Seahawks Select Miami Running Back Late

After spending the first two seasons of his collegiate career approximately 250 miles south of his new home, Martinez churned out 982 rushing yards in 2022 as a freshman and 1,185 yards the following season with the Oregon State Beavers. He was regarded as the second-highest-ranked running back in the 2024 transfer portal behind Quinshon Judkins, who transferred to Ohio State from Ole Miss.

"Martinez is an efficient north-south runner between the tackles. He's a powerful back who runs through and over defenders, pushing the pile when he doesn't get a seam. He moves well enough laterally to make defenders miss and bounce outside," said NFL Draft Analyst Steve Muench of Martinez's running style.

The 2024 All-ACC Honorable Mention running back may prove to be one of the biggest sleepers in the draft with comparisons to Le'Veon Bell and D’Onta Foreman, although Martinez admits to being a big fan of Marshawn Lynch, claiming another "Beast Mode 2.0" is coming up to Seattle.

During the pre-draft process, Martinez never had any in-person visits with the Seahawks but did meet with Seattle Running Backs coach Kenny Polamalu via Zoom on more than one occasion.

At the NFL Combine in February, Martinez trimmed down from his in-season playing weight in the mid-230s, down to 217 pounds, which helped him post a 4.51 40-yard dash time with a 1.56 10-yard split.

Aside from having superb vision, running with power, and displaying great patience, scheme versatility may be Martinez's best trait.

While at Oregon State, he was successful running in a wide zone offensive scheme with a quarterback under center. He was as effective at Miami in a completely opposite situation where he was used as a downhill runner in an inside zone, gap scheme where the quarterback operated out of the shotgun.

Seattle's offense-heavy draft, where they addressed the trenches with three selections along the offensive line, was due in large part to a rushing attack that averaged 95.7 yards per game in 2024. 

They hope the new additions to a wide zone scheme, similar to what Martinez ran at Oregon State, will improve production from a unit that finished 28th in the NFL in terms of rush yards per game.

Martinez joins a young running back room that includes Kenneth Walker III, Kenny McIntosh, Zach Charbonnet, and George Holani. Walker leads the group with three years of NFL experience.