With pick 207 of the 2024 NFL draft, the Seahawks selected offensive lineman Michael Jerrell of the University of Findlay.
Drafted: Sixth round, 31st (207th overall).
Height: 6-5.
Weight: 309.
Birth date: Aug. 18, 1999.
Hometown: Indianapolis, Ind.
Here are three things to know about Jerrell.
- Jerrell started 40 games in his college career at the University of Findlay, a Division-II college in Findlay, Ohio. But he burst onto the radar of NFL scouts with an impressive performance at Ohio State’s Pro Day on March 20, when he turned in a 4.94 40, 26 reps on the bench press and a 32.5-inch vertical leap. “I think people think coming from a small school that I would be a little bit weaker, not that strong, not that fast, but I had one of the fastest times there for an offensive lineman and the highest bench out of everybody who attended the Pro Day.’’ Seattle then invited Jerrell to town for a pre-draft visit which helped seal his eventual selection by the team. While he played tackle at Findlay, he said Seahawks coaches told him he could be tried at guard, as well. He got some snaps at guard in the Hula Bowl.
- Jerrell played just one year of varsity football at Pike High in Indianapolis and said he weighed only 245 pounds as a senior which is why he had few offers. He said the coaches at Findlay convinced him he had a football future as long as he could get bigger. After enrolling in 2018, he said he initially put on 20 pounds and then essentially added 10 more each year. “They set the vision,’’ he said. “They told me I was going to play in the NFL one day — I just needed to put on the weight. I decided to go there. They invested in me, I invested in them and the rest is history.’’
- Jerrell became the fourth player from Findlay to get drafted and only the second since 1987. As his career at Findlay progressed, he said he had a few bigger schools approach him, but he wanted to stay at Findlay. One reason was to finish his degrees — he got an undergraduate degree in business administration and management and then an MBA. Asked why he never left, he said: “They believed in me, and they believed in me from the start, and I couldn’t see myself leaving to go to another team and they get the credit for what my coach and what the University of Findlay helped build and I wanted to stay there and give them the credit. And you know it means everything to me to see Mike Jerrell, University of Findlay, on the screen rather than another school.’’
Quote to note
“At the end of the day I play nasty, play gritty. I’m a gritty person, hard worker. So, I’m willing to get after it, get after guys,’’ Jerrell said on his style of play.
What the scouts say
“Jerrell gets out of his stance quickly and uses independent hands, although his punch timing can improve. He does a nice job on counter plays and flashes range, but he will find resistance when attempting to move NFL defenders at the point of attack. Overall, Jerrell will encounter a steep learning curve against NFL power, but he is an agile big man with light feet in his sets and the length and toughness NFL teams target in a developmental tackle.” — Dane Brugler, The Athletic.