Seahawks deal Frank Clark to Chiefs for 1st-round pick
By Bryan Perez
The 2019 NFL draft won’t get started until 8:00 pm. EST on Thursday, April 25, but we already have movement on a first-round pick.
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Seahawks have dealt defensive end Frank Clark to the Chiefs for Kansas City’s 2019 first-round pick, their 2020 second-round pick, and a swap of third-round selections.
Seahawks agreed to trade their franchise player, DE Frank Clark, to the Kansas City Chiefs for a 2019 first-round pick, a 2020 second-round pick and an exchange of third-round picks this year, per league sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 23, 2019
The Chiefs, who dealt Dee Ford to the 49ers earlier this offseason for a second-round selection, will work on a long-term extension for Clark, who is considered one of the NFL’s most talented young pass-rushers.
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Clark had a career-high 13 sacks in 2018. He’s totaled 33 sacks over the last three seasons.
The Seahawks now have two first-round selections, No.s 21 and 29. They’ll likely address defense with each of those picks and now must strongly consider a pass rusher with the 21st pick. They might choose to package both selections to move up in the first round, too. There are several blue-chip pass-rushing prospects who are expected to come off the board in the top 15, and Seattle will have little trouble moving into position to draft one with their newly acquired capital.
Still, it would seem a bit odd to deal Clark, an established double-digit sack artist, and replace him with an unknown rookie. The Seahawks could decide to use their first-round assets on offensive skill players and wait until later in the draft to find an edge defender to help fill the void left by Clark.
Regardless, this is a great trade for the Chiefs, who add a Pro Bowl caliber talent with the 29th pick. There’s no way they would’ve landed an equally talented prospect in this year’s first round, and it essentially cost them just a second-round pick next year in addition to swapping third-rounders this year.