The Seattle Seahawks are only a summer away from beginning the 2024 season. That won't be too long for 12s to wait, though it might seem like an eternity. This season's team might be more exciting at the beginning simply because of all the offseason changes.
In other words, we cannot be too sure what the team will look like. 12s have gotten used to the same bad linebacker coverage and excellent receiver play, but Seattle will have new schemes that could fix the linebacker issue and use the receivers in different ways.
Even a little improvement should get the Seahawks back to the playoffs. The team barely missed making the postseason again in 2023. To help make the team better, the following five players need to have good seasons.
Darrell Taylor - Seattle Seahawks edge rusher
There is a decent chance that Taylor does not even make the Seahawks roster in 2024, of course, but after Seattle did not choose an edge rusher in the 2024 draft Taylor appears destined to be on the team. This must partly be due to new head coach Mike Macdonald seeing something in Taylor he can mold. Otherwise, Taylor has been wretched against the run in his career and an inconsistent pass-rusher.
Taylor is going to need to prove to Macdonald and general manager John Schneider that he will be better this season under new direction. While he seems incapable of truly being good in run support and gets pushed back and run over a lot, maybe this is simply because he has not understood exactly what was needed from him. Taylor lacks the upper-body strength to hold his own against offensive linemen, but maybe coaches will tell him to get stronger this offseason.
But Taylor also needs to prove he can translate the new coaching into more consistent play. He has 21.5 sacks in his career in 49 games but he only has sacks in 20 of those games. He tends to get pressure on opposing quarterbacks in spurts and then has stretches of games where he cannot do anything. Taylor has yet to show he can be counted on to be a foundational piece of Seattle's defense.
Dee Eskridge - Seahawks wide receiver
Another player who has been inconsistent is Eskridge, even more than Taylor. Though Eskridge was drafted in 2021, he didn't do much of anything until 2023 when he flashed the potential to be an electric kick returner. Still, he has missed 27 of a potential 51 games. Some 12s might be surprised that the receiver is still on the team at all as he would save the team more in cap room than he will earn in 2024.
Most likely, the NFL's new kickoff rule change may have saved Eskridge's career. Kickoff teams now cannot move until a kick returner catches the ball and Eskridge's shiftiness might be enough to pull off several explosive runs this year. John Schneider cares about that potential because he not only kept Eskridge on the team, but he also signed Laviska Shenault in free agency and signed Dee Williams as an undrafted free agent.
Schneider obviously believes the Seahawks can gain an advantage by returning kicks as all three of the players just mentioned potentially could change the outcome of a game with one return. Eskridge should have the best chance of making the roster, however, since he has returned kicks at times decently well while wearing a Seattle jersey.
Abe Lucas - Seahawks right tackle
Lucas might be capable of being a Pro Bowl-caliber right tackle as he has great size, sound technique, and a tenaciousness that makes any coach smile. The problem is that he might not be able to stay healthy for long stretches at a time due to a knee problem that former head coach Pete Carroll called "chronic." After playing in Week 1 of 2023, Lucas did not return until Week 13. Even after that, he had to be rotated out during games.
Lucas had surgery on his knee this offseason, his second such surgery, in hopes that the problem can be corrected. But that is not a good sign for an offensive lineman entering just his third season in the league. Seattle even signed veteran offensive tackle George Fant this offseason and Fant might end up out-playing Lucas. If the right tackle has to be released because he cannot stay healthy, he would save the team almost $1 million next offseason.
Riq Woolen - Seahawks cornerback
Woolen has had a precipitous fall. He appeared to be Seattle's latest fifth-round steal after he made the Pro Bowl in his rookie year in 2022. He tied for the league lead in interceptions with 6. One of those interceptions was a pick-six. Woolen also missed just 7.4 percent of his tackle attempts in 2022.
There might have been an indication that not all was perfect, however, in that Woolen only had 2 interceptions after Week 6. Maybe quarterbacks had figured him out a bit.
In 2023, the cornerback had 2 interceptions, and his missed tackle rate grew to 14.5 percent. His quarterback rating allowed went from a great 48.7 in 2022 to a decent 79.8 in 2023. Woolen's lack of aggressiveness and seeming unwillingness to set the edge against the run was the most glaring issue, though. If he does that gain in a crowded Seahawks cornerback room, John Schneider could decide in a different direction with Woolen next offseason.
Rayshawn Jenkins - Seahawks safety
Jenkins has not yet played a down for Seattle, but he was signed to a two-year deal this offseason and will need to prove he deserves the second season of that in 2024. Should Jenkins not play well this year, Seattle could save $5.4 million by releasing him next offseason. He is also 30 years old and would be the same age as Quandre Diggs is right now next offseason. Seattle might see a 31-year-old safety as being too old.
Jenkins has improved in coverage over the course of his career and his passer rating of 62.5 last season was excellent. He is also a decent tackler who whiffed on just 9 percent of his tackles in 2023. He is capable of being very good under Mike Macdonald and hopefully, Jenkins will earn his 2025 spot. But he will, indeed, need to prove in 2024 he deserves that chance.