Heading into the 2023 NFL Draft, the Pete Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks could have gone in a number of directions. Coming off of a playoff appearance, the team was in a great spot with two picks in the first round; No. 5 courtesy of the Denver Broncos and theirs at No. 20.

At those spots, Seattle filled two of the bigger needs on their draft board. They selected Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon sixth and Ohio State wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba 20th. Both should be immediate contributors to a Seahawks team looking to take another step forward this upcoming season.

The board broke favorably for the Seahawks, who landed two great players at their spots. But, there is one player that they were giving some serious consideration to at No. 6; Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson.

Richardson ended up being selected No. 4 by the Indianapolis Colts, so the Seahawks didn’t have the opportunity to select him. However, had he been on the board, Seattle was strongly considering him according to head coach Pete Carroll.

“We considered him,” Pete Carroll said, via Michael-Shawn Dugar of TheAthletic.com. “Shoot, we flew all the way out there to go see him. Not just to see him but to be around him and watch him and how he handled himself, and his program with all the hype that was going. We gave him tremendous consideration. He might be the best athlete that’s ever been drafted at that position. He’s arguably that. So, we had to definitely consider that.”

Despite not landing Richardson, Pete Carroll showered praise upon him. Everything that he said when talking to the media is correct as we’ve never seen a player with the size and athleticism combination that Richardson possesses. He is only one of two players since 2003 to receive a 99 athleticism score at the NFL Combine.

Having Indianapolis pull the trigger on him certainly made life easier for the Seahawks, as the decision was made for them about which direction they would go in. Without Richardson on the board, they went with the next-best player, which was Witherspoon.

The Seahawks should be very happy with their draft, addressing immediate needs on both sides of the ball. Selecting Richardson would have been a luxury pick by the franchise as they have Geno Smith locked in as the starter for 2023 and Drew Lock as a potential longer-term option behind him.