The Seattle Seahawks are 6-3 and some of the players they signed this past offseason who had played 2022 with other teams have had solid impacts. Many of the others, though, haven't done so well. In fact, the player that was given the most money hasn't performed as well as expected.
The great thing about grading free agents halfway through a season is that the players with bad grades can still get better. The toughest part of Seattle's schedule lies ahead on those players are going to have to be good for Seattle to have a chance at the playoffs.
The grades that follow do not include players who were with Seattle in 2022. We already knew kind of what to expect from those guys. But how are the players Seattle signed from other teams doing?
Seattle Seahawks incompletes
Nose tackle Austin Faoliu
Faoliu hasn't really gotten a chance to show what he can do in the NFL and he won't get a chance with the Seahawks either. After getting injured in camp, Faoliu started on injured reserve before being activated. Soon after that, Seattle released him.
Linebacker Devin Bush
Bush is a bit of a mystery. I could give him an F grade as he has done almost nothing for the team in 2023. He appears to have been a healthy scratch for at least three games. It is one thing to have linebacker Jordyn Brooks come back faster than expected and dash any hopes Bush had of starting for Seattle this year, but the team appears to not even see Bush worthy of playing much on special teams.
Seattle signed Bush this past offseason to a one-year deal that will pay Bush $3.5 million. That has been wasted money so far. Maybe Bush will somehow make an impact before the year is done.
D grades
Center Evan Brown
Brown started off well, and maybe part of his issue is that he simply has had to try to make up for so many players around him being injured. In the first two games of the season, he allowed no QB hurries or pressures. But in each game he has played since Week 3, he has allowed at least 2 hurries and pressures. In Week 9's awfulness against the Baltimore Ravens, Brown allowed 4 hurries and 4 pressures.
The biggest problem, however, is that he hasn't been very good at run blocking. This might be why we see running back Kenneth Walker III try to run a lot more toward the tackles than into the interior of the line. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) has given him a grade of only 55.8 in run blocking in 2023, 30th among centers. Overall, Brown is graded 26th at his position.
Defensive end Dre'Mont Jones
Sticking with the PFF theme for a second, Jones is graded as 80th among interior defensive linemen and that is atrocious for a player the Seahawks gave the highest free agent contract to in the general manager John Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll era. Jones has 2.5 sacks and 4 quarterback hits, on par with his career averages. But he needed to be better in 2023 with more responsibility. Maybe he isn't capable of being better.
Jones was a slightly better against the Commanders, but he needs to be great the rest of the year as the Seahawks are about to face some very tough competition. Seattle thought Jones would elevate the defensive line and he hasn't. He still has a chance to do so, though.
C grades
Safety Julian Love
The most disappointing part of Love's game has been his run defense. After playing for the New York Giants in recent years, one would expect he would be better in that area but he has not been. Love has also missed 15.4 percent of his tackle attempts in 2023. That's bad.
Love was signed to a two-year deal and would be a cheaper option to keep than Quandre Diggs or Jamal Adams in 2024. If the Seahawks do release one of those three safeties, Diggs would bring the biggest savings ($11 million) and Love could potentially slide over to Diggs' free safety spot.
B grades
Nose guard Jarran Reed
A lot of Reed's grade is due to his early-season productivity. When no one else seemed to be able to consistently get to opposing quarterbacks, Reed was at least getting some sacks. He had 4 sacks through the first six games as well as 8 quarterback hits. In the last three weeks, though, he hasn't been nearly as effective.
This could be because Seattle has made some changes along its defensive line, such as adding Leonard Williams, and Reed doesn't have the same space to make plays. Or Reed might just be hitting a wall while playing his first year as a nose tackle.
Defensive end Mario Edwards, Jr.
Edwards gets a B here because he is basically what Seattle hoped he would be. He is never going to be a Pro Bowl player but he is a solid pro who can play as many snaps as needed and help against the run while supplying some occasional pass rush. He actually has been a bit better in terms of pass rush in 2023 and maybe slightly less effective against the run.
Edwards is still graded as the 38th-best interior defensive lineman in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus. He has 14 total pressures and 8 stops in 2023. He will continue to be a valuable, if slightly unsung, member of the defensive line rotation for as long as he wears a Seahawks jersey.
A grade - Bobby Wagner
The Seattle Seahawks missed Bobby Wagner in 2022, obviously. The team missed his leadership, his communication on the field, and his tackling ability. He isn't great in coverage this year, but he has never been great in coverage. Still, he has been given a "good" grade in coverage in 2023, according to PFF, and has been more active in recent weeks in batting down passes over the middle.
Bobby Wagner is in the top ten once again in tackles (95 which is sixth), and he has 2.5 sacks and 4 tackles for loss. He isn't going to get to double-digit quarterback hits this year, but Seattle's defense doesn't really use him that way. He does blitz sometimes, but defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt prefers to try to get heat on quarterbacks from the outside from players such as Devon Witherspoon and Jamal Adams.
Wagner is the fourth-best graded linebacker so far this year, per PFF. He might not be named first-team All-Pro but second-team should be the expectation. Wagner is a future Hall of Famer and he should retire with Seattle. In fact, as well as he is playing, the Seahawks should bring him back again in 2024. Now let's just hope Seattle can bring back Jordyn Brooks too.