Selected in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft, safety Delano Hill had to scratch and claw to simply earn snaps on special teams as a rookie for the Seattle Seahawks.
Stuck behind star Kam Chancellor and ex-Buccaneers starter Bradley McDougald on the depth chart, Hill received minimal action defensively for Seattle. Relegated to kickoff and punt coverage duties, he finished with only five tackles despite being active for 15 games.
In addition, Hill struggled with discipline, drawing multiple penalties on special teams over the course of the season. Most notably, he missed out on a prime opportunity for defensive snaps in a Week 15 blowout loss to the Rams when he was ejected for smacking an opposing player in the helmet.
Eager to put his rookie season behind him, Hill should have a great chance to cement a much more significant role for himself with the Seahawks in 2018.
Only a few weeks ago, Chancellor officially walked away from football due to a neck injury and Earl Thomas continues to stay away from all team activities seeking a new contract, leaving Hill as the likely starter at strong safety when camp opens on July 26. With less than 10 total NFL regular season defensive snaps to his name, he will be the most intriguing mystery on a Seattle defense full of new faces.
Once a productive Second-Team All-Big Ten selection at Michigan, will the untested, hard-hitting Hill break free from Chancellor’s shadow and emerge as a star in his own right?
Check out our latest film breakdown as we go back in time to review Hill’s preseason and brief regular season audition as a rookie and project where he fits on the Seahawks’ defense moving forward.
