Grading every move Seahawks made during first wave of free agency

The first few days of free agency, including the legal tampering period, are over and the Seattle Seahawks did not do very much. This has become the norm for Seattle since 2010 when John Schneider became the general manager of the team. The only outlier was 2023.

But because Seattle created so much cap room the week before free agency began it was logical to think that maybe Schneider would be aggressive again. This did not occur and many 12s might be disappointed. That is fair.

Seattle did tender most of their restricted free agents, and re-signed edge rusher Darrell Taylor, but Seattle also lost a lot of talent to other teams, such as Will Dissly and Bobby Wagner. Seattle did not get linebacker Patrick Queen and some other possibly intended targets, however. Overall, Seattle has underwhelmed in free agency. Again, so far. But here are the grades for the players Seattle has signed.

Grading Seattle Seahawks new additions

Tight end Pharaoh Brown

Brown was one of Seattle's first reported signings. He is much more of a blocker than a receiver and he was signed to only a one-year deal for a max of $3.9 million. He likely becomes a true replacement for Will Dissly as both did not catch many passes. But Brown is nowhere near the blocker that Dissly was and bringing Dissly back would have been the better move.

Grade: C

Offensive lineman Nick Harris

My hope is that Seattle only sees Harris as a versatile offensive lineman who will be a backup. He mostly played center recently so he could just be depth for Olu Oluwatimi. Oluwatimi is entering his second season with the Seahawks and presumably will start. Harris signed for one year and a max of $3.26 million. He appears to be a decent pass-blocker and if adding Harris means Seattle definitely is not bringing Evan Brown back then that is a win.

Grade: C+

Offensive tackle George Fant

Fant coming back likely means Seattle still is not fully certain that right tackle Abraham Lucas can remain consistently healthy. Though Fant was added as depth, he could earn more starts than Lucas if Lucas's knee never improves. Fant, of course, began his career with Seattle as an undrafted rookie and has gone on to start everywhere since he left Seattle in 2020. He is not a bad player either and was graded as the 35th-best tackle in the NFL in 2023, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).

Grade: B

Safety Rayshawn Jenkins

The only thing I can see about why Seattle wanted Jenkins is that he is less expensive than Quandre Diggs. Diggs was not very good last year after being quite good in the previous three seasons. Jenkins doesn't create the amount of turnovers that Diggs did nor does he appear to be a much better tackler. But he is cheaper! Let's just hope Seattle skimping a bit doesn't cost the team during real games.

Grade: C-

Grading Seahawks signing of returning players

Defensive lineman Leonard Williams

Some might believe that Seattle overpaid for Williams, but based on the current market for high-end defensive linemen, Williams' deal that will pay him as much as $64.5 million over three years is in line (and less expensive) than contracts signed by Chris Jones and Christian Wilkins this offseason. In ten games for the Seahawks in 2023 (after Seattle traded for Williams midway through the season), Williams had 4 sacks and 9 tackles for loss which would equate to 7 sacks and 15 tackles for loss over a full season. Not bad but maybe not $21 million a season good.

Grade: B

Tight end Noah Fant

We have seen flashes of what Fant (who is not related to George Fant, by the way) can do. He is elusive and fast once he catches a pass. He just hasn't had a chance to do much of that with Seattle in the last two years. Maybe a change of offensive philosophy under new OC Ryan Grubb will get Fant more involved. He is only 26 years old and could be very good for a number of years if given the chance. His deal will pay him up to $21 million over two seasons.

Grade: B

Cornerback Artie Burns

Burns is going to get a few reps at cornerback but not many. He is more for depth. But he is capable of being a solid contributor on special teams. Plus, he likely won't cost very much, assuming his deal is for just a little over a million dollars in 2024.

Grade: C

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