The Seattle Seahawks will have a number of contract decisions to make next offseason. Seattle was already set to have cap issues in 2024 before releasing players such as Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs, but 2025 appears to be worse. Seattle is currently -$18,008,836 in cap room next offseason, according to Over the Cap.
Seattle could make a couple of moves and make quite a bit of space. For instance, if Geno Smith were released, that would save the team $25 million. Seattle is not going to have to make moves in 2025 due to the stress of cap room.
The hope, however, is that the five players that follow will retire as members of the franchise. Some are closer to retirement than others. One just got started.
Tyler Lockett - Seattle Seahawks wide receiver
Let's start with the most obvious player. I could have had DK Metcalf on this list as well, and the hope is that Metcalf never leaves Seattle, but Metcalf could also have one of the highest trade values in the next several seasons. One does not want Metcalf to leave, but one cannot rule out the potential haul he could bring back in a trade.
Lockett, though, will be 32 years old near the beginning of the 2024 season and he probably won't play many more seasons. Smaller receivers who rely on quickness and speed to get open normally have shorter shelf lives than receivers as big as Metcalf. Lockett has been with Seattle since he was taken in the third round of the 2015 draft and he developed into Seattle's best receiver for a number of years.
He is also an excellent person and great to have around the team. Lockett's real estate group is also the official realtor of the franchise. Watching Lockett leave for another team would be difficult not only for 12s but likely the player as well. This is probably why he reworked his deal this offseason and took less maximum money to stay with the team. He could retire after the 2024 season.
George Fant - Seahawks offensive tackle
This one might be an odd one, but something just feels right about Fant beginning and ending his career in Seattle. The Seahawks gave Fant a chance to prove he could be an offensive tackle in the NFL after playing tight end in college. While some likely doubted Fant would ever make it as an offensive lineman in the league, he not only stayed on rosters but he was good at his job.
In only one season, 2022, did Fant grade poorly overall, according to Pro Football Focus. He has also shown the versatility to play either left tackle or right tackle and do each well. This could be important in 2024 as Fant was re-signed by Seattle this offseason after he played with two different teams between 2020 and 2023. His main job will be to backup right tackle Abe Lucas, but with Lucas's knee issues, Fant could end up starting more than Lucas this season.
Should Lucas stay healthy but something happen to left tackle Charles Cross, Fant could swing to the left side and be an efficient blocker. Fant has allowed more than 3 sacks in a season only once since his rookie season in 2016. He was signed for two seasons at the end of which he will be 33 years old. He might choose to retire then.
Devon Witherspoon - Seahawks cornerback
This might seem silly as Witherspoon has only played one season, but what was clear in his rookie year was that he was going to be a long-term disruptor in the NFL. As opposed to Riq Woolen who made the Pro Bowl as a rookie the year before Witherspoon was drafted, Witherspoon came into the league a more polished product. He also offers an extreme amount of versatility that most corners simply will never have.
Witherspoon can cover extremely well, he can chase down quarterbacks at an unexpected clip, and he will get even better in run support. Ideally, a cornerback would play on the outside and hopefully shut down an opponent's top receiver. Witherspoon can play on the outside, but being in the slot allows the Seahawks to disguise their defenses better and gets the dangerous corner closer to the line of scrimmage.
Witherspoon will play out his rookie deal and his fifth-year option will probably get picked up. After that, Seattle should sign him to a long-term extension. Maybe things could end up going very wrong for Witherspoon, but there is a greater chance he becomes an eight-time Pro Bowler.
Jarran Reed - Seahawks defensive tackle
Reed is a bit like George Fant. He began in Seattle in 2016 and then left for some years. Unlike Fant, however, Reed's best seasons have come in a Seattle uniform. The defensive tackle had 10.5 sacks in 2018 and 6.5 in 2020. He was brought back last offseason and one might have expected him to be part of the rotation at defensive tackle. Instead, the Seahawks stuck Reed at nose guard, a spot he had never played before.
Reed was a bit undersized against the run and he got pushed around a bit. This was one reason Seattle's run defense was 31st in the league last year. New head coach Mike Macdonald might feature a 3-4 base many times, but he will disguise his fronts and use Reed in different spots. The DT is still a good pass rusher - he had 7 sacks in 2023 - and Macdonald is going to find to maximize Reed's ability there.
Reed will turn 32 years old during the 2024 season and is not signed past this season. He might not find a home in 2025 and could spend his last year with the Seahawks in 2024. If he gets another 7 sacks, however, Seattle might bring him back once again for a year beyond this season.
Michael Dickson - Seahawks punter
That Dickson has not made the Pro Bowl since 2018 is a travesty. He has continuously been among the best punters in the league, if not the best. In 2023, he might have had his best season as he averaged 50.0 yards per punt with 37.9 percent of his punts landing inside the opponent's 20-yard-line. Dickson's net yards per punt in 2023 was 44.1 which was third in the league, but both punters ranked above him have home games in more stable climates than drizzly Seattle.
In 2022, Dickson was second in net yards and he was third in 2020. He has been the most consistent punter in the league since the Seahawks took him in the fifth round of the 2018 draft. He was chosen to be a defensive weapon and he has never disappointed.
Dickson is currently signed through 2025 and he will be only 30 years old during the 2026 season. Once his current contract is up, Seattle should sign him for another five seasons.