Seattle should bring back Jordyn Brooks
Brooks made a superhuman return in Week 1 after suffering a major knee injury late in 2022. Initially it was assumed he would not return until November of 2023 but he has played well since he came back showing he was at full strength to begin the season. In many ways, Brooks is having a career year just in time for his first taste of NFL free agency.
In 2023, Brooks has already exceeded career-highs in sacks (he has 4.5), quarterback hits (5), and likely will exceed his high for tackles for loss (he has 8 and his career high is 10 and there are five games left). The fourth-year pro is not going to get close to his number of combined tackles in 2021 and 2022, but he is also being used in a slightly different way for Seattle compared to 2022. Defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt is trusting Brooks' speed to be more aggressive at the line.
Brooks, like the rest of the defense, does need to work on his missed tackles, though. He has missed a career-high 8.6 percent so far in 2023. While his coverage skills are still not elite, he has a lower yards-per-catch rate (8.7) than in the two previous years. He also has a pick-six which he got against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 12.
The Seahawks did not pick up Brooks' fifth-year option ahead of the 2022 season so the former first-round draft pick in 2020 will be a free agent. He is also just 26 years old, though. He should have a number of very good years ahead of him and hopefully those years are spent with the Seahawks.