THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Seahawks reach again; was this draft a dog?

Let’s try to make some sense of the NFL’s first-ever virtual draft.

Two things jump to mind…

First, it was hilarious to see Bill Belichick’s dog sitting in the coach’s chair.

Wonder if the dog (and not Tom Brady) has been the secret to New England’s run of success all these years.

Second, and most important in this part of the country, are John Schneider and Pete Carroll smarter than everyone else in evaluating talent?

You have to wonder about that second item, because the Seahawks’ future depends on it.

A quick look back…

The consensus around the NFL has been that Seattle reached WAY too far for its No. 1 picks the past couple of years.

The lack of any noteworthy contributions from running back Rashaad Penny (2018) or defensive end L.J. Collier (2019) would seem to indicate the naysayers were right.

SO, WHAT did the Seattle brain trust do this time around?

Well, they came up with a reach about the width of Puget Sound, and selected linebacker Jordyn Brooks from Texas Tech with the 27th pick in the first round.

Almost every draft analyst had projected Brooks as a third-round choice — perhaps a second rounder at best, if some team needed a fast but raw middle linebacker.

To recap: Brooks might still have been available if the Seahawks had waited a while, and on top of that, he’s coming to a team with perhaps the best MLB in pro football (Bobby Wagner).

There’s even a third issue with the selection of Brooks.

Almost everyone was shocked that he was chosen ahead of LSU linebacker Patrick Queen, who will almost certainly be an instant starter for Baltimore.

It’s hard to argue with two men who drafted their way into the Super Bowl in consecutive years, but let’s just say the choice of Brooks was startling, at least.

Naturally, Schneider and Carroll know that — so after a couple of blah first-round choices recently, they’d really like to prove they ARE the smartest guys in the room.

You can find arguments to defend Seattle’s draft, of course.

For starters, the pick of Tennessee pass rusher Darrell Taylor in the second round could have been a dandy.

Ditto grabbing LSU guard Damien Lewis in the third round.

Lewis got a massive vote of confidence when the Seahawks released two veterans — center Justin Britt and right guard D. J. Fluker — right after the draft.

THERE ARE some intriguing free-agent signings who will compete for jobs on the offensive line, as well, but the Hawks obviously liked Lewis enough to thin out the herd ahead of him.

Also on the plus side for Seattle…

The Seahawks found some unusual talent and skill sets (like Stanford’s 6-7 tight end Colby Parkinson) in the later rounds.

Syracuse defensive end Alton Robinson may have a checkered past — he was arrested for robbery in college — but he may have turned things around.

Not only that, but Robinson’s pre-draft workouts were conducted under the tutelage of former Seahawk DE Cliff Avril, who sees untapped potential in his protégé.

It’s also good to remember that the Hawks traded a fifth-round pick for cornerback Quinton Dunbar, who has a heck of a chance to beat out Tre Flowers as a starting cornerback.

Nice value there.

There might be some gems lurking in this latest Seattle draft class (and hey, Brooks could turn out to be fantastic), but there’s an even stronger argument that was panic isn’t necessary.

Remember…

Mel Kiper’s draft board doesn’t mean much when the hitting starts.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press on Wednesdays and Fridays. “Moments, Memories and Madness,” his reminiscences from several decades as a sports journalist, runs each Sunday.

Steve also writes Zags Tracker, a commentary on Gonzaga basketball, once per month during the offseason.