3 Seahawks with soaring stock entering final game of 2021 season

The Seattle Seahawks have one last game to play in the 2021 season. Players are trying to earn their roster spots in 2022, whether that be with Seattle or auditioning for other teams. Seattle has several veterans who may not be wearing a Seahawks uniform next season.

Of the players on this list, two might still be iffy to return next year. But both have done enough in the last bit of the year to merit returning or re-signing. All three of the players that follow are among Seattle’s best players on the last third of the season.

So while some key players continue to struggle (forget Week 17, Russell Wilson has struggled compared to how good he normally has been), others have picked up their play and that might mean good things in 2022.

Three Seahawks whose stock is soaring entering Week 18

Carlos Dunlap

Dunlap didn’t do much in the first half of the season even though he played at least 52 percent of defensive snaps in five of their first eight games. Through that time Dunlap had 4 quarterback hits and .5 sacks. Then Seattle seemed to lose faith in him. Part of this had to do with the Seahawks misusing and dropping him more in coverage than Dunlap was used to or his skill-set would imply he would be good at.

From weeks 10 through 13, Dunlap never played more than 42 percent of snaps and only played 5 percent in Week 12 and 12 percent in Week 13. Then something happened in Week 15. Maybe Dunlap realized he wasn’t playing well enough to make the $5.1 million he is owed in 2022 or maybe Seattle started playing him a lot more at defensive end.

Whatever happened, in the last three games combined, Dunlap has 5 sacks, 5 tackles for loss, 6 quarterback hits and 10 solo tackles (almost half of his yearly total). Dunlap is under contract for next year at a team-friendly rate and seems to be playing well enough now to show he can make an impact next season.