Seahawks Were Wary Of 49ers’ Interest In RB Jadarian Price; Seattle Remains Open To Signing Dante Fowler

The Seahawks filled a major need in this year’s draft when they selected Notre Dame RB Jadarian Price with the last pick (No. 32 overall) of Day 1. Although they reportedly attempted to trade out of the first round — and, per ESPN’s Brady Henderson, the Titans (No. 35) and Giants (No. 37) were among the potential trade partners — the ‘Hawks felt comfortable selecting Price for a number of reasons (aside from his obvious talent as a runner and relatively low odometer reading).

As Henderson relays, Price’s character and willingness to eschew more lucrative NIL deals to remain with the Fighting Irish as Jeremiyah Love‘s backup — which Price says he did as a challenge to himself to earn a notable workload alongside Love, whom he called the best player in college football — contributed to GM John Schneider‘s decision to pull the trigger with his first-round selection.

Plus, Schneider was concerned the division-rival 49ers would nab Price at No. 33, and given the perceived gap between Price and the next tier of RBs in this year’s draft class, that would have been a bitter pill to swallow (Henderson says Schneider viewed Washington’s Jonah Coleman and Arkansas’ Mike Washington as Day 3 options if he was unable to land the former Golden Domer).

The Seahawks’ other realistic first-round target was San Diego State CB Chris Johnson, whom the Dolphins selected at No. 27. Seattle ultimately landed a cornerback prospect when it chose Julian Neal with the No. 99 pick, and it was Neal’s tackling ability that stood out. Riq Woolen, who defected to the Eagles in free agency, was not a sure and willing tackler, and the club hopes Neal will represent an upgrade in that regard and step into Woolen’s CB3 role.

Like Woolen, Dareke Young left the Seahawks in free agency, and Henderson suggests Emmanuel Henderson, the No. 199 pick, could take over for Young on Seattle’s special teams unit thanks to his ability to return and cover kicks. A different wide receiver the ‘Hawks were eyeing for a third phase role, Kentucky’s Kendrick Law, went to the Lions as the 168th pick.

Interestingly, some members of the organization valued fifth-round guard Beau Stephens more highly than Keylan Rutledge, who went to the Texans in the first round. Henderson confirms, as our Connor Byrne recently noted, that Seattle expects Stephens to push Anthony Bradford for the starting right guard spot in 2026.

The board was not as kind to Seattle with respect to pass rushers, as would-be targets like R Mason Thomas, Derrick Moore, and Jaishawn Barham went elsewhere. That leaves the Seahawks without a replacement for Boye Mafe, who signed with the Bengals in March. Dante Fowler, who visited Seattle last month and who remains unsigned, remains one of Schenider’s top options, per Henderson. The ESPN scribe had said in a prior report that Schneider could still sign a pass rusher, whether that’s Fowler or someone else.

NFL Draft Pick Signings: 4/30/26

Today’s draft pick signings:

Baltimore Ravens

Las Vegas Raiders

Philadelphia Eagles

Seattle Seahawks

Tennessee Titans

Who Is The 2026 NFL Draft’s RB2?

Last year’s draft saw six running backs taken in the first two days, including two first-rounders. 2024 didn’t see a rusher selected until the midpoint of the second round. 2023 showed the same output as 2025, and like 2024, the 2022 draft failed to see a first-round running back.

Now, we already know that the 2026 NFL Draft will not follow the even-year trend as Notre Dame sensation Jeremiyah Love is widely projected to become a top-five pick, but after him, who will be the second running back off the board, and where will they be taken? Oddly, enough, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Love’s backfield running mate Jadarian Price is considered by many teams to be the RB2 in this year’s draft class, meaning the Fighting Irish could put out the first two rushers in the draft.

Unfairly forced to play second fiddle to Love all three years of his time in college, Price still made a name for himself, rushing for 1,692 yards and 21 touchdowns over his three years in South Bend, averaging six yards per carry over the course of his career. Scouts saw Price maintain that maximum efficiency while operating on only 6.8 carries per game, keeping his legs much fresher than those of Love. Price operates by vision with patience for developing holes in the offensive line. He has impressive acceleration once he finds his outlet and runs with impressive balance and body control.

Price was certainly impressive in limited time, but NFL teams do not have film on him in extended use. His change of direction doesn’t look necessarily smooth, and his patience behind the line can sometimes leave him over-reliant on bouncing outside. He also benefitted massively from the impressive Notre Dame line in front of him, but he may struggle if his NFL line doesn’t create lanes consistently. Additionally, despite the short sample size, Price showed lots of room for improvement in ball security.

Arkansas’s Mike Washington Jr. is widely seen as the RB3 of the class behind Love and Price. NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah ranks Price as the 39th-best overall prospect, Dane Brugler of The Athletic slots him in at 51st overall, and Todd McShay of The Ringer puts Price at 69th. Washington doesn’t appear in Jeremiah’s top 50 but ranks 85th on Brugler’s list and 96th on McShay’s. If rankings determined draft order, this would slot Price in the mid- to late-second round and Washington solidly in the third.

Interestingly, though, when a draft is so thin on prospects at a single position, it can price that position at a premium, inflating the stock of some lower-ranked prospects. Because of that possible effect, there’s a sense that Price could potentially find his way into the first round. Once Price’s name is called, the position could see a run of selections by teams eager to add fresh legs to their room.

NFL Draft Rumors: Cardinals, RBs, Downs, Woods, Terrell

As free agency slows, the general focus of the NFL is starting to shift to the 2026 NFL Draft. For one team, though, the focus appears to be the 2027 NFL Draft, per Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom. As several teams work to secure optimal situations in their quarterbacks rooms, the Cardinals appear to be working around it.

After cutting veteran quarterback Kyler Murray, Arizona seems content to move forward in 2026 with journeyman backup Jacoby Brissett, who went 1-11 as the Cardinals’ starter last year. They supplemented the room with another frequent flier with starting experience in Gardner Minshew. Neither passer is viewed as the team’s future at the position but more as bridge options until that future comes along. The prevailing opinion throughout league circles appears to be that Arizona is tanking the 2026 season in hopes of setting themselves up well for a draft projected to be a bit more rich in quarterback prospects than this year’s draft.

With that in mind, the remainder of their offseason will be focused on building an offense around their future quarterback, starting with the construction of a reliable wall in front of him. For this reason, there’s belief the Cardinals will be targeting an offensive lineman with their No. 3 overall pick, and the popular opinion is that Hurricanes top tackle prospect Francis Mauigoa could be that target. The three-year starter out of Miami (FL) has a strong chance of being available as Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is expected to go No. 1 to Las Vegas, and the Jets are expected to add to their defense with the second overall pick.

Here are a few other draft rumors from around the NFL:

  • While only one or two running backs project to be top prospects in the draft, there are plenty of options for teams looking to build depth or add some fresher legs to their room. With Alvin Kamara‘s future in New Orleans in doubt, Tony Pauline of EssentiallySports reports that the Saints have shown interest in Arkansas running back Mike Washington. A Buffalo- and New Mexico State-transfer, Washington rushed for 1,070 yards and eight touchdowns for the Razorbacks last year.
  • When it was thought that Aaron Jones would be departing from Minnesota, some at ESPN believed the team would go to the draft, as opposed to the free agent market, to fill out the room. With Jones returning on a re-worked contract that expires after this year, running back may still be a focus for the Vikings in this year’s draft.
  • Despite re-signing J.K. Dobbins and restricted free agent Jaleel McLaughlin and having spent a second-round pick on RJ Harvey last year, the Broncos are doing research on the draft’s offerings at the position. According to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2, the team hosted Indiana running back Kaelon Black for a top 30 visit. The national champion rushed for 1,040 yards and 10 touchdowns and has visited the Jets with visits with the Panthers, Bengals, and Raiders set in the future.
  • According to ESPN’s Matt Miller, some post-combine conversations with scouts revealed a dramatic range of opinions for Clemson defensive tackle Peter Woods. The former five-star recruit took over a full-time starting position in his sophomore season and grabbed the attention of scouts everywhere with three sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss in 11 games while proving to be an elite run-stopper. His production declined in his junior year, which Pro Football Focus (subscription required) still saw as good but graded as his worst campaign in Clemson. As a result, some scouts still see the potential and view him as a top 15 prospect, while others have him “solidly” as a Day 2 prospect.
  • The Giants have had an incredibly busy (and in many views productive) offseason thus far, so many are eager to see what approach they will take with their fifth overall pick in the draft. According to La Canfora, despite their success rebuilding so far, New York still has a glaring hole in the secondary. New head coach John Harbaugh‘s former organization invested heavily in the safety position over the course of his tenure with the team, and it’s believed that that mentality has followed him to New York. Ohio State’s Caleb Downs has been tied to the Giants before, and La Canfora doubles down on the opinion that he could be the selection at No. 5 overall.
  • Clemson cornerback Avieon Terrell, the younger brother of Falcons first-round cornerback and one-time second-team All-Pro AJ Terrell, is widely viewed as a top five prospect at his position. After suffering a minor hamstring injury at the combine, though, the younger Terrell will not be participating in the Tigers’ pro day, according to Jordan Reid of ESPN. Instead, he has scheduled a separate workout for scouts that will take place March 30.