Good point on the multiple concussions and NFL longevity of Swope. I was not aware of that.

Also, I guess I was hyperfocused on how he helped Manziel dismantle Alabama's secondary when A&M beat them 29-24 last year, and envisoned him helping Russell Wilson do the same to the Rams and Niners. I really liked his football smarts, underappreciated 4.34 speed, and his ability to improvise and get open/help out the QB after the play had broken down.
That wasn't the only game either. Swope rocked it for the last 3 seasons under 3 QBs and 2 coaching staffs. Comparing his college stats side by side to Harper's and its like arggh... but yeah, I guess we aint in college anymore now are we Toto...

It was hard letting go of the mancrush, but seeing as how he is now the enemy in Arizona, maybe Kam Chancellor can welcome him to the pros accordingly.

ps Since this is about Chris Harper I watched everything I could find on him and came away with one very strong conclusion... Colin Klein can't throw a football . As far as Harper himself, idk anything for sure, but he looks alright and he CAN block. As far as his future as a highpointing passcatcher/firstdown converter with guys hanging all over him, maybe JSPC have found another diamond in the rough, in that he hasn't yet played with an accurate quarterback... and will be a young Boldin (or better!) ...only time will tell.

lol. Yep.

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February 2, 2014... the day the dream was finally realized

I don't get it. Looked like even college defenders were all over him. Strong hands sure. No acrobatic catches or much YAC.

Special teams player.

I actually love the Harper pick, he's not a year one starter but give him this year to upskill his route running and he'll replace Tate perfectly. It's a nice way to counter our own (no longer unique) system of big CB's playing aggressive press coverage.. Have WR's that can beat down on the CB, it's the next step

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While his college body of work didn't make me holler in exuberance when the selection was revealed... giving immediate further thought made me smile. I didn't really have a draft round grade on Harper. I don't know why I didn't consider him to be on Seattle's radar. In retrospect, this is the kind of player and selection that - pairing this guys upside / potential with Russell Wilson (not to mention the DB's he will be competing against in practice) - will be yet another example of the genius of JS / PC. Last year and with first round picks... you hear more that there were other teams interested to take a player like Bruce Irvin. I don't think we tend to hear that about mid round selections. But, perhaps this guy was the WR target all along and they were elated to get him there and didn't want to risk later rounds. There have been comments about not taking "safe" picks. This draft seemed much about taking upside players. I like what they did, overall, and that includes the selection of Chris Harper. I wonder what sort of draft grade Chris Harper would have had if he had played at Texas A&M with Tannehill and Manziel? I'm still interested to see what Stephen Williams may show. So, even if Harper ends up on the PS, I think the pick upgrades the position overall.

Also, I gotta believe there is more to it than simply documented concussions as to why the Seahawks passed on Ryan Swope. I, too, liked what I saw in Swope. I think there are still a lot of concussions that go unreported and I would imagine that there have been many players drafted throughout the years that perhaps had as many or more concussions (that went undiagnosed or unreported) that went on to have significant careers in the NFL. So, I can't imagine that so many teams would pass so easily on the perceived (armchair GM) potential of Swope based only on that. It's a physical game. It's not a "contact" sport... it's a "collision" sport. So, I can't imagine that all those GM's passed on a perceived talent like that just because he's been rung up a bit. Welcome to the club.

This draft is like every other. There are players we all rated very high that slid. We may not even remember their names in a year or two. Of course, there are draft steals, too. Granted. Still, it's not like Swope played at some obscure school and he was hidden under a rock.

Welcome to the Seahawks, Chris Harper! I'm sure you are coming in with the attitude to contribute in any way you can to help this team win and reach it's goals... not just personal goals. I gotta believe that is why JS / PC drafted you. Get one of those "All In" T-Shirts from RW and get to work. We're rooting for you. You will have the best teammates and fan support in the league.

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World Champion

Seattle Seahawks

He sounds like a faster Obo. Close in size too.. A decent pick if it pans out but it seems to be - bit of going for the fences. It could easily be a miss.

He's a possession receiver. Not every WR is going to be a burner and an acrobat. He excels in making catches in traffic.

Think Mike Williams (the 2010 version), but faster.

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@SeahawkGreg



"I will be thrilled with 10 wins.... If we win 14 games, I will tattoo my nuts green and blue!" --13thMan

Pete will make this pick work, I just don't get why they passed on better receivers who were available much later. Mark Harrison has better measurables than Harper AND doesn't have the problems on tape AND he went undrafted since the WR class was crazy deep this year. And he's just one example of many.

I think what motivated this pick is that Pete is confident that he can fix problems, so he doesn't really see Harper's glaring issues as much of a negative, unlike me. Harper's strengths are BIG strengths. He might be the strongest WR in the draft and has strong hands too. That hasn't translated into physical play yet. Maybe it will with Pete's guidance and he'll end up a steal.

I like Greg's comparison to BMW. I think that's what Pete envisions too.

I smell BACK-PEDAL. You went from hating him to now "pete will make this pick work".

Clearly Pete didn't think Harrisons tape was better than Harpers. That is why Harper was picked in the 4th. I can't stress enough, PC and JS do this for a living, nobody on this message board does.

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The artist formerly known as T-Sizzle

This is a rant not necessarily directed at T-Sizzle. More it's something I've read from multiple posters on multiple forums and it's bugged me for awhile:



We're in a Seahawks draft forum. People are *SUPPOSED* to offer opinions. Even dissenting ones.

Honestly can people even begin to get over the 'Nuh uh, you don't get paid to do this like Tim Ruskell does -- T.I.T.!' response? It's kind of infantile. And it doesn't seem like it would need to be stressed anyway. Isn't this a presumed fact by all?

I don't want a fan forum made up of YES men. I want opinions from a different angle. Preferably informed and reasoned opinions so I can judge for myself. If I wanted to consume Seahawks material in that cowling, flaccid, company line manner -- I'd get my fix from the official website. If one feels that strongly that nobody could ever add to the discussion because they aren't paid by a pro team, there are places one can go that provide only that.

I can't stress enough that virtually nobody that posts a dissenting opinion does so with the idea that it's absolute. Even if the opinion is written that way. It's internet hyperbole. We don't draft/redraft what we write here. And it's not a sin to change one's mind either. Particularly as you reflect deeper on an opinion.

Pete said in a interview earlier this week to earn a spot on this roster should be very hard, much less starting. He will have a role I suspect much like the one Obo had last year. He has the tools

Perhaps the following will help answer the question you have (as to why they passed on receivers you had rated higher). This is not my information. Just passing it along from this recently posted article: http://www.seahawks.com/news/articles/a ... a25700148a

Harper's background as a running back/quarterback turned wide receiver clearly fits that Carroll-Schneider mold.

For the Seahawks, Harper's measurables, a willingness to initiate contact, a strong lower body that can handle a cornerback's press off the line of scrimmage and an ability to see defenses as a quarterback sees them translates into a player who can blossom into a productive playmaker given the right situation.

Is this helpful? I sort of suspected this line of reasoning. His size and athleticism. NFL teams now covet wideouts that run like RB's once they get the ball in their hands. Add to that the size and speed of Harper and it justifies his draft position over guys like Harrison, etc. who were not RB's or QB's. I think they've laid it out that it was their "opinion" Harper's measurables were desirable for the team - and apparently that means better, in their estimation, than other WR's still available and drafted in later rounds.

The listing of those particular measurables does not sound like BMW to me. Mark Harrison would have perhaps been more like a BMW. I think they're looking for guys that excel in YAC. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't recall that as the memorable part of BMW's game. I always thought we would see much more out of Harper at K-State. The thought of him getting on the same page with RW and getting him the ball in space....

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World Champion

Seattle Seahawks

He is more of a sure thing than our 4th round pick in 2011, Georgia WR Kris Durham. Durham had minimal production but had big upside. Whereas Harper had good college production especially considering he had a below average QB throwing him the ball.

I don't see the size comparison with Obo and Harper. Harper is a much stockier guy, 30 lbs bigger.
Obo is 6-1 204 lbs
Harper 6-1 234 lbs

I'm sorry but Obo needed to go. I'm hoping Harper is a MAJOR upgrade to his old roster spot, both in terms of receptions, key first downs, TDs, and even in terms of special teams plays and production.

A line I have heard quite a few times from our front office this season:

We don't look at what a player CAN'T do, we look at what he CAN do, and then decide if there is a place on the team for that players strengths.

I imagine they hope to be able to coach up his weaknesses, but his strengths definitely fill a void in our roster . . . here's to hoping he can pan out and prouce.

I completely agree. Watching their offensive drives from last year had me shaking my head at their QB many a time, that guy was mediocre at best.

I heard somewhere that during Senior Bowl or maybe it was Shrine game, practice, he never dropped a single ball. What little I saw online he fumbled one or two and seemed awfully careless with the ball but maybe those were isolated incidences.

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RELEASE THE KRAKEN! (FREE BROWNER!)

The Chris Harper selection also looks like a Kippy Brown pick.

Kippy was a former quarterback stand out that has coached both pro receivers and running backs.

I really wanted to like this pick, I thought, this could be the BB of receivers. However, The more I watch him in the games, the more of a head scratcher it becomes.

He is big, but doesn't play like it. Has good hands, but also seems careless with the football after the catch (really holds the ball away from his body a lot). Never really high points (despite his quality vert), minimal yac, and positioning seems to be just ok. I didn't even see particularly high effort. Seems like just a guy.

Also, Never realized how terrible Klein was. Wow.

Assinine statement. UNder PC and JS they've drafted 2 WR's (not counting 2013 draft)- Tate (round 2) Durham (Round 4) Tate, would be considered a hit, IMO. He's shown to be a impactful playmaker. Durham wasn't nearly physical enough and was discarded.

In terms of hits on WR. (Players who've started and contributed significantly) JS has the following:

Mike WIlliams (2010 hit), Tate (hit), Baldwin (hit), Meawhile Kearse also contributed to the team as a UNFA in a limited role.

Misses- Durham (4th round miss) and Lockette who was undrafted (so that really doesn't count) . I think it's silly to say try to say that JS has done a bad job picking up WR talent.