From Undrafted to Unstoppable, Seahawks’ Drake Thomas Isn’t Simply Feel Good Story Anymore
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Seattle Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas celebrates in the backfield after bringing down Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones for a tackle for loss. Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images [/caption]
On the heels of pitching their first shutout of the season in a 26-0 blowout win over the Minnesota Vikings, the Seattle Seahawks have surged to the top of the NFC standings in large part due to a vicious defense barely allowing 18 points per game.
Quickly emerging as one of the best defenses in the NFL under the direction of coach Mike Macdonald, the Seahawks have their share of household names, starting with Pro Bowl defensive tackle Leonard Williams and linebacker Ernest Jones. In the youth department, recent first round picks Devon Witherspoon and Byron Murphy II hold starring roles as well, while rookie safety Nick Emmanwori has already become a real problem for opponents with his size, speed, and positional flexibility.
But what has made Seattle’s unit so incredibly disruptive on Sunday hasn’t been due to the star power and rising young talent alone. To the credit of Macdonald and general manager John Schneider, the organization has rediscovered its mojo unearthing undrafted gems who have become key ingredients for the team’s rise back to Super Bowl contender.
With apologies to cornerback Josh Jobe and safety Ty Okada, who have also outperformed expectations in the secondary for the Seahawks and deserve major props for developing into viable starter-caliber players in their own right, no defender has grabbed the bull by the horns and seized his opportunity more than third-year linebacker Drake Thomas. While overshadowed by Jones’ two interceptions on Sunday, including an 85-yard pick six, he made his own mark in a big way with a sack and a tackle for loss, helping lock down the Vikings even when they had the ball in plus territory several times.
“I feel like you see it a lot this season. It doesn't matter what happens, we just go out there with the same mentality,” Thomas told reporters post-game. “It's process over results. He (Mike Macdonald) talks about that all the time. You can put the ball down wherever and we're going to take the same mindset and approach.”
Considering the long, winding road Thomas has traveled to evolve from an undrafted afterthought into a legitimate starter in Macdonald’s scheme, there’s no doubt he should belong on the ballot for serious consideration for the NFL’s Most Improved Player award.
Only two seasons ago, despite putting up gaudy stats at North Carolina State as one of the premier playmaking linebackers in the nation, including 19 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks as a senior, Thomas didn’t hear his name called in the 2023 NFL Draft. Signed by the Raiders as a priority free agent, the team tried to sneak him through waivers in final roster cuts, hoping to bring him back on the practice squad.
But with the scouting department holding Thomas in high regard, the Seahawks came swooping in and were awarded him on a waiver claim, bringing the undersized, yet incredibly instinctive defender to the Pacific Northwest. He carved out a substantial role on special teams as a rookie before suffering a significant knee injury in a road loss to the Ravens, ending his season with only a handful of defensive snaps and putting his future with the organization up in the air.
Upon his arrival as the replacement for long-time coach Pete Carroll, Macdonald knew little about Thomas beyond what he heard from returning coaches and members of the personnel department. However, he soon developed strong admiration for the young linebacker watching how he attacked his rehab, and after making his awaited return midway through training camp, the ex-Wolfpack star started his slow and steady ascent to the lineup by filling a niche role as a coverage substitution in nickel packages, recording 13 tackles and a pass breakup in limited action.
This spring, more than a year removed from his injury, Thomas served as the main beneficiary of Jones’ prolonged absence recovering from knee surgery, seeing a ton of reps next to Tyrice Knight with the first-team defense as both the MIKE and WILL linebacker in OTAs and minicamp sessions. With Knight missing most of training camp, he eventually leaped over his teammate on the depth chart, becoming a starter alongside Jones in a Week 4 road date in Arizona, and he hasn’t looked back since, becoming far more than just another heartwarming undrafted success story.
Starting nine of Seattle’s 12 games, standing out with long-flowing hair and a frenetic playing style that would hold up in any era of football, Thomas has stuffed the stat sheet as a do-it-all linebacker who excels in every phase of the game. Along with producing 56 tackles in his nine starts, he has racked up 10 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, six quarterback hits, five pass breakups, and a fumble recovery, making a difference in a variety of ways in the middle of the defense.
Despite seeing only a handful of snaps in the first four games, Thomas stacks up favorably against the best of the best at his position in a multitude of metrics. As a pass rusher, per Pro Football Focus, he ranks sixth among linebackers in pressures (15), first in sacks (3.5), and third in Pass Rush Productivity (16.1). He’s been equally effective in coverage, tying for the league lead in pass breakups while yielding no touchdowns and a 79.7 passer rating, the sixth-best mark amongst qualified ‘backers.
While a missed tackle rate hovering around 18% provides a clear area of improvement for Thomas, he has also been stout as a downhill run defender for the Seahawks, leading all linebackers with an average depth of tackle of a single yard thanks to his double-digit tackles for loss while posting a rock-solid 8.7% stop rate. From the player’s perspective, as he told reporters after Sunday’s win, both he and Jones feel blessed to have a dominant defensive line in front of them that has helped keep the linebackers clean to make plays.
“It's a dream come true,” Thomas said. “They're not going to go one for one. It's going to take more than one guy to block them. Sometimes two guys can't even block them. They're disruptive. They're selfless. They're great dudes. It's just so many different things that make them what they are.”
Putting Thomas’ sensational performance into context, according to Pro Football Reference data, he’s one of only three players in the NFL this season with at least 10 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, and six passes defensed, joined only by star edge rushers Maxx Crosby and Brian Burns. He’s also one of only two off-ball linebackers along with Eric Wilson of the Vikings to have double-digit tackles for loss and 3.5-plus sacks, further putting himself in elite company at his position with a stat pack that gives him borderline All-Pro numbers.
Of course, Thomas may not even be the best All-Pro candidate at linebacker on Seattle’s defense, as Jones has turned in a phenomenal campaign thus far, including intercepting a career-high five passes and north of 80 combined tackles. For that reason, he continues to hover under the radar nationally with his immense contributions unbeknownst outside of the Emerald City, which may make earning such recognition unlikely, if impossible.
But in his own locker room, Thomas has long garnered the respect of his peers and coaches alike, surfacing as one of the best young linebackers in the NFC with the backing of Macdonald and the entire staff. No longer the unknown commodity in the middle, everyone in the building knows his name and what he brings to the equation for one of the best defenses in the game, offering the ability to fly to the football sideline-to-sideline, thump ball carriers with authority in the backfield, and terrorize quarterbacks as an efficient blitzing weapon.
Assuming he continues to play at the level he has all season long, if not find a way to further elevate his game as he gains experience, opponents certainly will start to know who Thomas is too.
