Getty The Seahawks could make a key change.
Russell Wilson is getting another weapon as the Seattle Seahawks finally made their first selection in the 2021 NFL Draft by picking wide receiver D’Wayne Eskridge in the second round. Wilson appears to approve the move, and Eskridge is the early favorite to be the Seahawks third receiver heading into next season. The Seahawks quarterback took to Twitter to welcome his newest receiver to the Pacific Northwest.
“@allaroundplays can’t wait to see you ball out!!! #GoHawks,” Wilson tweeted to Eskridge.
Many Seahawks fans were wondering if Seattle would select an offensive lineman with their second-round pick given Wilson’s frustration with his protection. The Seahawks also had a need at receiver with David Moore, Josh Gordon and Phillip Dorsett no longer on the roster. It is worth noting that Wilson was also pushing the Seahawks to sign Antonio Brown, so the quarterback is clearly not opposed to the team adding more offensive weapons.
All indications are Eskridge will be a perfect compliment to DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. With Eskridge’s 5’9″ size, it is easy to project him as a slot receiver in the NFL, but he also has a lot of experience lining up on the outside as well. Eskridge had 33 receptions for 768 yards and eight touchdowns.
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Eskridge Is Expected to Compete to Return Kicks
Eskridge showed a lot of versatility while at Western Michigan as he also spent time playing cornerback and special teams. The newest Seahawk will likely compete to return kicks this season. During his day two post-draft press conference, Seahawks general manager John Schneider described Eskridge as “competitive, hungry [and] intense.”
“He’s just extremely explosive,” Schneider explained, per Seahawks.com. “… 4.3-whatever (40-yard dash), ran a 10.5 (second) 100 meters in high school, 21.5 200 meters. Just a really explosive guy who can throttle his speed, tough. We’re getting a guy that could play a number of different positions. He was a kickoff returner, could be a gunner. There’s a really cool shot of him as a gunner against Central Michigan where he just throttled somebody. We’ve got a guy who’s competitive, hungry, intense, he’s got some dog to him.”
Eskridge Admitted His Preference Was to be Drafted by the Seahawks
After being selected by the Seahawks, Eskridge made it clear that his preference was to be drafted by Seattle. Eskridge noted he felt more comfortable in his meetings with the Seahawks than with any other team.
“I just felt comfortable being in a good football position with them, more than anybody else that I talked to,” Eskridge detailed, via Seahawks.com. “They all kept it real with me. It was clear, uncut all the time. I just felt when it came to energies collide, I felt like it molded well instead of going the other way. So I always looked at them a little bit different than anybody else. I appreciated them for that.”
Eskridge is blazing fast running a 4.38-second 40-yard dash time. The newest Seahawk is open to racing DK Metcalf and thinks he has a chance at winning.
“He’s like a semi,” Eskridge said of Metcalf, via Seahawks.com. “He moves with a whole lot of velocity. I’m definitely going to run that race, although I’m not going to say he’ll beat me in a race. We’re going to take it there wherever it goes.”