A Two-Time Cancer Survivor Just Gave the Seahawks Draft Moment Nobody Will Forget

Dylan Pratt woke up nervous on Thursday morning in Pittsburgh. The 20-year-old from Columbus, Ohio, had waited years for this moment, and now it was finally here. But when he stepped up to that microphone at the 2026 NFL draft to announce the Seahawks' first-round pick, any trace of doubt evaporated the second he opened his mouth.

"What's going on Pittsburgh," Pratt screamed into the mic. "I'm so excited to be here to represent the 12s. Oh, and the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks!"

The crowd erupted. Goodell smiled. And in that moment, a Make-A-Wish request from a two-time cancer survivor became the most electric moment of day one at the draft.

From Ohio to Pittsburgh: A Long Road

Pratt has lived in, or within 20 minutes of, Columbus his entire life. But when he was a kid and his dad told him to pick a team, he gravitated toward the Seahawks. He loved the jerseys and he loved Kam Chancellor. That childhood fandom turned into something real when he was diagnosed with brain cancer at 16. He battled through chemo and was declared cancer-free. That's when he submitted his Make-A-Wish request: announce a first-round draft pick for the Seattle Seahawks.

The wish was supposed to happen at last year's draft in Green Bay. But just before he could confirm, Pratt got the news nobody wants to hear. His cancer had returned.

"The entirety of last year, I was going through chemotherapy every two weeks," Pratt said. "They asked if I was going to be good to do it this year, and I said 'Hell yeah.'"

During his second fight, Pratt was a freshman at Ohio University in Athens, pursuing a degree in Physical Activity and Sports Coaching with a minor in sports management. Every week, he'd take the "GoBus" shuttle to the airport. His mom would pick him up and drive him to Nationwide Children's Hospital in downtown Columbus for a full day of chemo. That same night or the next morning, she'd drive him back to campus so he could make his classes.

The Draft Moment That Mattered

Before stepping to the microphone, Pratt visited the set of NFL Live. Mina Kimes and others gave him advice, and Kimes even talked him out of delivering a joke about Marshawn Lynch on stage. "They were just like, 'you gotta bring the energy,'" Pratt said. "I was like, 'I got energy.'"

He absolutely did. When the Seahawks selected Notre Dame's Jadarian Price with the 32nd overall pick, Pratt announced it with the kind of enthusiasm that made every second of his battle feel worth it. Price himself understood the weight of the moment. His mother is a multiple-time cancer survivor.

"I thought it was pretty ironic and blessing considering his adversity he had been through with some cancer," Price told Seahawks.com. "And then I look over to my mom and then realizing what she had been through too, and it just seemed like it all came full circle and having someone like that battling, overcoming something like that and being able to call my name out there, it's a blessing and I'm truly honored and I'm thankful for him for doing that."

Social media lit up with love for Pratt. Media figures and spectators alike praised his energy. In Pittsburgh, a Seahawks fan from Ohio had just made draft history.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.