The 2023 season has looked a lot like the 2022 version for the Seattle Seahawks. This might be OK, though. The team made the playoffs last year.
Seattle still has two games left to make the postseason push, but no matter if the team wins or loses, 12s are still fans, right? Next year at this same time we will be watching closely what Seattle is doing. Likely the year after that and the year after that and so on.
But what has Seattle given 12s this year? Stress, joy, sadness, exhaustion, of course. Everything that comes with being a fan. Plus, the following three gifts.
Gift No. 1 - Drafting Devon Witherspoon
I realize Devon Witherspoon has been injured recently, but over the course of the season, he has proven that Seattle taking him at pick number 5 in the 2023 NFL Draft is going to be a brilliant move. He adds the kind of versatility few teams have in a cornerback. Witherspoon excels in nearly every stage of the game from tackling, to coverage, to knowing how to attack opposing quarterbacks on blitzes.
Through Week 15, a week after Witherspoon hurt his ribs against the San Francisco 49ers, Witherspoon was the fifth-highest-graded cornerback in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). He was second in terms of pass rush and 10th in terms of run defense. This is partly because Witherspoon had 9 total pressures, including 3 sacks, as well as lining up in the slot on half his snaps because Seattle knows he can crunch the opponent's offensive line even on runs.
The great thing is Witherspoon could only get better. Rookies sometimes take a little bit of time to acclimate to the NFL, though admittedly it may have taken Witherspoon all of a week. Seattle should find even more inventive ways to use him in 2024 and beyond. Because he was a first-round choice, Seattle will have a fifth-year option on the corner in 2027. 12s should get used to Witherspoon being a Seahawk for the foreseeable future and that is a very good thing.