Today, the Seahawks are holding their rookie minicamp, and that means a lot of things.  For one, it means we have an actual offseason to look forward to this year.  Most years that wouldn’t be much of a reason for celebration, but after last season’s protracted lockout during the collective bargaining agreement negotiations I doubt any of us are going to be taking these camps for granted, mini or otherwise.

This weekend is also our first real chance to see the team’s shiny new set of draft picks step onto the field and strut their stuff in a Seahawks jersey.  Is Bruce Irvin as fast as advertised?  Does J.R. Sweezy look like he might be able to make the transition from defensive tackle to offensive guard?  Just how short is Russell Wilson, anyway?  We won’t be able to learn much from these practice sessions, since theses guys don’t know the playbooks yet and contact isn’t allowed until the regular training camp begins this summer, but until then it’ll have to do. 

Speaking of training camp, thanks to the rookie wage scale included in the new CBA we no longer have to worry about top picks holding out during contract negotiations.  At this point, John Schneider has already finalized contracts with every draft pick except one, fourth round RB Robert Turbin, and I doubt he’ll remain unsigned for much longer.  I know it doesn’t seem like there’s anything at all for rookies to negotiate, since the size of their deal is set according to where they were picked in the draft, but as it turns out there are still a few points left to haggle over, the main one being how much of that contract money is going to be guaranteed.

Mainly though, the opening of the first minicamp of the offseason means that the deluge of post-draft grades, analyses, and other re-hashings will finally slow to an easy-to-ignore trickle.  There’s a lot to dislike about the vast majority of sports journalism; it has a bad habit of mistaking opinions for facts, it’s rife with vapid list articles of the top-ten variety, it tends to put the cart before the horse by shoehorning events into predetermined conclusions and storylines, and don’t even get me started on the average sportswriter’s grasp of basic grammar.  But amidst all that lousiness, there is no form of sports article more putrid, more completely and utterly bereft of even the minutest shred of value than the post-draft opinion piece.

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The NFL draft has passed, with the first round turning out quite differently than we all expected (Seriously, Bruce Irvin? I doubt anyone saw that one coming). We had the luxury of making 10 total picks this year. But what is often forgotten is that there are undrafted free agents that are still available, some of which are very talented. Might we find ourselves another Doug Baldwin type of player again this year? Here are the undrafted free agents we have signed so far.

• Phil Bates, WR Ohio
• Jermaine Kearse, WR Washington
• Lavasier Tuinei, WR Oregon
• Sean McGrath, TE Henderson St.
• Rishaw Johnson, OG California
• Jon Opperud, OT Montana
• Monte Taylor, DE Cincinatti
• London Durham, CB McNeese St.
• DeShawn Shead, DB Portland St.
• Carson Wiggs, K Purdue

Look for updates as they come out.

Last year, the Seahawks' offensive line was in question. They saw a laundry list of injuries to the position, over 10 starting personnel combinations, and their coach, Alex Gibbs, abruptly announcing his retirement before the beginning of the season.

This was a recipe for disaster, but the team managed to make it into the playoffs for an unlikely victory against the then-defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints.

That didn't stop Pete Carroll and John Schneider from using the draft to completely overhaul the offensive line, however.

And just as they did with the o-line in 2011, the Seahawks' front office has given its fullest attention to the team's biggest issue at the end of the 2012 season: The pass rush.

Using their first-round pick on a guy nobody saw coming -- West Virginia DE/LB Bruce Irvin -- they showed no hesitation in going after their guy, their way, when they could have them -- critics and naysayers be damned.

Irvin addresses the pass rush in the most immediate sense for the Seahawks, as he now-famously indicated in his first radio interview following the selection:

"I love to eat quarterbacks," he said.

Irvin was second in the country in sacks in his senior season with the Mountaineers with 14. His highlight footage tells the story.

The Seahawks followed by selecting Bobby Wagner, another linebacker, out of Utah State. While Wagner hasn't been lauded as a pass-rushing specialist like Irvin, his tape brings to mind first-round pick Luke Keuchly, for his instincts, nose for the ball and tackling ability. His addition is a key grab for the Seahawks this year, given the departure of free agent MLB David Hawthorne to the Saints. Someone has to come in and fill the shoes of 100+ tackles, and Wagner appears as though he's up to the challenge.

Carroll and Schneider didn't stop there. Later-round picks including DE Jaye Howard, a monster of a man from Miami who was referred to widely as an "athletic freak." He'll add more to the pass rush and brings the size and skills necessary to compete for playing time from Day One.

Linebacker Korey Toomer followed, along with DTs Gregg Scruggs and J.R. Sweezy in the seventh round. Sweezy will be converted to guard, however, and Scruggs doesn't have the size to immediately make an impact on the field.

The Seahawks' tactics and strategy have been a mystery to several analysts and so-called experts this year, but sometimes, unconventional is effective. Sometimes taking a reach into some territory most other teams considered uncharted is the way to succeed, and Pete Carroll has demonstrated his ability to do that in his career.

But one thing cannot be ignored from this draft, at the end of the day -- the pass rush has been addressed, and then some. The Seahawks have a group of immensely talented and even underrated players joining the team this weekend, and their skills could bring the answers where there have only been questions for far too long.

Two big bodies round out the final two picks for the Seahawks in the 2012 Draft --

DT J.R. Sweezy, N.C. State

DT Gregg Scruggs, Louisville

Swseezy stands 6'5", 296 lbs., and the front office obviously drafted him for what they saw as versatility, because they're going to ask him to transition to guard. Making this switch to start an NFL career is no easy task, especially given the depth the Seahawks have already acquired over the offseason, but Sweezy has several months to prepare before the start of training camp.

Scruggs wasn't a full-time starter in his final years in college, but was praised by several coaches and scouts for having NFL-ready athleticism and potential. Reminds me of Jameson Konz, who was drafted as a tight end and moved to defensive end last season, which seemed to be a better fit for him. Maybe Pete and John view Scruggs as a similar project, as his size isn't ideal for an NFL defensive tackle.

...another defensive end, Greg Scruggs from Louisville.  Scruggs is an intelligent player with decent size, but he needs to add muscle to his frame and work on his technique to have a shot at the final roster.  From what I understand, he showed up on most teams' radars because of a good showing at his pro day, not because they saw something particularly special on his game tape.

...defensive end J.R. Sweezy from North Carolina State.  Sweezy (how great is that name?) was projected as more of a 3-4 defensive end, but with the Seahawks he'll have to find a home for himself at either the 5-tech DE position behind Red Bryant or the 3-tech DT position behind, uh, well, that one's still up in the air.  He's got a good initial burst and a great motor, but he's more a try-hard sort of guy than a naturally gifted athlete.  He also needs to improve his ability to shed blocks, especially if he's asked to play along the interior d-line.

...safety Winston Guy from Kentucky.  At 6'1", 213 lbs, Guy has the size Carroll loves in his defensive backs, plus he's versatile enough to play multiple positions (he played cornerback, safety, and linebacker in college).  He seems to be more of an old-school strong safety type, i.e. great against the run, not so hot against the pass.  Of course, that's the same sort of thing that was said about Kam Chancellor when he was drafted and look how he turned out. If nothing else, Guy should do well enough in zone coverage to get by, plus he's a decent blitzer.

...Jeremy Lane, CB, Northwestern State.

Carroll and Schneider continue the surprises with this pick, a speedy, raw cornerback from a relatively unknown school. Per ESPN's Mike Mayock, Lane ran a 40-yard dash in the 4.4s, and had a very good game against LSU, which may have gotten him his chance in the NFL. Others are describing him as tough, physical and ready to compete for a starting job within a year of development.

Hell, if a raw, physical guy like Brandon Browner was turned into a Pro Bowler in under a full season of playing time, it sounds like Lane found a really good home here.

...cornerback Jeremy Lane from Northwestern State down in Louisiana, which is not to be confused with the Northwestern University in Illinois that plays in the Big Ten conference.  I was worried about this pick at first, since NFL.com saw fit to list him as a 6'0", 184 lbs center, but it would appear that they just left off the B in CB.  From what I gather, Lane is an aggressive, talented defender with long arms and enough fluidity in his movement to stick with receivers in man-to-man coverage (Greg Gabriel over at the National Football Post wrote a nice in-depth scouting report on Lane, which you can read here).  He needs to pack some more muscle on to his frame, but overall he looks promising.

In ex-Seahawks news, the Rams kicked off the sixth round by drafting a kicker.  Josh Brown has been playing well for them, but he's in the final year of a contract that will pay him $2.7 million this season.  I'm guessing that Jeff Fisher would rather not pay that much.

...linebacker Korey Toomer from Idaho.  Between this pick and the two guys from Utah State, Seattle has now drafted three players from the Western Athletic Conference.  Whoever scouts for the team there must write one hell of a scouting report.

Toomer is an interesting player.  He's got decent size and physical ability, running a 4.5s forty and got in 20 reps on the bench press at his pro day.  During his senior year he played both inside and outside linebacker, a little defensive end, a little fullback (28 yds and 3 TDs on 9 carries, mainly in short-yardage situations), and he didn't come off the field in nickel situations.  The downside is he only played two years at Idaho after transferring from a junior college in Arizona, and he missed his entire 2010 season due to injury, so inexperience and durability are concerns.

The only video I've been able to find for Toomer is this short clip of him scoring a two point conversion against San Jose State.  It's entertaining, but it doesn't tell us much about how his play as a linebacker.