Seahawks select ‘Red Mamba’ Coby Bryant, CB from Cincinnati, in 4th round of NFL draft
The Seahawks now have “The Red Mamba.”
Seattle selected cornerback Coby Bryant from the University of Cincinnati Saturday morning early in the fourth round of the NFL draft.
“I’m just grateful,” Bryant said Saturday from his family home in Cleveland, where Seahawks coach Pete Carroll’s phone call landed to tell him his new pro team.
Yes, the native of Ohio confirmed he’s named after NBA legend and “my hero,” Kobe Bryant.
“Yes, sir,” he said. “My parents loved Kobe Bryant and everything he brought to the table, not only as an athlete but as a person.”
At Cincinnati, red-clad Bearcats fans and students called Bryant “The Red Mamba,” a nod to the late Kobe Bryant being “The Black Mamba.”
UC’s Bryant changed his jersey number from 7 to the late Kobe Bryant’s number 8 for his final collegiate game, Cincinnati’s College Football Playoff semifinal against Alabama to end last season.
General manager John Schneider said Saturday Bryant has already asked the Seahawks if he can wear Kobe Bryant’s immortalized number 8 for Seattle.
The 6-foot-1, 193-pound Bryant played cornerback at Cincinnati opposite Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, the fourth-overall pick in this draft Thursday to the New York Jets. Bryant got an extraordinary amount of pass targets as opponents avoided throwing at Gardner.
That’s how Bryant forced 12 incomplete passes last season, tied for ninth-most in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
“Absolutely,” he said. “I knew the challenge. I had to step up to. I’m a competitor. I never back down.”
The 23-year-old Bryant won the 2021 Jim Thorpe Award as the nation’s top college defensive back.
Asked to define his game, Bryant said: “Making plays on the ball. I would say my ball skills are the best in the draft. ...I have a ton of production, probably the best in the draft.”
Bryant said Seahawks coaches including new secondary coach Karl Scott met with him multiple times before the draft, including on Zoom. He said Carroll told him on his draft call Saturday “I bring a lot to the table,” and that told Bryant Seattle intends to try him in multiple roles including on special teams.
Picking Bryant continues the Seahawks addressing positions of need in this draft. First-round pick Charles Cross from Mississippi State is on a path to being the team’s new starting left tackle as 36-year-old Duane Brown remains unsigned. Second-round pick Boye Mafe from Minnesota is going straight into the pass-rush role outside the defense desperately needs.
The team’s other second-round pick, Michigan State running back Kenneth Walker, arrives with lead back Chris Carson’s return from neck surgery in doubt and Rashaad Penny signed only for 2022.
Third-round choice Abraham Lucas from Washington State will compete with Jake Curhan to be the new right tackle with Brandon Shell gone into free agency still unsigned.
And Bryant enters a cornerback spot where eight different guys played for the Seahawks last season. Tre Brown, a 2021 draft pick, impressed coaches but had his rookie season limited by injury. The Seahawks re-signed former University of Washington cornerback Sidney Jones to potentially start opposite Brown. But Jones is signed only for 2022.
Bryant said he’s well aware of the “Legion of Boom” Super Bowl legacy of defensive backs he’s stepping into in Seattle, which he’s never visited but will next week for a rookie minicamp.
“I watched them a lot, actually,” Bryant said. “My dad used to always talk to me about Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas growing up, and Kam Chancellor.
“I watched those guys growing up. They were actually my favorite group of DBs growing up.”
This story was originally published April 30, 2022 at 10:07 AM.
