In Seattle Seahawks news for your Friday, Seattle created some cap room by releasing two players. One of them was pretty much a foregone conclusion. The other was not much of a surprise either. But who might Seattle cut next?
The player that Seattle released on Thursday that creates the most cap room is right guard Gabe Jackson. The proverbial writing on the wall has been there for Jackson since the Seahawks re-signed Phil Haynes a couple of weeks ago. Jackson had a cap hit of $11,262,223 for 2023 which was never going to work. His release saves Seattle $6.5 million.
In 2022, Jackson basically split snaps at right guard with Haynes for most of the season. Haynes graded out better, per Pro Football Focus (subscription required). Jackson will also turn 32 years old in July while Haynes is still just 27 years old and whose best football might be in front of him. Seattle could still choose to take a guard fairly high in the 2023 NFL draft but Haynes will likely be the starter at the beginning of next season.
Seahawks released two players on Thursday
Releasing Jackson has little to do with the team re-signing quarterback Geno Smith, though. Smith is taking up quite a bit more cap room than he did in seasons past but Jackson was cut due to his decreasing productivity and Haynes was simply re-signed to replace him. Even if Seattle had not re-signed Smith, Jackson was likely going to be released.
The other player the Seahawks released on Thursday was linebacker Ben Burr-Kirven. Burr-Kirven hasn’t played in two seasons after injuring his knee in the 2021 preseason. It is very likely he never plays football again. His salary was a non-guaranteed $940,000 for 2023 so the move doesn’t save Seattle much money but does open a roster spot.
It wouldn’t be surprising if the next player released is defensive lineman Shelby Harris. Harris is a decent enough player but has a cap hit of $12,211,176 in 2023. If he is cut the Seahawks would save $8,941,176. So Harris being done in Seattle, unless his contract is redone somehow, is also likely.