In 2025, Mike Macdonald stuck to a fairly regular rotation with his edge rushers. Demarcus Lawrence logged the most snaps – 626, or 56 percent of all defensive plays – while Uchenna Nwosu and Boye Mafe each took about half of all defensive snaps. Derick Hall had the fewest plays among the top four edges, in part because he missed several games due to injury and another because of a suspension.
General manager John Schneider signed veteran pass rush specialist Dante Fowler in May, and there’s a good chance he will slide right into Hall’s 2025 role. Hall, in turn, will likely move up to pick up the snaps that Boye Mafe played last year. Mafe left via free agency this offseason.
That should restore Seattle’s formidable edge rushing rotation. But there are lingering questions, and Seattle’s opening preseason game against Dallas did little to resolve them. This may not be a problem for the coming season, but it bears watching.
The Seattle Seahawks may have a problem brewing on the edge
If everyone stays healthy and plays up to expectations, the Seahawks will put a potent pass-rushing group on the field in 2026. The edge rushers are only part of Mike Macdonald’s overall attack. In the middle, Leonard Williams and Byron Murphy II generate excellent pressure, and it appears that Rylie Mills will add to that interior push this year.
Macdonald also dials up creative blitzes that take full advantage of his athletic back seven. Nick Emmawori and Devon Witherspoon are lethal blitzers. We saw how new corner Noah Igbinoghene very nearly recorded Seattle’s first sack against Dallas.
Actually, it would have been Seattle’s only sack. Therein lies the cause for concern. The Seahawks’ reserves did not get to either Sam Howell or Joe Milton at all on Saturday. To be fair, they did at times generate pressure. Howell is a good runner, and Milton is big and powerful … and very hard to get on the ground.
Still, the pass rush needed to do a better job. Even if they couldn’t get sacks, Seattle rushers needed to harass the Cowboys QBs. And they rarely did.
Though this is indeed a problem that extends beyond the edge, it is those edge rushers that need to step up the most. Seattle clearly likes Jared Ivey and Connor O’Toole as developmental players. Both made the club last season as undrafted free agents.
Given the depth at the position and the relative health of Seattle's front liners, neither Ivey nor O’Toole saw much action in 2025. Nor did Jamie Sheriff, Seattle’s other reserve outside linebacker.
It would be very nice if at least one of them showed some pass-rushing prowess this preseason. Ivey, in particular, played well against the run on Saturday, but none of the young edges showed much when going after the QB.
The main reason this matters is age. Lawrence is 34. He was a Pro Bowler last year and still plays at a very high level. But it would not be unusual for his production to begin to fall off at some point. That has already happened with Fowler, who just turned 32.
To be sure, both can still play. If they can platoon with Nwosu (who will also be 30 by the end of the season) and Hall, there is no reason to worry about productivity this year. But if one of those top four does go down, it will put a strain on the rotation, and right now, neither Ivey nor O’Toole seems able to pick up that slack.
And looking further down the road, Lawrence has already announced this will be his final season. Both Nwosu and Fowler are slated for free agency in 2027. John Schneider will need to retool his edge rushers in the near future. Ideally, Jared Ivey and Connor O’Toole will be part of that retooling. But based on one game this preseason, that is far from a sure thing.
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