On the return of Seattle Sports’ John Schneider Show with the Seattle Seahawks general manager and president of football operations, he was asked about something that’s been a topic of focus on the station’s airwaves this offseason.
“Are there position groups you think are better addressed through free agency versus the draft, and vice versa?” asked Bob Stelton, co-host of Wyman and Bob.
Recently, NFL Network analyst and former scout Daniel Jeremiah spoke about how the 2025 NFL Draft class is so loaded with defensive line talent, he wouldn’t “feel the need to spend one penny in free agency on the defensive line.” But Schneider’s response to Stelton made it clear that which positions are best to draft players change with every class – except at one position.
And you can probably guess which one.
“I would say it changes every year by position, except for the offensive line,” Schneider said, “because everybody’s on this constant quest for offensive linemen and developing offensive linemen.”
Of course, the Seahawks and their fans know that well. But it’s an ongoing battle in the current NFL landscape to identify and develop talent on the offensive line, which Schneider explained by peeling the curtain back a bit on how conversations when NFL front offices talk with others tend to go.
“Every position changes every year (if they’re better addressed in the draft or free agency) based on depth, but the offensive line, there’s always like this dearth of talent at the position,” he said. “So, you know, supply and demand, right?
“When you talk to other teams, when you talk to other GMs about trades and stuff like that, or our guys upstairs are talking to other teams, everybody kind of skips the offensive line because it’s, like, just a given. Everybody’s looking for them, you know what I mean?”
There of course are other factors that go into how teams use the two different avenues of player acquisition.
“Some years (the draft) will be better runners, some years better corners, some years there’s better receivers, and it just depends,” Schneider continued. “… We can’t do anything unless we know exactly what our team looks like. And then in free agency, it’s also (salary) cap casualty guys too that were maybe released.”
Schneider also spoke about of the pitfalls of free agency that he’s encountered in the 15 years since he became Seahawks GM.
“You can’t just throw money at something to fix to it, to fix a perceived need,” he said. “We’ve made mistakes there in the past and we’re gonna try not to repeat mistakes we’ve made.”
