The worst move the Seattle Seahawks made this offseason might turn out to be one they didn't make, and then the reactions to that. The problem has shown up in training camp and the preseason: the team didn't aggressively try to re-sign cornerback Riq Woolen.
Not doing so has led to things like signing Terrion Arnold and Trevon Diggs. Woolen, to be fair, was far too mercurial for his own good, but he also could have bouts of brilliance for long stretches. To compound the problem created by not signing him in free agency, the team had no built-in replacement.
Unlike in 2025, when Seattle was still trying to prove it could make a run at a championship but didn't have any apparent defensive holes, the 2026 version does. Devon Witherspoon is an excellent player, but keeping him on the outside, which is what Woolen did, limits his effectiveness. Witherspoon plays the run and pressures the quarterback too well to keep him solely outside.
Not bringing Riq Woolen back might be the worst move the Seattle Seahawks made all offseason
Josh Jobe will be a starter, and he has been a great fit in Macdonald's system, but this will be the first season in his career with the added pressure of being a full-time starter beginning in Week 1. He and Witherspoon could be one of the better duos in the league, but the drop-off in terms of quality of depth is questionable.
If the cornerback group had been tremendous in training camp and the preseason, the Seahawks wouldn't have been scrambling to bring in players just before the season. Arnold might not be able to play at all, and Diggs might show again that his multiple knee injuries have taken a brutal toll, assuming he is eventually elevated from the practice squad.
Arnold faces multiple felony charges and is currently on the NFL's exempt list. He has signed with Seattle for one season, but until he is removed from the list, he can't play in real games. Even if and when that happens, he hasn't been quite as good as hoped in the first two seasons of his career, both spent with the Detroit Lions (the team released him after the charges were announced).
Diggs was once one of the best cornerbacks in the league with the Dallas Cowboys, but he began getting injured five seasons ago, anleague's has often been a shadow of his former self. He is not fully healthy, and perhaps he can find his way with the Seattle Seahawks.
After the four corners mentioned above, Seattle has rookie Julian Neal, who might be good but missed part of camp with an injury, and the ever-underwhelming Nehemiah Pritchett.
In Week 1, against a New England Patriots team that added wide receiver AJ Brown, Seattle's secondary will be tested. If the team had kept Riq Woolen, 12s might have felt more secure that a title defense would begin with a victory in the first game of the season.
Instead, Woolen has been a training camp star with his new team, the Philadelphia Eagles. The Seahawks might regret not making a move to bring him back, as he did stop good receivers but also made many foolish on-field judgment calls. He needed to leave, but the team might still miss his presence early in the season.
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