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Seahawks Draft Profile: Delano Hill

By Ben Renner

Nov 28, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan Wolverines safety Delano Hill (44) walks off the field after the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Michigan Stadium. Ohio State won 42-13. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 28, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan Wolverines safety Delano Hill (44) walks off the field after the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Michigan Stadium. Ohio State won 42-13. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Seahawks chose Michigan safety Delano Hill 95th overall in the NFL Draft to bolster the secondary, add depth, and possibly create the LOB of the future.

The Seahawks loaded up on young players for their aging secondary in the NFL Draft last month. It’s too early to christen Michigan safety Delano Hill, along with Tedric Thompson and Shaquill Griffin the new Legion of Boom, but Pete Carroll and John Schneider have made sure to reload their defense for the future. Could Hill be a part of that future?

Hill, who strangely never plays Madden, is a hard-hitting, large safety who could fill in for Kam Chancellor at some point down the road. If he can figure out how to rotate and move with NFL receivers on post routes deep down the middle, he could be a valuable piece of the Seahawks secondary for years. Studying defense under Carroll rival Jim Harbaugh at Michigan probably helped his professional development.

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He has the size and willingness to deal punishment to fit in the Seahawks defense, but a knock on Hill is his lack of quickness and his lack of turnover production. Those traits can be helped in Carroll’s school for gifted defensive backs, however. If Hill shows he can cover NFL receivers in Training Camp and Preseason, he could take over the backup safety spot.

Carroll and Schneider look for talent above all in the NFL Draft, and they have semi-secret physical characteristics they covet. It seems after this year’s draft that they wanted to bring in a new crop of potential backups and special teams players for the short-term, and possibly a new iteration of the LOB in the long term.

Next: Shaquill Griffin: LOB 2.0?

Hill could be a part of that long term future. If nothing else, he figures to contribute on special teams, which Schneider and Carroll love from their players. Training Camp and Preseason will be interesting this year.

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