THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: Seahawks make most of late-round deals

John Schneider’s assignment was pretty simple.

The Seahawks opened the 2026 draft with a paltry four picks.

For a guy like Schneider who has routinely turned prospects into magic, that wouldn’t do at all.

Four selections??

Hah.

This time around, John and his staff would need to make chicken salad out of chicken …

Ahh …

You know …

Chicken packaged with kale, maybe some corn, Mexican style, up there on the salad aisle at Safeway.

Yep.

It’s making chicken salad out of THAT chicken.

You get a nice lead-in to dinner, a tasty opener, and perhaps a swift wide receiver, a bully guard from the offensive line factory at Iowa, and hopefully a tall and gifted safety to replace free agent Coby Bryant.

You think Schneider can’t make a tasty combo meal out of that combination?

No?

Then you haven’t seen John with his chef’s hat on.

If he hadn’t decided to dabble in football personnel, Schneider might be waiting for another Michelin star — symbol of the finest up-scale dining.

The man barely has time to scroll through possible trade opportunities, free agent chances and every candidate who will be fighting for jobs at the NFL Scouting Combine.

OH, DID I mention the Senior Bowl?

There’s so much money and notoriety at stake for players, coaches, scouts, video teams and so forth, a laid-back character like Schneider must go all-in, all the time.

Sure, I was kidding about John spending hours ‘til he drops while working on making that special chicken salad (at least, I THINK I was kidding).

But if you hang out with John, just for the kick of being with a great guy, you might get the idea that the Seahawks boss could succeed at just about anything.

Sure, he’s fun.

The whole staff thinks he’s great.

Just so that we’re on the right page, however, it’s hard to understand how much information — from every kind of source — is gathered, curated, and discussed simply to add material on a player who might have a chance to get a chance that could earn him a chance to …

Yada, yada.

It goes so deep that average fans get wide-eyed as they learn the science of pro football.

And that is teaching it to someone who is already a spectacular physical athlete.

The only way to explain it is to admit you probably can’t explain it.

So.

Now that you have a clue about Clue (and the staggering depth of this sport), remember that you have to succeed just to keep your job.

As in, win.

Schneider is more than just a good ol’ boy.

He and the Seahawks have reeled off winning season after winning season — not to mention three Super Bowl appearances, and two wins —with entirely different squads in barely more than a decade.

WE’LL GO over the Hawks’ 2026 draft class (plus signing undrafted free agents) over the next few weeks.

There’s not much we can add to the massive bucket of information right now.

For the record, Schneider and his troops drafted eight players despite starting with just those four slots.

Want a smile?

Four of the final eight came in the seventh and final round.

The odds against any of those seventh-rounders making the 53-man squad on opening day are brutal.

And yet …

Former coach Pete Carroll saw something special in a (relatively) slow wide receiver who went undrafted three years ago.

He just couldn’t make the club because of speed, which he didn’t have.

FYI, coach Mike Macdonald then noticed that same thing.

Jake Bobo will likely make the team again (he’s great on special teams) and Jake caught a touchdown pass from Sam Darnold in the NFC title game.

There’s always a shot.

We’ll enjoy checking and re-checking the special athletes who dream of playing in the NFL.

The goal …

Keep the Lombardi Trophy in Seattle.

Why not?

Email: [email protected]

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press three times each week, normally Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On."