Lucas, a third-round pick out of Washington State, actually undersold his class's contributions. It was actually seven draft picks who saw significant playing time—and eight rookies if you count undrafted Joey Blount, a big special teams contributor—and six of them started multiple games. Lucas and left tackle Charles Cross were starters and every-down players all season long, as was Pro-Bowl cornerback Tariq Woolen. Kenneth Walker III opened the season in a reserve role, but took over the starting running back job after Rashaad Penny suffered a season-ending injury, and rushed for 1,050 yards and nine touchdowns, starting 11 games. Coby Bryant was Seattle's nickel corner, which is essentially a starting role that saw him play 65 percent of his team's defensive snaps. Boye Mafe started three games at outside linebacker and was part of the rotation at that position all year, contributing 3.0 sacks, 41 tackles and strong run defense. Receiver Dareke Young, a seventh-round pick, became one of Seattle's top special teams players and saw his role in the offense grow late in the season.
The experience that rookie class got, not just in playing all season long, but especially in the way the Seahawks finished season, winning a pair of must win games, then gaining valuable postseason experience, will only help that group grow heading into 2023.
"That's the thing I really wanted for them was to make the playoffs, so they can feel what that feels like," Neal said. "Your rookie year is your longest year, you get done playing football and you're right into training then you're playing more ball, and for them to get that exposure, now they understand what it takes. Not only do they know they can play, now they know this is a long road, it's a long journey, it takes a lot to get to where you've got to go, and it takes even more to go even further. So I think us making the playoffs, it's a great thing for them, because now they understand what it takes."
Of course, everyone involved knows the 2023 Seahawks won't be the same as this year's team. Several key players are set to become free agents when the new league year begins, including Smith—though he made it clear Saturday night that he intends to be back—and new players will be added to the mix via free agency and the draft, with the Seahawks holding four picks in the first two rounds thanks to the Wilson trade, including the No. 5 overall pick via Denver. But for those who are back, the plan is to build off what was a special 2022 season that for numerous reasons, be it the youth of the team or the us-against-the-world attitude, had a particularly close-knit bond.
"This team is something special," said linebacker Cody Barton.
Barton noted that when he arrived in Seattle four years ago, veterans warned him that the NFL is different than college in terms of the relationships that are formed. With the business side of the sport and with players of different ages and at different stages of life, the professional game lacked some of the closeness that exists in college, Barton was told. This year, however, was different.
"This team this year felt different, just the relationships I had with each guy and how tight we were as a team," Barton said. "It felt almost like a college team again, just how tight everyone was. That, to me, is the reason why we were able to do what we did, and this year was just step one for this team in how special we can be. The way things went yesterday, that's just a chip on our shoulder for everybody, and shoot, I'm damn excited to see what happens this next season."
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