as Desmond Trufant is he makes it into the second round.
One position the Seahawks likely won't address or will look at late is at safety, as the team just signed Kam Chancellor to a five-year contract extension and has Earl Thomas alongside him. The team also has Richard Sherman and Brandon Browner at cornerback to make one of the best secondary's in the NFL and now with Darrelle Revis in Tampa Bay, Sherman can continue his trash talking competition.
Chancellor has been a solid player for the Seahawks since being drafted in 2010 and prior to last season he made the Pro Bowl as a starter after making four interceptions with 97 tackles in 2011. According to ESPN.com, the deal has $17 million guaranteed and is worth $35 million over the five years. He will likely be the highest paid safety per year in the NFC West, besting Donte Whitner and his teammate Earl Thomas.
