Schneider is looking for a certain type of player as the NFL Draft edges ever closer.
The Seattle Seahawks are Super Bowl champions for the second time under general manager John Schneider's guidance.
With the Seahawks now reaching the summit of the NFL, they will be getting everyone's best shot, week in, week out.
And to withstand that, the roster has to be filled out as it was last year, so well-rounded that there are hardly any holes.
But in free agency, the Seahawks lost a host of starters and rotational players, and with only depth players signed as outside free agents and only four draft picks, that leaves little wiggle room for Schneider.
So that means those who come into the building need to hit the ground running.
For Schneider, speaking with Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer at the owners' meeting last week, he said the young players coming in have to take it up to the stars on the roster.
“Draft-wise, you’d better be damn sure those people coming in that you’re drafting are ready to compete with those players, when you’re saying, that’s the highest-paid player at this position or the third-highest-paid or what have you,” Schneider said in a sit-down talk with Breer.
“It’s the ultimate team sport, you’re talking about competing all the time. You have to make sure with the character, they’re not enamored with Earl Thomas or Kam Chancellor—they’re ready to compete with them.”
That is a great way to approach it.
But for a college player to come in and go toe-to-toe with Devon Witherspoon, Jaxon Smith-Njiga, or DeMarcus Lawrence, that is easier said than done.
But Schneider, who spoke with Breer about how valuable it is to keep a journal of everything he does, knows that this is how young players should approach the offseason.
The defending champs can't rest on their laurels; they have to get better. And the only way to get better is through competition.
And it is up to the rookies to push the veterans to new heights.
It sounds good in theory, but there might be a few rookies who possess the mental strength to say they belong on the same field as a Super Bowl champion.
And if the Seahawks manage to get that sort of player in the draft, then maybe this Super Bowl defense will get off to a good start.