The Seahawks added a second defensive lineman in as many rounds of the NFL draft, selecting North Carolina defensive tackle Nazair Jones with the 102nd overall pick, one of four third-round picks Seattle used Friday.
Jones got the call from the Seahawks while watching the draft with his mother, grandmother and great grandmother, and wasn't surprised that it came from the Seahawks.
"I had a good idea it would be Seattle knowing that they had six picks on the second day," Jones said on a conference call. "I just think I'm a great fit for (the Seahawks), that's kind of the vibe I got from them. I feel like they liked me a lot, they liked my versatility and everything I brought to the field, and also the character part, the things I do in the community. I just felt like it was a great fit."
Jones started all 12 games he played in 2016, finishing the season with 70 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Jones, who is 6-foot-5, 304 pounds, projects as a big, run-stuffing defensive tackle, and will fit in in the Seahawks locker room not just because of his physical talents, but because he also has one of Seattle's favorite traits in a player: grit.
When Jones was a junior in high school, he was diagnosed with Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, a rare disease that took two months to even diagnose, and that caused him to lose 40 pounds and have to re-learn how to walk again before he could even begin considering a return to football.
"I'm really just blessed man, to go through everything I've went through, just to still be drafted into the NFL," he said. "I really can't ask for anything more than that.
"It was a long road. It took almost two months for me to even get a diagnosis. Complex Regional Pain Syndrome is so different, and it is so uncommon, that some of my doctors had never heard of it and had never diagnosed anyone with it. It took me a long time to do that, but it wasn't until my redshirt freshman year at North Carolina where I felt back to 100 percent. I played my (high school) senior season football, basketball and track, still recovering, but just trying my best."
Jones also started his own nonprofit while in college, M.A.D.E. Men Mentoring, which pairs underprivileged youth with college athletes who serve as mentors.
"We're just trying to get guys on the right path," he said. "What I do is I'll take different groups of athletes from surrounding schools and we'll go into middle schools or high schools and have seminars with the guys and just tell them what it takes to be a college athlete and what it takes succeed in the classroom as well. I had a mentor in my life, but he passed away last year, and I knew how big of an impact he had on my life, so I wanted to pass that kind of impact he had on me, because I knew if it weren't for him, I wouldn't be on the phone with you guys right now."
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Photos of new Seahawks defensive lineman Nazair Jones from North Carolina.
Nazair Jones University of North Carolina Football v Florida State Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL Saturday, October 1, 2016
North Carolina defensive tackle Nazair Jones holds up his Jimmy Rogers Jr. Most Valuable Lineman Trophy after the Sun Bowl NCAA college football game against Stanford, Friday, Dec. 30, 2016, in El Paso, Texas. Stanford beat North Carolina 25-23. (AP Photo/Mark Lambie)
North Carolina's Nazair Jones (90) sits with fans prior to an NCAA college football game against Pittsburgh in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Virginia quarterback Kurt Benkert (6) makes a toss as North Carolina defensive tackle Nazair Jones (90) closes in during the first half of an NCAA college football game between North Carolina and Virginia at Scott stadium in Charlottesville, Va., Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
University of North Carolina Football v Illinois Kenan Stadium Chapel Hill, NC Saturday, September 19, 2015
North Carolina's Nazair Jones (90) watches during the team's first NCAA college football practice of the season in Chapel Hill, N.C., Monday, Aug. 3, 2015. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Duke quarterback Anthony Boone (7) is tackled by North Carolina's Nazair Jones (90) during the second half of an NCAA college football game in Durham, N.C., Thursday, Nov. 20, 2014. North Carolina won 45-20. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
North Carolina's Nazair Jones,left, trips up Miami's Joseph Yearby, who barely made it out of the end zone on the tackle, during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Nov. 14, 2015. (AP Photo/Rob Brown)
North Carolina's Nazair Jones (90) runs drills during the team's first NCAA college football practice of the season in Chapel Hill, N.C., Monday, Aug. 3, 2015. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)
Nazair Jones University of North Carolina Football v Florida State Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL Saturday, October 1, 2016
North Carolina defensive tackle Nazair Jones runs in a drill at the NFL football scouting combine on Sunday, March 5, 2017, in Indianapolis. (Aaron M. Sprecher via AP)
North Carolina defensive tackle Nazair Jones runs in a drill at the NFL football scouting combine on Sunday, March 5, 2017, in Indianapolis. (Aaron M. Sprecher via AP)
North Carolina defensive lineman Nazair Jones runs a drill at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis, Sunday, March 5, 2017. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
North Carolina defensive lineman Nazair Jones runs a drill at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis, Sunday, March 5, 2017. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
North Carolina defensive lineman Nazair Jones runs a drill at the NFL football scouting combine in Indianapolis, Sunday, March 5, 2017. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
North Carolina defensive lineman Nazair Jones runs a drill during the 2017 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday, March 5, 2017 in Indianapolis. (Ben Liebenberg via AP)
