Seahawks Drafts from the Past: 2004 – Beware of Boulware

The Seattle Seahawks drafted a personal favorite and a few other key contributors in 2004 even though their first pick didn’t pan out.

In the lead-up to the 2024 NFL Draft, let’s take a look back on the Seattle Seahawks draft classes from 40, 30, 20, and 10 years ago. I’ll list each draft pick and give a short summary of their career achievements – if applicable.

Time to go back and check out the 2004 draft.

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Round 1, Pick No. 23 – Marcus Tubbs, DT, Texas

Seattle’s first selection in the 2004 NFL Draft was two-time All-Big 12 defensive tackle Marcus Tubbs, a team captain for the Texas Longhorns. Sadly, the main story for Tubbs was a litany of injuries throughout his tenure with the Seahawks.

Tubbs played in 11 games as a rookie before an ankle injury ended his season. He played in 13 games during the Super Bowl XL runner-up season, mostly coming off the bench but was effective with 5.5 sacks and 3 TFL. Then, knee issues popped up in 2006. Tubbs first had arthroscopic knee surgery on his left knee and returned in a few weeks. However, his knee acted up again and Tubbs underwent microfracture surgery causing him to miss the rest of the season. He returned during the preseason in 2007 and promptly the ACL in his other knee. Tubbs was released in 2008 and never played another down in the NFL. He finished with a career stat line of 29 games played with 16 starts, 60 tackles, 7.0 sacks, 3 FF, 1 FR, 4 TFL, 1 microfracture surgery, and 1 torn ACL.

Maybe those injuries were a blessing in disguise in shepherding him to his current career in medical sales?

Round 2, Pick No.53 – Michael Boulware, DB, Florida St.

The Seahawks used their second-round selection on ultra-productive Florida St. Seminoles linebacker Michael Boulware with the intention of moving him to safety. At FSU, Boulware recorded 340 tackles and was a finalist for both the Bednarik Award as the nation’s top defensive player and a semi-finalist for the Butkus Award as the nation’s top linebacker as a senior. He also had NFL bloodlines, being the younger brother of Baltimore Ravens All-Pro LB Peter Boulware. However, Michael was slightly undersized as an NFL LB at the time at 6’2, 225lbs, yet ran a 4.47 40-yard dash and was extremely impressive in the other testing metrics.

Full disclosure, Michael Boulware is one of my favorite Seahawks players of all-time. In a roundabout way, he’s also responsible for me writing at Field Gulls since the piece I wrote about him got my foot in the door at a former gig and ultimately led me here. I still argue that Boulware was drafted 20 years too early and would thrive in today’s NFL considering the size of some of the current LBs like Patrick Queen.

Just for fun, what would his RAS look like as a SS, which the Seahawks converted him to?

Hot damn!

And Boulware hit the ground running at the safety position as a rookie, showing a penchant for clutch plays.

During his rookie year, he played in all 16 games while starting four. Despite his mostly backup role, he made an immediate impact recording two forced fumbles, a sack, and five interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown to seal the game in a victory against the Dolphins – and give Boulware NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors. He was named to the 2004 NFL All-Rookie Team and finished sixth in the NFL AP Defensive Rookie of the Year voting.

In 2005, Boulware started all 16 games again while helping the Seahawks reach their first Super Bowl in franchise history. He once again made his presence known with a forced fumble, 2.0 sacks, and four interceptions during the regular season and made history with an additional interception of Ben Roethlisberger in their Super Bowl XL loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Sadly, that was the high point for Boulware as he began to give up big plays in 2006 and was relegated to the bench. Seattle traded him to the Houston Texans in 2007 for Jason Babin. Boulware joined the Minnesota Vikings in 2008 but was injured in training camp and was out of the NFL.

He’ll always remain one of my favorite players and I’m sure there aren’t many others that can claim to still have a #28 Michael Boulware Seahawks jersey. I believe I got that jersey as a Christmas present, and Boulware gave Seahawks fans everywhere an early present when he blocked a FG in a 2005 Christmas Eve win over the 13-1 Indianapolis Colts.

The NFL Boulware legacy may not be over. In researching this, I found that his son, Michael Boulware Jr. is a high school LB in the class of 2026. There could be another Boulware in Seattle some day…let’s hope he lays dudes out like his dad!

Round 3, Pick No.84 – Sean Locklear, T, North Carolina St.

Seattle added offensive tackle Sean Locklear from North Carolina St. in the third round. He played in all 16 games as a reserve in 2004 before taking over as the starting RT in 2005. Locklear was in Seattle from 2004-2010, playing in 97 games with 78 starts. He played for Washington in 2011 before finishing his career with the New York Giants in 2012.

Round 4, Pick No. 116 – Niko Koutouvides, LB, Purdue

Koutouvides never became a regular starter but was a special teams mainstay which gave him a job in the NFL through 2012. He played in Seattle from 2004-2007, appearing in 59 games with 117 tackles and 1 FF. Koutouvides bounced around with the Denver Broncos and Tampa Bay Buccaneers before finishing his career with the New England Patriots.

Round 5, Pick No. 157 – D.J. Hackett, WR, Colorado

Hackett spent the first part of the 2004 season on the practice squad before landing on injured reserve with a hip injury. He made his debut in 2005 and played in 33 games for the Seahawks from 2005-2007, catching 118 passes for 1,394 yards and 9 TDs. Hackett left for the Carolina Panthers during the 2008 free agency period and spent one injury-plagued season there before being released in 2009. That was the end of the NFL road for Hackett.

Round 6, Pick No. 189 – Craig Terrill, DT, Purdue

The Seahawks went back to the Boilermaker well in the sixth round, selecting defensive tackle Craig Terrill from Purdue. While he never became a regular starter, Terrill became a fairly effective rotational DT throughout his time in Seattle which lasted from 2004-2010. He also had a knack for blocking field goals and finished his career with 8 of those suckers, tied with Joe Nash for the most in Seahawks history.

Terrill is also an accomplished musician, releasing 2 albums.

Round 7, Pick No. 224 – Donnie Jones, P, LSU

Jones lost a training camp battle with veteran punter Tom Rouen and began the 2004 season on the practice squad. An injury to Rouen brought Jones up to the active roster but it wasn’t pretty for Jones as he punted 26 times over 6 games with just 32.2 net yards per punt. He was released when the Seahawks traded for Seahawks Legend Jerry Rice. Jones went back on the practice squad and was expecting to compete for the job again in 2005 before he was released just prior to training camp starting. He was awarded to the Miami Dolphins on waivers, won the job there, and proceeded to punt in the NFL through 2018 making Second-team All-Pro twice with the rival St. Louis Rams and winning Super Bowl LII with the Philadelphia Eagles. He also spent time with the Houston Texans and Los Angeles Chargers.

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After a disappointing start, the 2004 draft class was pretty solid overall with a lot of special teams contributions. Michael Boulware will always be a personal favorite so of course I spent more time on him than anyone else. I will continue to extol his virtues any chance I get!