Dre'Mont Jones wouldn't be THAT old for an edge rusher prospect

Answering more Seahawks questions you have about the Seahawks: Seaside Joe 1898

Last week, I addressed questions sent by Super Joes and didn’t get through all of them so today I will complete the circle. These are the rest of the answers to your questions!

If you want to get involved in the next Q and A, upgrade to Super Joes today.

Scott M: Based on contracts and the 'dead money' vs 'cap savings' it looks pretty obvious some players aren't going anywhere (or at least not without a big sacrifice).  One of these players is Dre Jones.  Sooo....how can we expect MM to get the most out of Dre Jones and what have you seen/heard/read that might indicate how this might look?  I know you've touched on some of this in the past but I was looking at his contract info and it's crazy how little he produces for how much he's paid.  But IMHO, based on what I've seen so far, I'm not even sure he's in a position to start unless he really steps up and starts to really show some juice.

Good timing, Scott. You sent me this question last week and now in the past couple of days talk is heating up that Dre’Mont Jones could be working on a transition to an edge role for Mike Macdonald. Dan Viens covered some of the details with Instagram videos of Jones’ off-season training routine on Seahawks Forever:

I used to do improv comedy and had a male teacher who when asked about the point of view of someone else, let’s say a female person, would say, “That’s not my story to tell.” So whenever we wanted to do an impression of James when he wasn’t around, we’d say, “That’s not my story to tell.”

As far as how Jones could do in an outside edge role for Mike Macdonald, the six words that come to mind are that’s not my story to tell.

Jones can always go to Geno Smith for advice on how to re-write his story.

As far as Jones’ contract, being essentially locked in for two years is typical for a three-year contract. (Unless you are Cary Williams.) I feel as though it would be unfair to criticize the Seahawks for paying Jones a market-appropriate contract given that we often ask why Seattle rarely attempts to do more than the bare minimum in outside free agency. The Seahawks took their shot on Dre’Mont Jones, I don’t fault them for it, and now they must live with the $18 million cap hit for a player who hasn’t produced that much value.

This is also one of the reasons I don’t complain too much when the Seahawks sit out of free agency.

But maybe the switch will do some good for Jones, who is only 27 and doesn’t turn 28 until January. Consider the case of Byron Young, a third round pick of the Rams in 2023: Young is already 26, so the difference between “a promising new edge rusher in L.A.” who had eight sacks last season and “an aging vet who underwhelmed” is all of 14 months.

Macdonald believes Jones is in for a “great” year with his new role, or he’s just hyping him up for the media, but in either case the Seahawks can walk away with relatively little damage in 2025 if that’s what it comes to.

Johnny London: What’s a reasonable expectation for coaches under 38(?) in their first HC gig? Memorable best and worst?

How does JSN match up against the latest influx of WRs in this year’s draft?

I think a historical comparison of under-40 coaches would need a curve because it’s like comparing hitters in the dead ball era to now. Though Macdonald is the NFL’s youngest head coach now, he’s about the same age as Jerod Mayo (38) and Brian Callahan (39), as well as recent hires such as Kevin O’Connell (38). For a coach’s age to really stun, he needs to be at least under 33. Not that you’re saying that it’s stunning that Macdonald is 36, just that his age feels inconsequential to me right now…and maybe that’s just right now. We haven’t really even begun to understand what this change means for the Seahawks.

Next year could usher in an even younger era of new coaches, including 30-year-old Cardinals defensive coordinator Nick Rallis and 31-year-old Ravens defensive coordinator Zach Orr. This article by NFL.com from last fall has a long list of up-and-coming young coaches to watch.

I have a feeling this will be Macdonald’s only season as the youngest head coach in the NFL.

This list at ProFootballHOF has the names of the youngest in history. Jon Gruden, Bill Cowher, and Sean McVay, very successful. Lane Kiffin, Raheem Morris, Josh McDaniels, not successful.

As to where Jaxon Smith-Njigba stacks against current rookie receivers, I can’t say I would have a very original answer. He would probably be fourth behind Marvin Harrison, Rome Odunze, and Malik Nabers. But if I had to pick any of them for just this season, I’d probably pick Smith-Njigba over Odunze and Nabers since he’s had that rookie year under his belt and I still believe in his talent to become one of the most prolific catchers in the league.

Luke: Grayson McCall predictions for next season and Draft Round?

What did you get wrong on Zach Wilson and how has it changed your QB evals, if at all?

For any new-ish subscribers to Seaside Joe who don’t understand “Who?” and then I explain and you go “But…Why?”, Grayson McCall is the favorite college quarterback of this newsletter. In fact, I started using Substack in 2021 as a side companion to the official Seaside Joe that was already running just so I could write about the draft and incoming quarterbacks. It was during that summer that I fell in love with McCall’s tape more than anybody else’s even though he played at Coastal Carolina and didn’t have some of the physical advantages of his counterparts. I would still rank him over any quarterback in the 2022 draft.

McCall decided not to enter the draft in 2023 or 2024, which is fair because he played at Coastal Carolina, and he finally took advantage of the transfer portal to become an heir apparent to Russell Wilson. Okay, maybe it’s not an immediate heir apparent, but I’ll take connections to the Seahawks where I can get them.

I am not up to date with the new quarterbacks in the ACC, but I’d be shocked if McCall isn’t one of the favorites for the player of the year in that conference. This will be the best supporting cast he’s ever had just based on moving up in programs and hopefully his chance to prove he can run more than the triple-option. One of my other favorite QBs from 2021 was Devin Leary (formerly of the same NC State program) and he ended up as a sixth round pick of the Ravens, so I’ll go with a round better: 5th round, Seahawks.

As far as Zach Wilson, I think I became too enamored with how smooth and comfortable he looked dominating the competition at BYU in 2020. The book I’m reading now, Thinking Fast and Slow, is all about the two sides of your brain: System 1 and System 2. It’s almost like “instincts” vs “critical thinking” and Zach Wilson is a System 1 quarterback…He’s perfection if you’re just going with your gut. But then when you really think about it…he sucks!

Scott M: Are you planning on re-doing "is this OK" in a post-draft edition?

I like that idea. Thank you for the feedback! Feedback like this really helps me know what to repeat and what not to repeat. I’ll also be bringing back the series where I highlight some of the best comments each week, so all of you make sure to join the comments!

zezinhom400: Thanks for the question, I'll repeat what I posted a few days ago on one of your threads about the draft, and also another one from a few months ago. Both would be similar to your deep-dive articles (personal and professional "getting to know") about little-understood cogs of Seattle's most successful years -- the Carroll/Schneider years.

1. Scot McClaughlan who may have been the true architect of the '11-'13 and '22-'23 drafts, Seattle's most successful

2. Matt Thomas who despite the big Wilson contracts, the disastrous Percy Harvin/Jamal Adams trades etc, quietly kept Seattle out of salary cap hell for at least a decade

Think these may have been two critical elements of the Carroll/Schneider years, and most of us (me at least) don't really appreciate or understand them.

Nor what we are now going to do without them

Great insights to share with everyone. Thank you!

Jim: What are your 20 non-negotiable daily habits? I’d really be interested in finding out. 

I appreciate your interest in the daily habits, Jim. As well as everyone else who asked about them and what they are; I posted a few in a comment, but didn’t want to bombard people who don’t care and are only here for football. Which is a perfectly fair point of view to have!

I won’t list all 20, but I’ll say these: 1) Newsletter, 2 and 3) Two meditations per day, 4) 10 minutes of watching/reading about football Xs and Os, 5) Exercise-related, 6) Reading out of a book, 7) Cleaning the apartment, 8 and 9 and 10) Little self-care habits like moisturizor and vitamins….

There’s a skill I’m attempting to learn on the side that I don’t tell anybody about because I don’t think it’s the right idea to tell people you’re studying something when you’re at the beginning. I’d rather just work on it for 4-5 years and then show people I actually know something, rather than “I will know something…maybe….if I don’t fail!”

So that side skill I’m practicing takes up about one hour and 5 habits per day.

If any of you have any daily non-negotiable habits, please share them with me:

Glassmonkey: I'd like to see success rates of right to left guard conversions. Would this analysis be possible?

I wasn’t sure if this was in reference to anyone specifically or just a general question. Maybe any of our readers who are offensive line experts can give their thoughts in the comments to switching sides. Here’s a video on All-Pro Quenton Nelson talking about how he plays guard at such a high level.

Loaf Bench: Awhile back, you polled for feedback on interest in a podcast. I'm here for your writing as is everyone else, but I had always enjoyed Seaside Chats and would welcome your return to the airwaves, your a great listen too sir! Are you still considering it?

If we get to the point where there are so many paid subscribers that I find myself with more free time to do a podcast, I definitely will.