On the night he was drafted, new Seahawks cornerback Julian Neal told Seahawks.com that on draft night, he only had a Seahawks hat. Usually, prospects have a collection of hats ready at their draft parties for whichever team drafts them. Neal said that he was supposed to have a hat for every team, 32 hats, but the company that was going to send them, sent them out late and they wouldn't get to him on time. So, on Day 2 of the NFL Draft, Neal asked his auntie to go and buy him a Seahawks hat.
"I was like, 'All right, I got options.' I could either get a couple [hats] or just get one," Neal said. "And I was just thinking about all my interviews and everything that I've been through, and plus my auntie [is a] 12s fan. So I was just like, 'Just go get me a Seahawks' hat, Auntie. Just go get me the Seahawks one. That's all I need. People don't realize that's why I was so juiced in my video. That's why I was so juiced, because I literally, like, it was just anticipation. Like it really came true. That was a pure reaction."
Along with Neal being so juiced about his hat and meeting Seahawks Legend Richard Sherman, here's what else we learned from the draft class:
Safety Bud Clark
Safety Bud Clark and Neal have trained together in Dallas and are going to be "great together" this season. The first time he met Neal, Clark said he was taken aback by his size.
"I was like, 'Who is this big old corner, bro?' I was trying to see, because I'm a safety, he'a bigger than me. I was like, 'You sure a big dog.' But I feel like getting to know him has been amazing. I feel like we've grown our friendship, grown our teammateship with it. So I feel like we're going to be great together."
Guard Beau Stephens
While he was playing for the Iowa Hawkeyes, guard Beau Stephens played on an offensive line that won the 2025 Joe Moore Award, an award given to the most outstanding offensive line in college football. That same offensive line is very similar to what he's learned already about Seattle's playbook.
"I'm really thankful for Coach (Tim) Lester at Iowa," Stephens said. "A lot of it's the same. A lot of it's similar, a lot of same words. There's definitely some differences. There's definitely more complexity. But I feel like I've gotten a great starting point and it's very helpful because I'm sure some of these guys that have never heard anything like how we did it at Iowa or here, coming in for that first meeting, you hear it, they're kind of mind blown how different it is. And I feel like I'm going to have a handle on it in the meantime."
Stephens said he also has reconnected with college teammate and Seahawks lineman Mason Richman, who he played with at Iowa.
"I texted him right before I came down. Obviously, he can't be around during rookie minicamp, but he just wished me the best. And he said, 'If you need anything, just text me.' He's like, 'It's pretty much the same playbook.' So I was like, nice. That's pretty cool."
Wide receiver Emmanuel Henderson Jr.
In college, Emmanuel Henderson Jr. was a big contributor on special teams and will likely have a similar role for Seattle and it's a role he looks forward to taking on.
"Wherever you can put me, I feel like I can go out there and dominate my position," Henderson said. "Anywhere on special teams. I've been doing it all throughout my college career and I'm going to continue to do it."
He added, "Just the daily work, in and out, your daily habits, the things you do outside of football, just continuing to working on the small things."
Cornerback Andre Fuller
When Andre Fuller was drafted to Seattle, he knew that he would be going to a team with a very familiar face. Seahawks safety Maxen Hook was at Toledo at the same time as Fuller.
"I have a teammate here from Toledo, Maxen Hook," Fuller said. "He's been helping me learn the playbook, helping me relate it to something that we've done before. So it's very similar."
Defensive lineman Deven Eastern
Although it's just Day 1 and a short two-day camp, Deven Eastern said his goal is to just "be a sponge, soak up, and learn as much as I can."
He added that the mentality of the defense is what stands out so far to him.
"Meetings are real cool," he said. "You're learning a lot, you're bonding with the people around you, but they're also challenging you. They're asking you questions. They want to make sure you're on point. And then like I said, when it's time to work, it's no time for games, it's time to get to it. The D-line, there's a great group of D-line in there. So like I said, I'm just trying to have as much fun as possible, but work when it's time to work."
Cornerback Michael Dansby
Like most of the players who are drafted, it's difficult to put into words just how important the experience of being drafted and finally putting on an NFL jersey with their name and number on it are. And that's the feeling Michael Dansby had on Friday.
"Man, it's a dream come true, literally," he said. "Words cannot to how I feel to have the Seahawks uniform and just everything on honestly. But it's a true blessing to be out here, man."
As for what he wants to get out of the weekend, Dansby is looking to "just to connect with my teammates and really to get the scheme and the plays down, honestly. So when I come back, I'll be ready and we're just ready to go."
