Seahawks Land Ball-Hawking DB Bud Clark With 64th Pick in 2026 NFL Draft
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TCU Horned Frogs safety Bud Clark (21) intercepts a pass intended for Utah Utes wide receiver Luca Caldarella (19) during the fourth quarter at Rice-Eccles Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-Imagn Images [/caption]
Continuing their efforts to replace departed former starters in free agency, the Seattle Seahawks once again opted to sit pat and make their native selection at the end of the second round, snagging TCU safety Bud Clark with the 64th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
After losing Coby Bryant to Chicago in free agency last month, Seattle made a play for a talented ball-hawking defensive back in Clark who racked up interceptions in bunches for the Horned Frogs after rebounding from a couple injury-shortened seasons to begin his collegiate career, offering many of the strengths of his predecessor in the secondary. Over his final four seasons on campus, he intercepted a whopping 15 passes, returning two of them for touchdowns, and registered 20 additional pass breakups, always finding a way to get his paws on the football while aggressively shooting passing lanes in coverage.
While that assertiveness and borderline freelancing can occasionally get Clark in trouble against double moves and resulted in a few explosive receptions allowed on the back end, his feisty demeanor pursuing the football pays dividends for him far more times than not. And when he does manage to get a beat on targets thrown his direction, he has an impressive track record of turning those opportunities into turnovers with the playmaking savvy to return those picks back to the house for points.
As a run defender, Clark plays with the mentality of a heat-seeking rocket, looking to dish out significant punishment. With that said, though his consistency bringing down ball carriers improved in his final two seasons, he has been prone at times for coming up empty diving at the feet of runners rather than maintaining strong fundamentals to breakdown and wrap. That area of his game will continue to be one that needs sharpening, but it isn’t a mentality-related issue and can be coached up.
Away from the field, the vocal, confident Clark served as a team captain each of the past three seasons for TCU, demonstrating the leadership that coach Mike Macdonald and his staff covet.
Set to turn 24 years old during his rookie year, Seattle will be counting on Clark to come onboard and make an impact early. Fit-wise, he has seen previous action as a cornerback, slot, and free/strong safety, offering a ton of positional flexibility that should be quite appealing to an already versatile secondary headlined by Devon Witherspoon, Julian Love, and Nick Emmanwori. Most likely, filling Bryant’s shoes playing deep safety will be his primary role that he settles into, but his athleticism and ball skills could warrant a look on the boundary or in the nickel role in Macdonald’s scheme as well.
