The Seattle Seahawks might be done with free agency in 2023, but some former Seahawks that are still free agents might be done with their careers. Of course, veterans can wait a bit longer than young players to be signed, especially when it gets closer to the start of a season, because they know teams have a lot of tape on them. That could also cost them jobs as well if teams think they might be a bit too old.
There are a bunch of former Seattle players that remain free agents. Defensive tackle Shelby Harris only played for Seattle for one season, and there have been rumors that maybe Seattle even brings him back in 2023, and he looks like he can still play. But he is almost 32 years old (ancient, I know!) so maybe no one will sign him.
The same could be said about Jadeveon Clowney. He is seemingly an old 30 years old and has been oft-injured since 2014 and only once has he played a full season. Still, he is so skilled some team (maybe even Seattle?) will probably sign him to a lucrative one-year deal. But which former Seattle Seahawks could actually be done in the league?
Justin Coleman - Former Seahawks cornerback
Coleman has played two terms with Seattle (he started a bunch of games in 2017 and 2018) and the first go was much better than the most recent one. The weird part is that prior to the 2023 season, Coleman was pretty good with the Miami Dolphins and Detroit Lions. Last year for Coleman was pretty much a complete failure, though.
After signing with Seattle last offseason, most probably expected him to be the starter at nickelback. But then rookie Coby Bryant took his in training camp. Coleman isn't really capable of playing outside corner in Seattle's system so the team didn't try to re-sign him this offseason.
But now Coleman is 30 years old (really old for a cornerback) and teams may not want to sign him as he is such a limited player. He isn't terrible in coverage, but at this stage of his career teams might just want someone younger to be the slot corner instead of Coleman. But Coleman still exceeded any expectations of him in his career as he was undrafted out of college in 2015 and still had a solid career.
Justin Britt - Former Seahawks center
Britt took over at center for Seattle full-time in 2016 and was a decent player for three years. He was even a Pro Bowl alternate in the 2016 season. But in 2019, Britt suffered a knee injury and would never play another down for Seattle. Britt missed the entire 2020 season, though he did have a couple of tryouts with other teams, and finally found a home with the Houston Texans in 2021.
Britt started 11 games for the Texans in 2021 and one in 2022 but then Britt suddenly left the team for personal reasons and the team placed him on the reserve/non-football illness list. The reasons have never been fully divulged and Britt, as a human being, doesn't really owe us a reason. But he left the Texans with a backup center who simply wasn't ready to play.
The Houston organization did seem to back Britt in letting the player work on whatever he needed to work on, but the Texans eventually released Britt this offseason. The expectation is that Britt will retire, but we have seen players "retire" before and then come back to play (here's to you, Tom Brady!).
The question then becomes does Britt, who is 32 years old, ever want to come back? NFL players make a lot of money, even aging veterans. If he is physically capable of playing, he could try. But then NFL teams can be somewhat ruthless in their approach to giving players a chance and maybe most teams simply turn the other cheek to a player with former injury concerns and off the field issues.
Carlos Dunlap - Former Seahawks defensive end
I felt a bit bad for Carlos Dunlap during his time with the Seattle Seahawks. He was often played out of position by former defensive coordinator Ken Norton, Jr. and even asked to play in coverage much more than Dunlap should have been (which is never to be asked). In 2021, after Seattle's season was doomed, Dunlap was used more in his conventional defensive end role than in some hybrid outside linebacker thing that wasn't working and Dunlap took off. In the 2021 offseason, Seattle even released Dunlap but he didn't find a home so the Seahawks brought him back only to ill-use him.
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In 2021, after Seattle's season was doomed, Dunlap was used more in his conventional defensive end role than in some hybrid outside linebacker thing that wasn't working and Dunlap took off. Prior to Week 13, Dunlap had just half a sack. His snaps had dropped to him just playing 4 against the Commanders in Week 12. Then Norton must have realized that Dunlap is a decent player and began playing him more and in the right spot.
From Week 13 on, Dunlap had 8 sacks and 10 quarterback hits. Seattle went 4-2 from Week 13 on but was just 3-8 before that. Of course, Seattle didn't start winning games simply because Dunlap was beginning to be used properly, but there is no argument that getting Dunlap more involved helped the defense be better.
Dunlap signed with the Kansas City Chiefs before the 2023 and helped the team win the Super Bowl. He is currently a free agent, but at 34 years old teams might not want to pay him what he might be asking for.