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Roster Intel
The De’Von Achane Rumor Keeps Breathing Because the Math Keeps Making Sense
De’Von Achane skipped the Dolphins’ voluntary offseason program this week. That alone isn’t a scandal. But for a running back entering the final year of his rookie deal on a team that just traded Jaylen Waddle and released Tua Tagovailoa, the timing speaks louder than any press conference denial.
Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport included Achane on his April 10 list of NFL stars who could actually be traded and pointed to Seattle as a logical fit. Field Gulls ran a full feature asking: is Achane still an option? Rob Staton at the Seahawks Draft Blog laid out the Jamal Adams comp. You trade a premium pick for a non-premium position, wait to pay the player, and pray you’re right.
The football case is obvious. Achane rushed for 1,350 yards and eight touchdowns in 2025, earning a Pro Bowl nod and an 89.2 PFF grade that ranked first among qualified backs. Kenneth Walker is in Kansas City. Charbonnet is rehabbing a torn ACL. The Week 1 starter is currently a question mark shaped like a depth chart.
89.2
Achane’s 2025 PFF grade — first among 55 qualified running backs.
The problem is price. Seattle has four draft picks. Using the 32nd overall selection on a one-year rental at running back would be the kind of gamble that works exactly until it doesn’t. The Seahawks are in a better position to deal 2027 picks, where they’re projected to have 11 selections with compensatory additions. But Miami wants help now, not next year.
Macdonald said people are “kind of sleeping on” the backs already in the building. He’s probably right. But Achane’s absence from Miami and Seattle’s empty RB1 line keep this rumor alive on life support. The draft is in 11 days. Something has to give.
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The draft is in 11 days. Something has to give.
SOURCES →
Draft Intel
Seattle’s VMAC Visitor List Just Hit 20 Names. Three More Walked Through the Door.
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Johnson is the name that matters most for the running back conversation. He rushed for 1,451 yards and 12 touchdowns as a junior, led the Big Ten in rushing, and became the first Nebraska back to record 100-plus yards both rushing and receiving in the same game. Rob Staton slots him in the third-to-fourth round range alongside Mike Washington Jr., which is exactly the Day 2 running back sweet spot fans have been clamoring for.
1,451
Emmett Johnson’s rushing yards in 2025, leading the Big Ten.
The Trotter visit is the fascinating one. A linebacker. Not a need. Staton called it “really encouraging” because it signals the Seahawks aren’t pigeonholing themselves into drafting by need. Four picks, 20-plus meetings, and Schneider is still casting a wider net than the roster gaps suggest.
SOURCES →
AROUND THE COOP
Around the Coop
Schneider told Max Unger he regrets trading him. The Jimmy Graham deal is officially the haunted house Schneider keeps revisiting in those green notebooks. At least the offensive line is stable now. Field Gulls
The Seahawks.com mock draft tracker hit version 7.0 and the consensus at 32 remains split between cornerback, edge rusher, and Jadarian Price. Twelve experts, three positions, zero agreement. Schneider wouldn’t have it any other way. Seahawks.com
Sam Darnold married Katie Hoofnagle on April 3 at Rancho Valencia Resort in Rancho Santa Fe. Two rings in one calendar year. The man cannot stop winning. Fox Sports
Rob Staton’s updated visitor tracker now includes 20 confirmed names. Edge rushers and cornerbacks account for 16 of the meetings. If there was ever any doubt about where picks 32 and 64 are going, the visitor breakdown ends the conversation. Seahawks Draft Blog
NFC WEST SCHADENFREUDE REPORT
RAMS
Puka Nacua’s civil lawsuit hearing is Monday. The Rams’ concerns about his well-being have “significantly increased” this offseason, per The Athletic’s Jourdan Rodrigue, and the franchise tag is now on the table instead of an extension. Meanwhile, ESPN’s Mina Kimes and Daniel Jeremiah both suggested the Rams should aggressively draft a receiver as insurance because Davante Adams turns 34 this year. JSN signed through 2031. Nacua might not sign through next week.
NINERS
The 49ers traded their third-round pick (No. 92) to Dallas for defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa, a move born from finishing dead last in the NFL in sacks with 20. That pick was one of only six they owned. Now they have five. San Francisco’s offseason strategy: spend draft capital to fix problems created by spending draft capital on Trey Lance. The circle of life, if the circle were a drain.
CARDINALS
PHNXCardinals reports Arizona hasn’t scheduled a single pre-draft meeting with any of the top three offensive tackles in the class. That strongly hints at edge rusher David Bailey at No. 3, which means the Cardinals are prioritizing getting to the quarterback over protecting theirs. Bold strategy when your quarterbacks are Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew.
SEACHICKENS TRIVIA
Steve Largent retired after the 1989 season holding every major NFL career receiving record. He was acquired by the Seahawks as a rookie in 1976 in a preseason trade with the Houston Oilers, who had drafted him in the fourth round out of the University of Tulsa. What did the Seahawks give up to acquire Largent from the Oilers?
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An eighth-round draft pick. It remains one of the most lopsided trades in NFL history. Largent went on to catch 819 passes for 13,089 yards and 100 touchdowns over 14 seasons, all with the Seahawks.
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Eleven days to Pittsburgh. The visitors keep walking through the door. Achane keeps not walking through Miami's. The offseason program starts in eight days. Go Hawks. — The Rooster