These gentlemen will likely start for the Seahawks
Ed Dickson. The former Carolina Panther will start his ninth season in the league in Seattle. Speaking of starts, he has 85 in his career. Mainly used as a blocker, his season high is 54 catches with five touchdowns. Last year he averaged 14.6 yards per reception on 30 catches, so don’t think Dickson can only block. The Seahawks signed him to a three year deal for $10.7 million total. For more on Dickson, take a look here.
Barkevious Mingo. Now that’s a big name. Mingo is a first round pick who hasn’t quite lived up to his early promise. He did get six starts last season with the Indianapolis Colts and was in for just over 500 snaps as a linebacker/edge rusher. The fact he got a two year deal shows the Seattle braintrust has some faith in his ability. Pro Football Focus rated him at 72.1 as an edge rusher.
DJ Fluker. Of course the biggest man has such a short name. At 6’5″ and 339 pounds, Fluker is one of the better road graders on the planet. Discussing his meeting with the Seahawks on the John Clayton Show last week, Fluker told Clayton:
"[they] just said they needed a mauler, a guy that’s going to get it done. Fourth-and-one, the guy they want to run behind is D.J. Fluker. And I was just like, ‘You know what? I can be that guy for you.”"
Fluker signed a one year deal, although there still aren’t any details on the money. Jump here for more on Fluker.
Jaron Brown. I’ll put the former Cardinal speedster in probable starter group, although I expect him to be the third wideout. I see him as likely being pushed in camp by Amara Darboh and any newcomers from the draft, too. Last season, his fifth, was a breakthrough for Brown as he posted career highs in receptions, yardage and touchdowns. Brown got a two year deal worth $5.5 million from the Seahawks. For a bit more on Brown, click here.
These gentlemen are ready to step up when the moment comes
Tom Johnson. The first of two defensive tackles that played for the Vikings last year. He started 15 games last year for one of the NFL’s best lines. If he doesn’t push past Jarren Reed or Naz Jones to start, so much the better. Johnson signed a one year deal for $2.1 million. Read more on Johnson and his impact on Seattle here.
Shamar Stephen. The Seahawks raided the Vikings for the second time in two days to get him. Pro Football Focus rated him at 72.4, five points below Johnson and Reed. Stephen started all 16 games for Minnesota in 2016, so he can certainly push for a starting role as well. We don’t have dollars, but it’s another one year deal. Need more on this signing? Your wish is granted.
Maurice Alexander. The Seahawks picked up the former Rams safety early in the free agency process. He started 14 games at free safety for Los Angeles in 2016, but a switch to the strong side didn’t work out in 2017. HE signed a one year deal for $880.000. You can read more on Alexander here.
Marcus Johnson. Unlike the last two players, it isn’t too likely that Johnson will force his way to the starting lineup. Johnson is the player the Seahawks got from the Eagles in the Michael Bennett trade. Yes, he has just 5 career catches, but he also has 4.44 speed. And he’s a Super Bowl champ, so for those that say winners win, factor that in.
Jason Myers. The Seahawks signed kicker Myers way back in January, which seems like the Stone Age right now. He made 81 percent of his field goals in his three years with the Jaguars, and hit 86 percent of his extra point attempts. So why did he (sorry, I can’t resist) get the boot? I’d say missing all three of his attempts over 50 yards last season had something to do with it. He signed a reserve/futures contract, so he’ll certainly see competition for the job.
2017 Seahawks who opted to stick around for 2018
Bradley McDougald. The return of McDougald was very good news for the 12s indeed. We predicted before the 2017 season that McDougald would be a key player for the Seahawks (please ignore the positive comments about Eddie Lacy in the same piece). We said McDougald would see at least 600 snaps, and he was on the field for 675. No, he isn’t Kam Chancellor, but he is pretty darn good. Seattle signed him to three years for $13.5 million, so I guess they think he’s good, too. For more on McDougald, you know what to do.
Marcus Smith. Smith is a holdover at defensive end from last year’s line. The Seahawks rotated him in for 14 games, as he had 253 snaps on the line. He also played special teams, including 23 snaps in the season finale. I expect his role to be the same in 2018. Smith signed for one year at $2.7 million. Want more? Here you go.
Mike Davis. By now you may be tired of our unbridled affection and devotion to the former practice squad player. Better get used to it, because we’ll be writing more about him. The only question I have about Davis is how he’ll get through an entire season with his all-out running style. Luckily, we expect a healthy Chris Carson to at least split time with Davis, and likely start ahead of him. I definitely see Carson and Davis as 1A and 1B in the Seahawks backfield for 2018. Come on, you know you want more on the human wrecking ball. Go ahead, we’ve got you covered.
We’ll throw in three names here that were restricted free agents, so weren’t very likely to be signed away by another team.
Dion Jordan. The former number one pick began to play up to expectations last year. Seattle placed a first round tender on Jordan. That meant he could have signed with another team, but the Seahawks could either match the offer, or would receive a first round pick in compensation. No one was willing to go for that deal. Jordan signed for one year and $1.9 million. Thankfully, we get to see if Jordan can wreak havoc for a full 16 games in 2018.
J.D. McKissic. Similar to their handling of Jordan, Seattle placed a second round tender on McKissic. As with Jordan, McKissic could have signed elsewhere, but the Seahawks could have matched the offer. If he had signed, Seattle would receive a second round pick. That didn’t happen, not even for the only player in Seattle not named Russell to score a rushing touchdown last year. McKissic saw a nice pay bump, up to $630,000 for one year.
Justin Coleman. The Salvation Army’s best promoter got the second round tender offer. Again, there were no takers. Coleman gets a sweet $2.9 for one year. I bet the Salvation Army is almost as excited as the 12s.
Related Story: Five players to bring back: Four down, one to go
As we see it, that’s not a bad haul. True, there are no Pro Bowl seasons here. But there is still a lot of talent, including a couple of players that could really break through this season. And Seattle is far from done.