Heading into the 2024 season, the cornerback position appeared to be a position of strength for the Seattle Seahawks. It began with a dynamic pair of young, talented corners in Devon Witherspoon and Riq Woolen.
Tre Brown looked to be emerging as a slot corner, and there seemed to be solid depth in veteran Artie Burns and a pair of rookie draft picks – D.J. James and Nehemiah Pritchett.
Things didn’t exactly go as planned. Between them, the four corners behind Spoon and Riq combined to play a grand total of 492 defensive snaps for the entire year. As a reference point, Josh Jobe, claimed from the Eagles just before the start of the season, played 443 all by himself.
Do the Seahawks still need help at cornerback?
Brown and Burns are gone, and James didn’t make it out of training camp in ’24. Pritchett is still on the roster, though his poor performance last year means his spot is far from secure. So Seattle heads into the 2025 season with Witherspoon and Woolen still in place, and Jobe likely to man the slot.
Mike Macdonald’s defense calls for versatile players, which means they all may move around some, but those three players figure to be on the field a lot.
After the projected starters, all bets are off. John Schneider scooped up a lot of low-profile free agents and signed a few more rookies after the draft. But of his eleven picks this year, he was not inclined to choose a cornerback. Does that mean he feels confident in the group he now has?
I don’t think he does. Schneider obviously invested heavily in rebuilding his offense this offseason. Only two of those eleven picks were spent on defense. One of those players, Nick Emmanwori, is an athletically gifted safety who can play a variety of positions.
I have argued before that his presence may allow Coby Bryant to play at least a few snaps at perimeter corner, which would greatly improve the depth on the outside.
But inside, there are nothing but question marks after Jobe. And though he played pretty well last year, I’m not totally convinced that Jobe will build on that performance. He has a limited track record.
If Schneider and Macdonald are interested, there is still help available via the free agent market at corner. The huge name floating around is Jalen Ramsey, who is expected to be traded by Miami this summer. Of course, any team would like to add a player of Ramsey’s caliber, but the price will be high, and I’m not sure he is what the Seahawks need in the secondary at this point.
Here are three free agents who might be better short-term fits and who would come at a more reasonable price.
Kendall Fuller
Kendall Fuller is probably the best pure corner currently available on the free agent market. His career has been similar to another CB who has been linked to Seattle this offseason – former Hawk star Shaq Griffin. As both players hit 30, Fuller is playing at a more consistent level.
Though he has played on the perimeter throughout his career, Fuller has the versatility to move to the slot or to take some snaps at safety. He would provide Macdonald with one more very versatile weapon and would allow the defensive coaches to move Witherspoon all over the field.
With Emmanwori able to play safety or linebacker and Fuller able to take on virtually any backfield role, the Hawks’ coverage and blitz schemes would be fun to watch.
The biggest question concerning Fuller centers on what he is looking for. He played on some bad Washington teams, and he won a championship with Kansas City. He may be waiting for the right situation with a team he thinks can make a run in 2025. Could Schneider and Macdonald sell him on the Seahawks being such a team?
Mike Hilton
Hilton is 31 now, and his best days may be behind him. Still, he remains one of the league's most underrated defenders and one of the best pure slot corners to play in the past decade. Hilton gives you everything you want in a slot. He does not have the length you want in a perimeter player, but he is quick and has the experience to read complicated routes in the middle of the field.
Best of all, Hilton is as tough as they come. At just 5’9”, 184, Hilton is an excellent tackler. Were he to come in on a one-year deal, he could be a mentor for a younger player like Jobe.
Hilton is in a similar position as Kendall Fuller, though his a bit older and doesn’t offer positional versatility. His deal probably won’t be as pricey. Still, for a team that values run defense and experience, he will be a genuine asset.
Arthur Maulet
Josh Jobe is not the only player currently on the roster who profiles as a slot corner. If any other boundary corner emerges, Devon Witherspoon, who can line up anywhere, could play in the middle of the field. His all-around athleticism would make him an outstanding slot.
However, moving a potentially elite boundary corner is risky. So Macdonald may be looking to one of his former players – Damarion Williams – to challenge Jobe or to at least provide depth.
Williams was on the Baltimore Ravens squad that Macdonald coached in 2023, but he played very little, exclusively on special teams. Arthur Maulet was the primary slot corner on that squad. Maulet played well under Macdonald but was hampered by injuries in 2024. Like the others on this list, he is in his early 30s.
If Maulet checks out physically, he would seem like a very intriguing, low-risk option. He wouldn’t necessarily come in as a starter, as Fuller or Hilton would. He could compete with Jobe and provide quality veteran depth at a reasonable cost.
It is likely that Seattle is waiting to see if any of the half dozen young players they have signed this offseason stand out. If one or two of them step up in OTAs and then in training camp, Schneider may not feel compelled to make any moves at corner.
But if they don’t, which is what happened last year, when Schneider was fortunately able to find Jobe, he does have some nice options available.