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Five more Seahawks to have breakout seasons in 2021

By Andy Excell

Jan 3, 2021; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Jordyn Brooks (56) against the San Francisco 49ers at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 3, 2021; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Jordyn Brooks (56) against the San Francisco 49ers at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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Tennessee linebacker Darrell Taylor (19) celebrates a play during the Gator Bowl game between Tennessee and Indiana at the TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Fla., Jan. 2, 2020.Gatorbowlcal0102 1076 /

Darrell Taylor

After taking Jordyn Brooks in the first round of the 2020 draft, the Seahawks moved up eleven spots to select Taylor with the 48th overall pick in round 2. Due to a serious injury, Taylor missed the entire of his rookie season, but early reports out of the Seahawks 2021 minicamp indicate that Taylor is healthy now and looking good.

It also looks likely that he is in the midst of converting from DE to hybrid end/linebacker and is being lined up as the starter at LEO for 2021. This could allow Taylor to thrive as a pass rusher in 2021, he recorded 16.5 sacks in his last two college seasons at Tennessee.

So if he is back to full health he could well record 8-10 sacks for the Seahawks in the coming campaign.

Ahkello Witherspoon

Witherspoon is another former 49er cornerback that looks a likely starter for the Seahawks in 2021.

Joining after his rookie contract expired in San Fran, Witherspoon never really nailed down a starting role for the 49ers and is in Seattle on a one-year prove-it deal.

When somebody is given a fresh challenge and is aware that failure to perform could lead to the rest of their career earnings declining as a result, they find levels of performance that surprise even those that hired them.

Witherspoon could well be one of those.

Having had ratings in excess of 100 with pro-football-reference.com for two of his seasons in San Fran, the sort of ratings that would put him in top 20 cornerbacks in the league, and a pff.com rating in excess of 80 for last season, this again indicates he has plenty of ability.

He is the sort of tall rangy corner the Seahawks coaches love, and I can really see them bringing the latent ability Witherspoon has to the fore in 2021 and beyond. If I am right about these five guys, or even just seem of them, the Seahawks defense could really shine in the coming season.

Next. How the Seahawks can build a Super Bowl-winning roster. dark

Add these to the guys highlighted by Lee Vowell in a recent piece on this site and this explains why the Seahawks go into the 2021 season vastly underrated outside of Seattle.

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