Seattle Seahawks’ Doug Baldwin – Undrafted, Undersized And Underrated

There are many words you can use to describe Seattle’s Doug Baldwin. His measureables forced scouts to call him undersized. His name was not called during the 2011 draft, so he joined the undrafted. His statistical production during his first four years in the NFL put him along many who were underappreciated.

Regardless of how you may view Baldwin, you can call him anything but underpaid.

Baldwin and Seattle agreed to a 4-year contract extension on Tuesday that will pay the Seahawks’ starting wideout $46 million, with $24 million guaranteed and a $7 million signing bonus. The new contract makes Baldwin the 8^th highest paid player at the receiver position, 7^th highest in terms of average salary, and 7^th highest in guaranteed money. Baldwin was set to become a free agent in 2017, his new deal will keep in a Seattle uniform through the 2020 season.

With his contract no longer open for discussion, it’s time to close the book on Baldwin’s perceived value. While he has not yet crossed the “house hold name” threshold, after the season he and QB Russell Wilson put together last year, heads are beginning to turn as Baldwin is proving what he can do if relied on as the number one option in the passing game.

His career numbers reflect that shift, as he set career highs in receptions, yards, and touchdowns in 2015:

2011: 51 receptions for 788 yards and 4 touchdowns

2012: 29 receptions for 366 yards and 3 touchdowns

2013: 50 receptions for 778 yards and 5 touchdowns

2014: 66 receptions for 825 yards and 3 touchdowns

2015: 78 receptions for 1,069 yards and 14 touchdowns

While some may call last year’s production the result of a “pass-heavy” playbook, the pass-run ratios do not support that claim. The folks at FFToday track run and pass play counts, and based on their data, Seattle called a running play 55% of the time from 2012-2014, and in 2015 they called a running play 51% of the time.

If rushing attempts per game were at or near Seattle’s average while the trio of Wilson, Lynch, and Baldwin have been starters since 2012, but the rushing production dipped due to a lack of talent at the position, the assumption must be that Wilson and Baldwin simply stepped up their game to make up the difference. Which a 4% dip in running plays called and a 15% increase in passing production absolutely supports.

With a less productive rushing attack, Seattle faced longer distances to go on 2^nd and 3^rd down, resulting in Wilson being forced to pick up bigger chunks of yards than usual, and the go-to guy on those plays became none other than Doug Baldwin.

Baldwin’s targets and receptions have been climbing steadily since 2013, and last season he simply hit another gear, there is no denying that. Receivers usually make this kind of leap in their second or third seasons, but it’s not unheard of to see a “late bloomer” in the NFL.

While he has already made an impact on the Seahawks and in the league (he was voted the #72 player in 2016 by a panel of his peers), he has a lot of work to do to make an impact on a very important list – career receiving yards. Just three receivers in the top-20 stand under 6’0” tall, and only one is still an active player – Baltimore’s Steve Smith.  The other two are Henry Ellard, and Seattle’s own Steve Largent. Each of these of undersized heroes posted at least seven seasons of 1,000 receiving yards, so hopefully Baldwin can find ways to replicate his 2015 success.

While he may not be able to make up the difference in career yards, if there were a stat that tracked “getting it done when it counts”, he would be among the league’s elite. Too many players and especially receivers are soft, me-first guys these days, but Baldwin is a team-first guy who shows up to work each Sunday, and has proven that he is willing to catch passes wherever and whenever needed.

Whether it’s down the sideline, in the open, in traffic, across the middle, heck, he’s even capable of catches of the ridiculous variety if the situation calls for it.

He’ll always be undersized as a man, but his legend is starting to spread, and he is no longer underpaid and underappreciated.

Now that Baldwin has finally made a name for himself, perhaps his fans should consider a new nickname for him: ”Doug Baldwin: The Postman”. He’s always on his route, and he always delivers on time.

And for at least the next four seasons, he only delivers for Seattle.