New #Seahawks safety Bud Clark says he patterns his game after Kam Chancellor.
“He always brought the pop. I feel like he was the hammer, not the nail. That’s what I try to do.”
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New Seattle Seahawks safety Bud Clark compared himself to a member of the legendary 'Legion of Boom.'
Using a legend of the famed, Super Bowl-winning ‘Legion of Boom’ defense as a comparison for his own skills, shows Bud Clark is not lacking for confidence after being selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the second round of the 2026 NFL draft.
The 64th-overall pick is exactly the kind of versatile defensive back who fits what today’s Seahawks do defensively, but Clark has an older role model. He name-dropped legendary safety Kam Chancellor as his inspiration.
Former TCU star Clark noted how Chancellor “always brought the pop. I feel like he was the hammer, not the nail. That’s what I try to do,” per Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic.
New #Seahawks safety Bud Clark says he patterns his game after Kam Chancellor.
“He always brought the pop. I feel like he was the hammer, not the nail. That’s what I try to do.”
It’s a lofty comparison, but nobody can fault Clark for going bold to introduce himself to his new team. He’s set the bar high, particularly when he’s joining the league’s toughest defense, a unit Seahawks general manager John Schneider bolstered further by drafting another DB after a trade in Round 3.
Perhaps no player defined what the LOB secondary was all about more than Chancellor. He was a natural enforcer as a linebacker in a safety’s body who could force the run, body tight ends in coverage and wallop wide receivers brave enough to even think about crossing the middle of the field.
Those qualities earned Chancellor four Pro Bowl berths, as well as the Vince Lombardi Trophy as a member of the 2013 Seahawks. It’s a daunting CV for Clark to try and replicate, but he’s determined to keep Chancellor in his sights.
Clark told Dugar “You gotta have the mentality, you gotta have a lot of grit, you gotta have a lot of discipline, you gotta have a lot of want-to.”
That mentality made Chancellor and Co. champions, but the Seahawks didn’t earn a second title until 2025’s ‘Dark Side’ defense powered another Super Bowl run. The difference was last season’s secondary didn’t boast the individual star power of the ‘Legion of Boom.’
Instead, the present day defensive backfield has been defined more by moving parts, increased versatility and useful rotational players. Schneider saw two of those sneaky good substitutes leave for pastures new during NFL free agency, so he’s doubled down in this draft to keep things strong on the back end.
Seattle’s secondary was depleted when safety Coby Bryant joined the Chicago Bears and said his goodbyes to the Seahawks. The cornerback rotation was also hit after Riq Woolen signed with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Head coach Mike Macdonald didn’t want to lose Woolen, but Schneider has at least restocked the depth chart by drafting Neal. The latter fits the same brand of Legion of Boom-style aggressiveness Clark is aiming to replicate.
Neal made his own appetite for destruction clear when he proclaimed, “I’m going to go punch on somebody. I’m going to go punch somebody at the line. I’m in press. I’m going to get all up in your face,” per Gregg Bell of the Tacoma News-Tribune.
The pattern here is obvious. Schneider and Macdonald have targeted defensive backs able and eager to maintain the punishing brand of football that helped last season’s Seahawks dominate the league.
James Dudko covers the New York Giants, Washington Commanders, New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens for Heavy.com. He has covered the NFL and world soccer since 2011, with bylines at FanSided, Prime Time Sports Talk and Bleacher Report before joining Heavy in 2021. More about James Dudko
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