While there’s still plenty left for Seahawks fans to focus on in the 2025 season, it’s never too early for a mock draft. ESPN recently released a 2026 NFL mock draft, and it linked Seattle to an interesting prospect. As always, a lot will change between now and April, but what makes this mock draft stand out is that it could be a clue for how the Seahawks handle several other offseason decisions.
Seattle would hold the No. 27 overall pick based on their current record. At that spot, Matt Miller, an NFL draft analyst for ESPN, paired the Seahawks with Brandon Cisse, a cornerback at the University of South Carolina.
Brandon Cisse’s Draft Profile
Cisse is in his junior year at South Carolina. He’s already had a strong season for the Gamecocks, but at just 20 years old, he could offer a lot of upside for growth even after being drafted. In 10 games this season, Cisse has 22 tackles, four pass deflections, and one interception. He’s also added 1.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble.
“Sometimes a prospect’s skill set fits so perfectly with an NFL team that the match seems inevitable,” Miller writes for ESPN. “That’s the case with Cisse and Mike Macdonald’s defense in Seattle. The explosive, quick Cisse has become one of the nation’s top cornerbacks after transferring from NC State, allowing only seven completions on 23 passes into his coverage while picking off one pass.”
Charlie Campbell, a senior draft analyst for WalterFootball, discussed Cisse’s draft stock with five NFL teams and writes, “[Four teams] had him projected to be a late first-round or early second-round pick, and one team had him as a second-rounder.” Campbell adds, “With a quality skill set and good tape, I have Cisse going in the back half of the first round of my latest 2026 NFL Mock Draft.”
Cisse is listed at 6-feet, 190 pounds. While not a physical outlier, that’s sufficient NFL size for a cornerback. In an article for 247Sports, Hale McGranahan says Cisse has played both on the boundary and in the slot. “A majority of [Cisse’s] 361 snaps in 2024 were at an outside cornerback position,” McGranahan says, adding, “Most of his action in 2023 was from a slot position.”
What the Draft Pick Means for the Seahawks
Seattle’s secondary will be in an ambiguous place once the 2025 season ends. Riq Woolen and Josh Jobe are both set to become unrestricted free agents in the offseason. If John Schneider were to spend his 2026 first-round pick on Cisse, it could mean Woolen and Jobe both hit the open market.
The Athletic’s Michael- Shawn Dugar wrote that the decision to re-sign the cornerback duo remains up in the air. That’s to be expected. It’s an offseason issue, not one worth dealing with while the Seahawks push for an NFC West title.
Dugar adds that two other cornerbacks on Seattle’s roster, Nehemiah Pritchett and Derion Kendrick, will factor into the decision as well. “There’s a scenario in which Seattle would choose between Jobe and Woolen, then re-sign Kendrick on a near-minimum contract (Jobe re-signed on a $2 million deal last year) as a potential replacement for the other,” he writes.
A few weeks ago, Woolen seemed all but gone. He was embroiled in trade speculation early in the season due to poor play. However, he’s performed much better over the last few weeks, making a possible decision between him and Jobe more difficult for Seattle.
ESPN’s Matt Miller sees the future crossroads too, especially if Seattle pursues a cornerback in the 2026 NFL Draft. He writes, “Devon Witherspoon is a star at one corner spot, but Cisse would balance out the secondary opposite him, especially with Riq Woolen set to become an unrestricted free agent.”
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