The Seattle Seahawks lost cornerback Riq Woolen in free agency this offseason, but that may have been a welcome subtraction. As good as Woolen was at times, he also had moments of awfulness where he would cost his team untimely penalties or give up an explosive play at the worst possible time.
Woolen signed with the Philadelphia Eagles, and now his mercurial attitude and play are Philly's issue. What Seattle has to deal with is finding a cornerback that can take Woolen's reps while also being a valued member of a defensive back rotation.
Seattle general manager John Schneider said after the draft, and after Seattle had taken three cornerbacks among their eight selections, "You can never have too many corners."
John Schneider philosophy that the Seattle Seahawks can't have too many cornerbacks is spot on
What the Seahawks don't want is for Devon Witherspoon to have to play a lot more outside CB reps because he is so good at disrupting play near the line of scrimmage from a slot corner spot. Not that Witherspoon cannot play outside, but his versatility is his real value.
This is why Seattle selecting three corners isn't a huge deal. Had the team taken them all in the first three rounds, maybe there is an issue with Schneider's thinking, but that wasn't the case. In fact, two of the corners didn't come until the seventh round, and that means they have a limited opportunity to make the roster. They might be expected to play more on special teams.
The player with the most pressure is third-round choice Julian Neal out of Arkansas. He is a bigger corner at nearly 6'2" and 205 pounds. This implies he should be good against the run, an aspect of a cornerback's game that is a must for him to get playing time in head coach Mike Macdonald's scheme.
He hasn't been overly good at taking the ball away, though. He has four interceptions combined over the last two seasons, not a huge number for a college corner. In 2025, his quarterback rating allowed was 82.5, and he gave up three touchdown passes. He was better statistically the year before, when he was still at Fresno State, but did face the same level of SEC-type competition.
The Seattle Seahawks now have 10 cornerbacks on the bloated 90-man roster. The team might only keep five, or, at most, six. The obvious keepers are Witherspoon, Josh Jobe, and Nick Emmanwori, if someone considers him a cornerback. That leaves a lot of room for players to battle for a position.
While, as Schneider says, the Seahawks can't have too many corners, the truth is that Seattle won't be keeping nearly the number on their current depth chart. The best performers win a spot on the final 53-man roster, and they will be tasked with helping the team win back-to-back championships.
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