When the Seahawks put together their 2012 NFL Draft class, it was a group that was widely panned. Bruce Irvin was a stunner in the first round and Russell Wilson in the third really threw people off given the Seahawks had just signed Matt Flynn in free agency.
Boy does that sentence sound stupid now. So does all the commentary about the Seahawks' draft class. Wilson would like to remind you he hasn't forgotten the grades you gave either.
The 2012 @seahawks draft class. They graded us as an F. Now we are World Champs! #GodisGood #GoHawks pic.twitter.com/HuOjkuOYVa
— Russell Wilson (@DangeRussWilson) February 5, 2014
Wilson, everyone seems to think, is referring specifically to a Bleacher Report grade for the Seahawks. The site absolutely hammered Pete Carroll's draft, especially Wilson.
From 2012:
As if the day wasn't bad enough, Seattle selecting Russell Wilson, a QB that doesn't fit their offense at all, was by far the worst move of the draft. With the two worst moves of the draft, Seattle is the only team that received an F on draft day.
Oof.
B/R wasn't alone in ripping the Seahawks' selection of Wilson; our own Pete Prisco gave the pick a D and gave the Seahawks a C+ for the entire draft, noting that Bruce Irvin is "the key" to turning it around.
Mel Kiper of ESPN gave the Seahawks a C- for the draft and questioned the Wilson pick as well. Chris Burke of SI.com pointed out that Wilson has "a bright future" but gave the Hawks a C and wondered about the pick as well because of Flynn.
There were very few people who believed in Wilson. That's OK. He's had doubters at every stop of the way on his path from high school shortstop to Super Bowl champion.
Imagining a world where Flynn leads the Seahawks to a Super Bowl seems impossible after failed stops with the Raiders and Bills, despite what he did in his return to the Packers.
Wilson is obviously the biggest value pick of the entire draft, bar none. Bobby Wagner ended up being a steal as well and J.R. Sweezy might be the most impressive pick from this draft; he started at offensive guard for the champs after a college career on the defensive line.
This wasn't a draft where every single pick was a home run. But as Wilson now reminds us, it was a whole lot better than most of the experts believed at the time.
