It may not be as fun or exciting as the NFL draft, but the free agency period is at least as critical to a team's success. You can expect 2025 to be no different, as Seahawks general manager John Schneider faces major challenges to take the Seahawks to the next level. That starts with the current roster. So who stays, and who goes?
The Hawks don't have a lot of top players hitting free agency this year, unlike some of the league's top teams. Of the 10 current free agents on defense, only Jarran Reed (679), Ernest Jones (667), and Josh Jobe (443) got more than 300 snaps. Tre Brown was next with 290, while no one else had more than 200.
For the six FA on offense, the load was even lighter. Left guard Laken Tomlinson was a workhorse with 1,094 snaps., tied for most on the offense with Charles Cross. Next highest was Stone Forsythe with 414, then Pharaoh Brown with 216. None of the other had as many as 100 snaps. And as we'll see, the snap count didn't always translate into value.
Seahawks only have two priority free agents in house
I'm not saying the Hawks only have two players they should re-sign. There are a couple more players on the roster who performed well enough to keep in Seattle and are projected to be available at a reasonable value. I'll go into more detail for each position. I'm sure you have a pretty good idea of the two players I think the Hawks need to keep, though. Right? I mean, you did see the team play.
A bit of explanation on the columns below. If you don't know what the first one is - ummm - I'm not even gonna make a Cardinals joke. Oh, you meant the RFA/ERFA thing. My bad. RFA indicates a Restricted Free Agent. The player can look for a deal with any other team, but the Seahawks could match the offer to keep them in Seattle.
The Hawks could also attach a tender to that player, meaning that if they sign with another team and Seattle chooses not to match the deal, the new team would have to compensate the Seahawks with a first, second, or third-round draft pick, depending on the tender. ERFA is an Exclusive Rights Free Agent. This indicates that if the Hawks offer the player a new contract, they have to either stay in Seattle for the year or sit out the season. I am so sorry for the joke about the first column now.
Alright, onward, 12s. I used September 30th as the cutoff for their 2025 age. It's arbitrary, sure, but it seemed more accurate than saying a guy is 26 when he'll be 27 by Week 4. AAV is the average annual value of the player's contract, as provided by spotrac.com.
The fourth column lists the grade assigned by Pro Football Focus (subscription required). This is just to give you an outsider's view of the player's value to the team. I don't always agree with PFF, as you'll see soon enough. Okay, 12s, let's dive in.
Quarterback
Player | 2025 age | 2025 Contract AAV | 2024 PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Sam Darnold | 27 | $33.3 million | 80.7 (13th at position) | Signed with Seahawks |
Wide Receivers
Player | 2025 Age | 2024 Contract AAV | PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Tyler Lockett | 33 | $13 million | 65.2 | TBD |
Jaelon Darden RFA | 26 | $985 K | 54.7 | TBD |
Cody White ERFA | 26 | $915 K | 66.6 | TBD |
No offense to either player here, but we're not exactly talking about the drama surrounding a potential DK Metcalf trade or the likely release of Tyler Lockett - no matter how much I want the Hawks to rework his deal. I'd be shocked if the Hawks don't offer White a contract. New OC Klint Kubiak has to be excited about the potential in this guy.
Tight Ends
Player | 2025 Age | 2024 Contract AAV | PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Pharaoh Brown | 31 | $3.2 M | 45.6 | TBD |
Brady Russell ERFA | 27 | $915 K | 66.0 | TBD |
Brown came to the Hawks of being a solid blocking tight end who could snag the occasional pass. He managed the second part with eight catches and two admittedly big first downs. But when it comes to blocking, he was no Will Dissly. He wasn't even an Anthony Bradford. For that much money, there's no way he stays. The Hawks could tender an offer to Russell, who is at least solid on special teams.
Offensive Linemen
Player | 2025 Age | 2024 Contract AAV | PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Stone Forsythe | 27 | $912 K | 43.1 | TBD |
Laken Tomlinson | 33 | $1.2 M | 62.1 | Signed with Houston Texans |
George Fant | 33 | $3,430,000 | 61.3 | TBD |
Josh Jones | 27 | $1,790,000 | 49.8 | Signed with Seahawks |
Forsythe has the distinction of being one of only two Seahawks on the O-line with a worse PFF grade than Bradford. I'll reveal the special surprise at the end of the article. As for Tomlinson, he wasn't great - his PFF grade ranks him 44th among guards - so no, he shouldn't be starting for a team with championship aspirations. But as a backup or rotational piece, heck yes, I want him on the team. His projected market value per Spotrac is just $1.4 million. Make that deal today.
Defensive Linemen
Player | 2025 Age | 2024 Contract AAV | PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Dre'Mont Jones | 28 | $10,770,416 | 54.3 | TBD |
Roy Robertson-Harris | 33 | $1,415,686 | 52.8 | Signed with New York Giants |
Johnathan Hankins | 33 | $2.1 M | 35.9 | TBD |
Jarran Reed | 32 | $4.5 M | 70.6 | Re-signed with Seahawks |
Trevis Gipson | 28 | $1.3 | 33.1 | TBD |
Of these three players, I hope you know which player the Seahawks need to keep. Virtually everyone on the planet knows that Jarran Reed needs to return to Seattle in 2025. Mike Macdonald wants him back, that's for sure. Spotrac projects Reed's market value at $5.7 million. For his performance, that's a good deal. For his leadership, that's a massive bargain. I'm not even addressing the other two.
Linebackers
Player | 2025 Age | 2024 Contract AAV | PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Joshua Onujiogo ERFA | 27 | $795 K | NA | TBD |
Ernest Jones | 25 | $1.2 M | 60.7 | Re-signed with Seahawks |
Josh Ross ERFA | 25 | $915 K | 54.5 (ST) | TBD |
If you had Ernest Jones IV on your list as the second must-keep player, you're a true 12. Remember way back, about half a Stephen King novel ago, when I wrote that I don't always agree with PFF's grades? Yeah, this is frankly insane. If you think it's tainted by him underperforming with the Titans, nope. This is how they graded him just with the Seahawks.
Jones had 94 tackles in just 10 games with Seattle. That's Bobby Wagner territory. No, I'm not saying he's the best linebacker in Hawks history, but he played a heck of a lot better than the guy who was supposed to step in for him. At just 25 years old, his market value is much higher than any other free agent on the Hawks.
That, and the lack of cap space, is why it's taking time for John Schneider to hammer out a deal to keep Jones in Seattle. They're addressing the cap space, and will no doubt keep Jones around for years. His projected deal is for four years and $52 million, or $13 million annually.
Cornerbacks
Player | 2025 Age | 2024 Contract AAV | PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Artie Burns | 30 | $1.2 M | 88.6 | TBD |
Tre Brown | 28 | $1.0 M | 53.5 | TBD |
Artie Burns grade came in just 106 snaps, half of those on special teams. As a 30-year-old corner, I'd be surprised to see the Seahawks offer him a contract. I mean, maybe. As for Tre Brown, he played his way out of town. Yes, he ranked higher than Jobe per PFF, but we all saw them play. Jobe got burned too often, but so did Brown. Jobe made the bigger plays. As a restricted free agent, it's more likely the Hawks will keep him in town anyway.
Safeties
Player | 2025 Age | 2024 Contract AAV | PFF Grade | 2025 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
K'Von Wallace | 28 | $1.5 M | 38.1 | TBD |
Rayshawn Jenkins | 31 | $4,1 M | 52.5 | TBD |
The PFF grade is accurate here. No need to say more. With Rayshawn Jenkins off the roster, yes, the Hawks will need even more depth at safety. Good thing I added two in my first mock draft, huh? So in summation, we have two players the Seahawks absolutely need to bring back, Jarran Reed and Ernest Jones IV.
They should bring Laken Tomlinson back too, just not as a starter. And Josh Jobe would be an inexpensive rotational player at cornerback. As for that mystery player, if you had Satoa Laumea, you win an unofficial thrown into the flames and let's see what happens jersey. Just like Laumea!