I knew the Seahawks were going to make a splash in the NFL Draft this year. They had to. They had the fourth overall pick, the highest the team has had since 1997.

But as rumors swirled about the Seahawks’ interest in USC quarterback Mark Sanchez, I started to worry. Would the team really pick a guy fourth overall that likely wouldn’t play for two years, all the while giving off the impression that they can compete now?

Well, the answer was no. The team followed a smart, efficient plan on draft day netting a great character player in the first round and much-needed depth in the rounds beyond.

The Seahawks got a gift when linebacker Aaron Curry was still available at the fourth overall pick. Curry was rated by many as the top player in the draft, but the three teams picking first simply had too many other positional needs to select him.

The 6-foot-2, 254-pounder will team with Lofa Tatupu to give the Seahawks a strong linebacker group.

Seattle traded away its early second-round pick to Denver for the Bronco’s first round pick in 2010. The move was a great one. Denver has a new coach, recently traded its franchise quarterback and didn’t do much in the offseason to address a terrible defense. The ‘Hawks could get another great first-round pick next year.

The team later acquired another pick in the second round and used it to select Max Unger, an offensive lineman from the University of Oregon.

A big key to Unger’s selection is his versatility. Scouts see him as someone who can play at any position along the offensive line. That is great for a team with a lot of promise and talent on the line, but few piece set in stone.

In one of many draft-day trades, the Seahawks moved fifth- and seventh-round picks in 2009, plus a third-round pick in 2010 to Philadelphia to move up in the third round this season. With the pick, the team selected Penn State wide receiver Deon Butler.

Butler is 5-foot-10 and weighs 181 pounds. With his size, Butler may remind some of another Penn State alum familiar to Seahawks fans — Bobby Engram. The difference is that Butler is much faster. He ran a 4.38 40-yard dash at the NFL combine.

His speed gives the team more options, especially on deep routes. Now quarterback Matt Hasselbeck can run more play action instead of going to a seven-step drop to let the deep routes materialize. It will be interesting to see how the team uses Butler.

The Seahawks picked Rutgers quarterback Mike Teel in the sixth round. Teel has a strong arm and will have time to develop. In the sixth round, this is a good investment.

Seattle picked Rutgers safety Courtney Greene, Oregon defensive end Nick Reed and California tight end Cameron Morrah in the seventh round.

Reed was the defensive player of the year in the Pac-10, but he’s undersized for that position in the NFL at 6-foot-2, 244 pounds.

Greene and Morrah will have shots to be solid backups.

The other huge move for the team was removing Leroy Hill’s franchise tag. That makes Hill a free agent, available to any NFL team.

Despite Hill’s under-the-radar status for many fans, NFL personnel know what kind of a talent he is. He immediately becomes the top available player in the league and should draw plenty of interest.

The move clears $8.3 million of space under the salary cap for the Seahawks to add more players. But how much will this affect the defense?

Hill made 81 tackles in 12 games last season and was one of the few players on defense that didn’t underachieve. Of course, there’s still a chance the team gets him back with a long-term deal, but the odds aren’t high that will happen.

The team traded Julian Peterson to the Lions in the offseason meaning Lofa Tatupu and Curry will likely take two of the starting linebacker positions. If the Seahawks don’t sign Hill to a deal the options to start at the third spot are D.D. Lewis, Will Herring and Lance Laury.

Herring and Laury together have one start and 70 tackles in five combined seasons of mostly special teams work.

Lewis has started 20 games in seven seasons. He has 208 career tackles.

The Seahawks signed six undrafted free agents. Texas A&M defensive end Michael Bennett, Ole Miss linebacker Tony Fein, Wyoming running back Devin Moore, Maryland linebackerDave Philistin, Ball State tackle Andre Ramsey and North Dakota State running back Tyler Roehl.

The team is left with some minor needs, including: running back, a taller corner (the expected announcement of Ken Lucas’s signing will help here), safety help and a possible heir to Walter Jones at left tackle. But overall it was a very strong draft and put the team in good position with future picks.