Days two and three of the NFL Draft are “long and arduous” as my grandfather used to say. I really admire the production crews who broadcast the entirety of the draft because of the sheer volume of players that have declared. They can’t all get picked, but you have to be ready for anything. Think about it, 257 players got selected out of nearly 450 who entered the draft. Therefore, ESPN’s crew had to have around 450 highlight packages built for every single player in case they get selected. Not to mention the analysts who have had to comb through hours upon hours of game film to learn about these guys. And it’s not like they can just gamble and hope that a certain player from a certain school doesn’t go, the NFL teams drafting don’t even know who they’re going to select when we get into the final few rounds. This has nothing to do with this article, but it is a pretty impressive operation when you think about it. The draft itself is probably their easiest couple days of work since the deadline to declare in early January. This has nothing to do with this article, I just thought we should give some shine to the people behind the curtains.
I say all of that to reiterate that those days after the first round sometimes get neglected unless you are a die-hard NFL fan. I am about as die-hard as they come, and I didn’t pay much attention on Saturday as we’re in the midst of an incredible NHL and NBA playoff season. But one of the cooler moments of the draft happened on Saturday afternoon with the Seahawks 234th pick. Normally when a draft pick is made, the GM calls the player to let him know his dreams have come true and he will be playing in the NFL. Then the phone gets passed to the coach, then the owner, then the president of team operations, then the mascot (not really, but it does feel like everyone wants a piece). However, the Seahawks did it a little different when selecting left tackle Mason Richman out of Iowa. Seattle wanted their first round pick, and Richman’s future O-Line companion, Grey Zabel to make the call.
Friday: gets the call
Saturday: makes the callGrey Zabel got to deliver the message to Mason Richman at pick 234. 📞 pic.twitter.com/1Ugf2MSZf5
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) April 27, 2025
I can just picture Zabel walking into this war room having no clue they were going to ask him to make this phone call. But Zabel being the good sport he is gladly accepted the task, and from one offensive lineman to another made the same call he got just days before. No matter what day or time of the draft, these phone calls are as important to the player whether they are going #1 overall or Mr. Irrelevant at the end. So the fact that Zabel got to do this with one of his future teammates is pretty special.
Seattle had a very strong draft, and with head coach Mike Macdonald’s system in place, this could be a dangerous team out of the NFC next season.
Video and photos are owned by the Seattle Seahawks
Comments