John Schneider has found a pattern with his third-round picks: move them.
The latest example came with Quenton Nelson, a deal that cost the Seahawks a third-rounder and, as the source story notes, the chance to keep that pick on the roster after the trade. Christian Haynes, let go after the Nelson deal and claimed by Miami, became the newest reminder of how shaky Seattle has been in that round under Schneider.
There have been bright spots, of course. Schneider landed Russell Wilson in 2012 and Tyler Lockett in 2015, two home runs that helped define his early draft record.
But since 2016, his third-round success has been far less reliable. According to data compiled by PerThirtySix, he has hit on just 3 of 13 third-rounders since then, a 23% rate that ranks 21st in the NFL.
Even among those three successes, the long-term payoff has been uneven. Abe Lucas is the only one Schneider kept on a second contract. Shaquill Griffin and Damien Lewis moved on for bigger deals elsewhere, and Schneider has said that letting Lewis leave was likely a mistake.
The misses piled up in the years that mattered most. Seattle’s 2016 and 2017 drafts were major contributors to the defense’s decline after the Legion of Boom era ended in 2018.
In the third round during those two drafts, Schneider came away with C.J. Prosise, Rees Odhiambo, Lano Hill, Nazair Jones and Amara Darboh.
Nick Vannett turned into a serviceable backup and was later traded before his rookie deal expired, while Griffin was the lone true success from that stretch. That left Schneider at 1-for-7 in the third round across those two classes.
The problems weren’t limited to Round 3. Germain Ifedi went in the first round in 2016, Malik McDowell turned into a debacle, and Ethan Pocic was a puzzling second-round choice in 2017.
Together, those drafts forced Schneider to chase veteran fixes to patch the roster as the team moved out of the LOB era. Seattle went out and landed Sheldon Richardson, Duane Brown, Jadeveon Clowney, Quandre Diggs, Jamal Adams and Carlos Dunlap.
Several of those moves involved third-round selections, which the Seahawks might have been better off using as trade currency anyway. Schneider included third-rounders in deals for Brown, Clowney and Adams. Adams didn’t work out and Clowney was only a rental, but the approach made sense.
Since 2018, Schneider has drafted six players in the third round. Lewis and Lucas were hits, Cody Barton became a useful backup, and Haynes and Rasheem Green stood out as some of the weakest third-round selections of Schneider’s run.
That’s why the Nelson move fits a broader trend. Since 2019, Schneider has traded a third-round pick in every draft except one.
In 2019, he moved from No. 77 to No. 64 to take DK Metcalf. In August 2019, he sent his 2020 third to Houston for Clowney, though he still ended up making a third-round selection that year by moving from 64 to 69 for Lewis.
His 2021 third went into the July 2020 Adams trade. He kept his 2022 third and used it well on Lucas.
More recently, he kept dealing those picks. In 2023, he sent No. 83 to Denver and got back a 2023 fourth-rounder that became Anthony Bradford plus a 2024 third.
In March 2024, he used a third in a pick-swap package for Sam Howell, then later spent the Denver third on Haynes after Seattle needed a guard. In 2025, Schneider acquired a third from the Raiders in the Geno Smith trade and used it on Jalen Milroe, with the round already picked over by then.
One of Schneider’s sharpest third-round decisions actually came when he used the pick to move up in the second round, going from No. 52 to No. 35 to draft Nick Emmanwori. That move looked strong at the time and looked even better after Emmanwori’s dynamic showing against the Chiefs on Sunday night.
In the most recent draft, Schneider dropped a few spots at the bottom of the third, picked up a sixth-rounder and selected Julian Neal. He was pleased just to make that deal after other teams refused to trade with him in the first two rounds.
Now the Seahawks have another third-rounder tied up in a player who is better than the pick itself: Quenton Nelson, the kind of veteran who fits alongside recent midseason additions Leonard Williams, Ernest Jones IV and Rashid Shaheed if he sticks around.
Since 2016, the median hit rate on third-rounders leaguewide has been about 30%. Schneider’s record looks better when those picks are treated as trade chips instead of draft bets. By dealing away so many of them since 2019, he has essentially doubled that success rate, going 6 for 10 with Milroe and Neal still unresolved.
And he’s likely not done. He still has three third-rounders coming over the next two drafts, courtesy of the Vikings hiring minority GM Nolan Teasley. Based on the way this has gone, Schneider will probably keep finding ways to turn those picks into something more useful than another swing and miss.
In Other News...
Quenton Nelson Just Raised The Stakes For Seattles Offensive Line
The Seahawks made a major move to stabilize the middle of their offensive line, landing guard Quenton Nelson from the Colts for a pair of future draft picks. Seattle expects Nelson to step in at left guard, and the trade immediately changes the look of a unit that has been searching for more consistency up front. For a team trying to protect its quarterback and create a cleaner run game, the addition carries obvious weight.
Nelson is now in the middle of the usual post-trade adjustment period, learning a new offensive scheme and getting acquainted with new teammates. The Seahawks are giving him support as he settles in, but the ripple effect is already clear: his arrival forces a reshuffle along the line and raises the standard for everyone around him. How quickly that group clicks will be one of the more important early storylines for Seattle. [Read more 🡒]
Rashid Shaheed Trade Still Looks Worth It For Seahawks
The Seahawks brought in Rashid Shaheed during the 2025 season to give their offense and special teams a jolt, and the move already looks like one of those midseason swings that can pay off in more than one way. Shaheed was part of Seattles Super Bowl run last season, offering useful production as both a receiver and a return man while giving the team a speed element it had been looking for.
This season has not started as explosively on the receiving side, with his production down so far, but Seattle still has a player who can tilt field position every time he touches a kick or punt. For a team that values hidden yardage and game-changing speed, that kind of versatility keeps the trade looking smart even if the box score has been quieter lately. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Backfield Suddenly Has A Monday Night Twist Fans Need To See
Jadarian Prices return from injured reserve gave Seattles backfield an immediate jolt on the latest injury report, and it came with the kind of timing that can change how the Seahawks approach a game plan. Mike Macdonald said Price could be in line to play in the upcoming game, which adds another layer to a running back room that has already been under the microscope as the team tries to sort out who is available and how much work each player can handle.
The bigger wrinkle is Zach Charbonnet, who went from full participation to limited work in practice, leaving his status less certain than it looked earlier in the week. Elsewhere on the report, Charles Cross, Rashid Shaheed and Uchenna Nwosu were held out, while Leonard Williams and Drake Thomas moved all the way to full participation, giving Seattle a mixed health picture heading into Monday night and a few lineup decisions still hanging in the balance. [Read more 🡒]