The Seattle Seahawks have plenty of cap space, but there's no reason to waste it on a player who underperforms. General manager John Schneider should find a trade partner for Noah Fant among these five teams.
I like Noah Fant, and there's no doubt he's still a fine player. But let's contrast what the Seahawks are paying him with his production. Since coming to Seattle as part of the blockbuster deal that sent Russell Wilson on his tour of self-destruction, Fant has hauled in 130 catches. He produced exactly 1,400 yards for an average of 10.77 yards.
That's not bad, as the average for tight ends with at least 30 targets was 49 catches for 511 yards, an average of 10.5 yards per catch. The problem is that it isn't great, either. Fant only scored once last year and five times in his Seahawks career.
He's not performing at a level that has earned Seattle's second-highest cap hit this year. His cap is eighth-highest in the league for tight ends. If his performance was remotely close to that, then sure, he needs to stay. But he's not that guy.
Five great trade partners for the Seahawks and Noah Fant
When the guy who was widely seen as a blocking specialist, A.J. Barner, hauls in four touchdowns compared to the supposed receiving guy's one, it's time to rethink the roster. It certainly seems that Seattle did just that when they used their third pick of the draft on Jeremiah Arroyo. Yeah, it's early, but he looks like he can do everything that Fant can do, if not more.
Yeah, I know that new Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak loves using two-tight end sets. I know that Seattle has moved Brady Russell to the fullback spot, too. But if Arroyo continues to show out in training camp like he has so far, it makes perfect sense to have him step into Fant's role as the 1A tight end.
Barner would continue as the 1B, while Russell could certainly step in as the third TE, as could rookie Robbie Ouzts.
Or, you know, waste $13.4 million on a player who you've already replaced while you could trade him for future draft picks and free up another $8 million in cap space. That would go a long way to bringing Trey Hendrickson to Seattle. 35 sacks over the past two seasons make him one of the best at his position, and moving Fant would make it that much easier to pull off. So, who needs a tight end?
Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons have Kyle Pitts and a whole lotta nothing at tight end. Other than their starter, the tight ends on Atlanta's current roster had a grand total of seven catches for 49 yards and zero scores. Undrafted free agent rookie Joshua Simon has some promise, but Fant could easily supplant Pitts as the number one TE, let alone be a huge upgrade as the backup.
Carolina Panthers
Hey, at least the Falcons have a tight end. Pitts may be the 44th-ranked TE per Pro Football Focus (subscription required), but you have to crawl way down to #57 to find a guy with a black and blue kitty on his helmet. That would be - lemme check my notes - Tommy Tremble.
He caught 23 passes for 234 yards and two scores. Ja'Tavion Sanders caught 33 for 342 and a score, but ranked below the super-scary Tremble. Fant would smoke both of these guys, although Sanders can at least block.
Los Angeles Chargers
Yeah, I know. This would be a terrible thing to do to Uncle Will. Dissly, once freed from the shackles of the "he's a blocker" mentality, went off for 481 yards on 50 catches for the Chargers. I love Dissly, but imagine what Noah Fant could do. I'd rather have Dissly, but Fant would be a nice upgrade over Tyler Conklin. And Mr. Khaki Pants wants to win now.
New York Jets
The J-E-T-S Jets Jets Jets had Conklin but let him head west. As of 2025, they have a combined total of 34 catches on the roster between Stone Smartt and Jeremy Ruckert. Fant is the immediate number one on this roster, and the draft picks would be quality, considering how awful New York is.
But man, I'd hate to do him dirty like that. The Seahawks rescue players from New York, not sentence them there.
Washington Commanders
Yeah, Jon, I know the Commanders still have Zach Ertz, geez. When healthy, he's still one of the top tight ends in the league, and I know he started every game last year. But he's also going to turn 35 during Week 10. And he missed 17 games between 2022 and 2023.
Washington is finally a well-managed organization again. The smart play would be some insurance for not just this season, but for the future. Fant is a major upgrade over everyone else on the roster, and the Commanders still have plenty of cap space to make it work.
So what could the Seahawks get for Fant?
As for that compensation, the closest comparison seems to be the trade of T.J. Hockenson from the Lions to the Vikings. Detroit sent their starting TE to Minnesota in mid-2022, along with two fourth-round picks, for 2023 and 2024. In return, they got a second and third-round pick for the same years. Boys and girls, it's time to get mathy.
But not too much. In a very rudimentary form, I compared the value of the draft picks each team sent, as supplied by the amazing calculatorsoup.com. Each pick is assigned a value; Detroit's two picks had a combined value of 99 draft capital points, while Minnesota's were valued at 575.
For reference, the first pick overall is valued at 3,000 points, while Mr. Irrlevant is worth 3 points. Sometimes, much more, as it turns out.
The bottom line is, the higher the pick, the greater the value, obviously. So, subtracting the value of the picks the Lions sent (99) from the value of the Vikings' return selections (575), we get 476 value points. Scan the draft value chart for a value of 476 points, and you land between the 42nd and 43rd overall pick. In other words, a second-rounder.
Now, I'd rather drink from a Jack in the Box grease trap than say the Seahawks will get a second-round pick for Noah Fant. I am saying that's the equivalent of what the Vikings gave Detroit for Hockenson. Consider that John Schneider got a third-round pick for Geno Smith and a second for DK Metcalf.
Now, consider that both made it known they wanted to be traded. So maybe a third-round pick isn't that far-fetched after all. Especially if you're facing a season with Jeremy Ruckert as your starter.