12th Man Rising
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How Seahawks can fix the defensive line in 4 free agent signings

By Geoff Shull

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 05: Jadeveon Clowney #90 of the Seattle Seahawks looks on against the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at Lincoln Financial Field on January 05, 2020 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JANUARY 05: Jadeveon Clowney #90 of the Seattle Seahawks looks on against the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Playoff game at Lincoln Financial Field on January 05, 2020 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Steven Ryan/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)
(Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images) /

Step 3: Get a big body on the interior to soak up  the double teams

Now that the defensive line has two very capable pass rushers, its time to focus on the run defense. I think this is the year the Seahawks finally bring Ndamukong Suh back to the Pacific Northwest. Suh is no longer the pass-rushing menace he was early in his career, however, what he lacks in pass rushing he more than makes up for in stuffing the running lanes. Its no surprise that in each of the last 3 seasons the teams that Suh played for ranked in the top 10 in run defense (Rams, Rams and Buccaneers) each year. Suh is a dog on the line that every team needs.

Again, Suh is not going to be signed as the pass rusher, but he more than makes up for it by helping those around him post big numbers. He excels in picking up the double teams and simply making the every down, extra effort plays to get his counterparts in a position to succeed.

I don’t believe it is a coincidence that while with the Rams, he helped Aaron Donald post some of the best numbers of his career. He did the same for Shaquil Barrett last year in Tampa Bay. Barrett posted an NFL high 19.5 sacks with Suh as his counterpart. While one thing is for certain, he will help in the run defense. It is quite possible he could be the missing factor to unleashing Jadeveon Clowney’s pass rush.

Suh has wanted to come back to the Pacific Northwest for the last few off-seasons, the money just simply hasn’t been right. Now well into his age 33 season, his market value shouldn’t be near what it has been in the past. The Seahawks should be able to get Suh on board on a 2-year $12 million contract.

They could even structure it like KJ Wrights deal, this would balloon his contracts cap hit in the second year and offer the team a cleanout in between years 1 and 2. The first-year cap hit should be around $4 million (that would leave the second-year cap hit/team option at $8 million). This would leave Seattle with $29 million in cap room for the 2020-2021 season.

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