The Seattle Seahawks’ 2023 NFL draft class has a distinctly Midwest flavor to it – with almost half of their picks coming from the Big Ten conference. At the top of the class is cornerback Devon Witherspoon, who comes from an pro-level defense at Illinois.
There’s still a whole year to go before next year’s draft, but one way-too-early 2024 mock draft has Seattle hitting up that Fighting Illini defense again. In Doug Farrar’s ’24 mock the Seahawks select Illinois DT Jer’Zhan Newton at No. 16 overall. Newton (6-foot-2, 280 pounds) posted 5.5 sacks and 14 tackles for a loss as a Junior. Here are the highlights.
Jer’zhan Newton is an absolute bulldozer 😤
Witherspoon & Brown headlined the Illinois defense in ‘23, but DL Newton is no joke:
🔸59 total pressures
🔸36 QB hurries
🔸4 sacks
pic.twitter.com/BiwIAuhhNF— Redshirt Heisman (@TasteOfSport) February 15, 2023
