Jadarian Price was considered a small reach at 32 by a handful of NFL executives, in an informal survey this week by ESPN’s Seth Walder.
That’s how we saw it, too. We think John Schneider, if his feet were held to the coals, would agree. After all, he said he tried to trade down and pick Price a few spots later.
Brady Henderson of ESPN said the board forced the Hawks’ hand a bit, because there was a three-round gap between Price and the next running back on Seattle’s list.
But, we’re not here to quibble about the value of the pick. We are focused on whether Price will be right for Seattle – which has a decade-long history of its top running backs getting injured.
Marshawn Lynch started 71 games from the time he was acquired in 2010 through 2014. He then got injured in 2015, and the Seahawks have yet to find a running back as good and reliable.
Thomas Rawls, C.J. Prosise, Chris Carson, Rashaad Penny, Kenneth Walker III — no back has had staying power.
So the Hawks really have to have their fingers crossed that Price’s durability will match his talent and draft position — in the same way Shaun Alexander and Lynch were durable and productive.
Check out how snakebit the position has been since the very physical Lynch finally faded out.
Rawls took over for Lynch in 2015 and looked like he could be the next RB1 in Seattle. He ran for 830 yards that season, averaging 5.6 per carry. But he suffered a broken ankle and torn ligaments in December and was never the same – playing in just 21 more games for Seattle over the next two years.
In 2016, with Rawls sidelined, the Hawks used a third-round pick on Prosise – but he could never stay healthy either. He played in just 25 games over four seasons with Seattle.
That led Seattle to Carson in 2017 – via a seventh-round pick. He immediately found the injury bug, hitting IR after a Week 4 injury. He rebounded to go over 1,100 yards rushing in each of the next two years (1,151 and 1,230), but he quickly faded amid more injuries and was out of football by 2022.
With Carson rehabilitating a broken leg from that 2017 season, a desperate John Schneider and Pete Carroll made a big reach for Penny with the 27th pick in the 2018 draft. Penny played second fiddle to Carson that season, adding 419 yards in 14 games. But then injuries befell him, and he played in just 28 games over the next four seasons.
He flashed his talent when healthy, particularly with a strong finish to the 2021 season. But he just could not stay on the field, missing 40 of 82 games during his time in Seattle. He fizzled out of football after three games with the Eagles in 2023.
Carson rushed for 1,230 yards in 15 games in 2019, but he, Penny and Prosise all were injured by late in the season and the Hawks had to bring Lynch, then 33, out of retirement for the playoffs.
In 2020, Carson played in just 12 games, leading the team with 681 yards. Russell Wilson was the No. 2 rusher with 513 yards.
In 2021, the Hawks used a hodgepodge committee of Penny (six starts in 10 games), Alex Collins (six starts) and Carson (four starts before season-ending injury). They managed to rank 11th in rushing despite Penny leading the way with just 749 yards. Due to calf and hamstring injuries, he didn’t get healthy enough to play until Week 13 – and then he busted off four 100-yard games in the final six games.
That prompted the Hawks to bring him back in 2022. But he suffered a broken tibia in Week 5, ending his Seattle career. The Seahawks had drafted Walker in the second round that year, and he took over the starting spot and rushed for 1,050 yards as a rookie.
He started all but two games (oblique) in 2023, but he missed six games with three injuries (oblique, calf, ankle) in 2024.
In 2025, the Hawks made sure to go easy on Walker’s workload – he got 221 rushes to Zach Charbonnet’s 184. Walker stayed healthy, started every game and rushed for 1,027 yards. He also finished strong in the playoff run to the Super Bowl title as Charbonnet suffered a torn ACL in the 41-6 divisional playoff win against the 49ers.
Charbonnet had been very durable since coming to Seattle in the second round in 2023. But the ACL has him out until October or November.
The Chiefs gave Walker a monster deal worth $14.3 million a year – too rich for Seattle’s blood. So the Hawks were once again desperate for a back, and they took Price at 32 because they couldn’t move down and get him in the second round. He is the fourth first-round tailback in franchise history, joining Curt Warner (1983), Alexander (2000) and Penny (2018).
Price, Notre Dame’s RB2 behind No. 3 overall pick Jeremiyah Love (Arizona), carried the ball just 280 times in college. So he is fresh – but also not used to being battered a bunch every game. So he figures to lead a committee including George Holani and Emanuel Wilson.
Price is explosive and well balanced, with great speed to the outside, but also with the vision and willingness to find little seams inside.
The Hawks have to be crossing their fingers that Price is nothing like the last first-round pick, Penny, or the last Notre Dame running back, Prosise – rather a more consistent version of the big-play Walker.
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