The Seattle Seahawks had an interesting start to March. The team traded quarterback Geno Smith and wide receiver DK Metcalf, while also releasing receiver Tyler Lockett. No matter what came next, the team was going to look different in 2025 and beyond.
Receiver Jake Bobo might have felt good for a minute, but then the team signed receivers Cooper Kupp and Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and Bobo receded to his normal WR4 spot, at best. Boye Mafe and Derick Hall will now need to battle for snaps next to recently signed edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence.
Other Seahawks were luckier and should feel more secure in their jobs based on what Seattle did in free agency. Maybe things will change with the 2025 draft, but for now, these Seahawks are winners.
3 Seahawks whose stock is soaring based on what Seattle did in the first wave of free agency
Linebacker Tyrice Knight
Knight was a fourth-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft, but he was seen as a raw prospect who might need a year before he was truly ready to play. As it turns out, he needed just half of a season. Seattle gave up on free agent signees Jerome Baker and Tyrel Dodson quickly, and for a good reason. They were not good and were hurting the overall defense.
Knight emerged as a sudden starter in Week 11, and he had three games of double-digit tackles after that. He finished as the 41st-highest-graded linebacker in the league, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), but received high marks in almost every game after he became the full-time starter.
This offseason, the Seahawks did not really even sniff bringing in another linebacker. The team re-signed Ernest Jones IV, but likely only with the idea of pairing him with Knight. At this point, Knight should be seen as a starter for Seattle for the foreseeable future.
Safety Coby Bryant
Just as was said of Knight, the same could hold true of Bryant. The safety finally got his chance to start in Week 7 of his third season, only after previous starter Rayshawn Jenkins was injured. Bryant played so well, though, that Jenkins had no chance of regaining his spot after he returned. This offseason, Jenkins was released by the team.
The Seahawks could draft a safety early in the 2025 NFL draft just in case Bryant doesn't return to the same form he had in the second half of last season (plus, he is entering the final year of his rookie contract), but Bryant should be penned into being one of the starters at safety to begin the 2025 season.
This makes sense as he can create turnovers where Jenkins could not. He had three interceptions last season, and he missed just 5.2 percent of his tackle attempts.
Sadly, every offensive lineman
Unlike Knight and Bryant, who are positives, any pundit can see that the Seahawks needed offensive line help this offseason more than the team needed anything else. Other than left tackle Charles Cross, Seattle could do with upgrades at every other O-line position. Seattle had visits with several free-agent guards, but only signed long-time backup Josh Jones.
There were rumors that Seattle did not sign players like Will Fries and Teven Jenkins because they had financial issues or health concerns, but the Seahawks needed to do something in free agency. They didn't.
General manager John Schneider might plan to address the line heavily in the 2025 draft, but as he has no history of taking an interior offensive lineman high in the draft, 12s should probably expect to wait until deep into day two of the draft to see a guard or center taken. The linemen currently on Seattle's roster should feel awfully lucky to have their jobs still.
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