4 Seattle Seahawks who should not be back in 2023
By Lee Vowell
Seahawks right guard Gabe Jackson
It definitely looks like the Seahawks are trying to groom Phil Haynes to replace Jackson sooner than later. The two players have been rotating snaps for most of the last several games. And according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), Haynes has mostly gotten better as the season has grown on while Jackson has mostly played worse.
Overall for the year, the 31-year-old Jackson has an overall grade of 57.0 with a pass-blocking grade of 49.4 and a run-blocking grade of 57.6. But Jackson has only graded better than 58.6 (a pretty mediocre grade), twice this year in run-blocking. The 27-year-old Haynes has an overall grade of 67.1 with a pass-protection grade of 70.9 and a run-blocking grade of 66.6, both solid numbers.
Where Haynes really shines is in pass-blocking, though. He has graded at an elite 84.6 or better four times in the eight games he has played this season. Haynes is the younger player and playing better currently. He is also the less expensive one.
Haynes is a restricted free agent next offseason so the Seahawks can match whatever he is offered. Since Haynes hasn’t been a full-time starter during his career, he likely won’t garner a massive offer from a different team. Jackson, while he is signed through next year, can be released and Seattle would only have to eat $3 million in dead cap (versus the $12 million it would have cost the team in dead cap had Seattle released Jackson this past offseason).