Three free agents the Seahawks will regret not signing in 2024
By Luke Allen
The Seattle Seahawks made some significant changes this offseason. After failing to make the playoffs for the second time in the past three seasons, Seattle parted ways with head coach Pete Carroll - along with a good chunk of his coaching staff. The Seahawks also dumped some large contracts, such as safety duo Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs, and tight end Will Dissly.
The team also let contributors like Bobby Wagner, Jordyn Brooks, and Damien Lewis walk in free agency. The new regime in Seattle, headlined by rookie head coach Mike Macdonald, was in the midst of a roster rehaul. Ahead of April's draft, the team had some decisions to make in free agency.
But they were conservative. Seattle was expected to make some splash free agent signings after clearing cap space. Most pundits predicted Macdonald would recruit some of the defensive weapons he coached in Baltimore who were pending free agents.
Who did the Seahawks miss out on in free agency that they will regret not signing?
However, Seattle was mostly conservative in free agency, prioritizing value over the big names. The Seahawks brought in mostly undervalued veterans -- linebacker Jerome Baker, safety Rayshawn Jenkins, guard Laken Tomlinson, and defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins.
LB Patrick Queen
The Seahawks bringing in Patrick Queen made just too much sense. A player who's very similar to Jordyn Brooks, and was actually picked one spot after Brooks in the 2020 NFL Draft, Queen was beginning to blossom as a future star under Mike Macdonald in Baltimore. When Seattle let Jordyn Brooks leave for Miami in free agency, it felt almost certain that Seattle was just going to swap him out for Patrick Queen, who would command a similar contract but has had more production and a lesser injury history.
Signing Queen would have been a slam-dunk signing for Seattle who, at the time, had zero real linebackers on the roster. Under Macdonald in 2023, Queen had his best season as a pro, tallying a career-high in tackles and pass breakups. Queen's career trajectory was skyrocketing, yet he wouldn't command the type of money the top linebackers in the league were making.
In a division with Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, Tyler Higbee, and Kyler Murray, you want linebackers who can move in space. And that's exactly what Patrick Queen does.
The Seahawks decided against offering Queen a contract and the former Raven signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers (ugh). That left the team with limited options for bringing in free agent linebackers. Seattle settled for Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dodson, who are currently unsurprisingly injured and not partaking in OTAs. Seattle failed to draft a linebacker until the fourth round when they selected Tyrice Knight from UTEP, widely considered a project that will need a year or two to develop before possibly starting.
As it stands today, the current available healthy starters at linebacker for Seattle are Jon Rhattigan and Patrick O'Connell. Perhaps under the tutelage of Macdonald and new defensive coordinator Aden Durde, Seattle can develop one or both of these linebackers into contributors, but for Seattle's sake, the two incumbents better be healthy to start the season because passing on Patrick Queen is looking worse and worse as the days go by.