3 free agents the Seahawks should steal from Super Bowl LVII teams

The Seahawks’ 2022 season might be over but the NFL year isn’t over quite yet. On Super Bowl Sunday, general manager John Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll should sit back and watch the game and dream of the players it can poach from either the Chiefs or the Eagles. Both teams are going to lose some players and both teams have some good players to steal.

While Seattle did better than most of the earthly population expected this year, they still have some position groups that need fixing. The Seahawks can try to do that in the 2023 NFL draft, of course, but the team also has some cash to spend in free agency. And that is true even if the team re-signs quarterback Geno Smith.

Seattle isn’t going to add Patrick Mahomes or Jalen Hurts for 2023. They are going to stick with their respective teams, obviously. But both the Eagles and Chiefs have players Seattle would likely love to add. Here are three.

Super Bowl free agent target 1: Seahawks should add Khalen Saunders

Seattle’s interior of the defensive line was not good in 2022. The shock of it all is that basically, the same group of players was decent in 2021. Maybe the group looks more like 2021 in 2023 than 2022, but one way to make sure this happens is to add Saunders.

The 26-year-old 325-pound defensive tackle is a load in the middle of the line. He also had 3.5 sacks and 8 quarterback hits this year so he can supply a bit of interior pass rush. But he also is solid against the run and has missed 2 tackle attempts in four seasons. Spotrac has his market value as $6.4 million a season for the foreseeable future but this seems high.

Super Bowl free agent target 2: Seahawks should add Fletcher Cox

OK, let’s take it up a few notches. Cox is a beast. While he is 32 years old, he is still a high-quality and massive presence along the defensive line. He is 6’4″ and 310 pounds but with a bit of quickness. Plus, there basically isn’t anything Cox can’t do.

In 2022, Cox had 7 sacks and 14 quarterback hits. He was a Pro Bowler from 2015 to 2020 and should have been one this season too. Is he better against the pass than the run? Yeah, probably. But he would be a veteran leader for a few years to a team that is likely to add talent through the draft and he would be a good voice to have in the locker room.

Super Bowl free agent target 3: Seahawks should add Jason Kelce

This isn’t going to happen but a 12 can dream, right? Kelce is 35 years old, sure, but he has probably 2-3 seasons to play at a high level. That is really all the Seahawks need. They can build the team elsewhere if Seattle adds Kelce. Plus, with good young tackles and one good young guard, Seattle really just needs a good center and a good right guard to have a plus-offensive line.

Kelce’s market value, per Spotrac, is $11.9 million in 2023. This is nothing for a very good NFL center. Kelce has been a Pro Bowl every year since 2014 but one. He’s been a first-time All-Pro in five of the last six seasons. He will probably stay in Philadelphia, but if he doesn’t, the Seahawks must make signing him a priority.