Every NFL team has its top-end talent, and every team will deal in some way with injuries. Often, the quality of a team's depth is what makes or breaks a season. The Seattle Seahawks watched as the San Francisco 49ers dealt with that reality last season.
San Francisco had enough good backups that they weathered losing key players to injury, but were able to make the playoffs anyway. When Pete Carroll was still in charge of Seattle's roster, he often took many risks on players who were borderline to make the team, and the team's depth was exposed as not being good. San Francisco took a different approach than Carroll did; it paid off.
Entering the 2026 season, though, the Seahawks' roster decisions might look more like those that Carroll had than San Francisco did. Should Seattle have too many players get hurt, and the team has already had issues in training camp and the preseason, its chances of defending its Super Bowl title may be greatly diminished.
Seattle Seahawks' depth could look more like a Pete Carroll-era team
Carroll, and not general manager John Schneider, had the final say over the roster during his tenure in the Pacific Northwest from 2010 through 2023.
The coach was able to mold a few undrafted free agents and late-round picks into viable stars early in his time in Seattle, but that trend slowed later in his career. His sudden lack of turning UDFA coal into gold was one reason he stopped having as much success.
Now, Schneider has control over the roster, presumably with valued input from current head coach Mike Macdonald.
The GM has done business a bit differently than Carroll did, and that includes being more aggressive in proactively extending good young players. Instead of waiting until matters were more pressing and the contracts were almost at an end, Schneider has extended players a year earlier. He has done so with players such as Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Derick Hall, and Devon Witherspoon in 2026.
But the overall roster entering this season, beginning with a Week 1 matchup against the New England Patriots, looks more akin to a Pete Carroll roster than the one last year. The deep depth is iffy in many areas, and injuries to a couple of players could be brutal.
For example, whereas at the start of last season, Riq Woolen was starting at cornerback and Josh Jobe was a backup, Woolen left in free agency, and Jobe is the full-time starter. The group behind Jobe and Witherspoon is an iffy bunch.
Nehemiah Pritchett is entering his third season with the team, but he's only been good in spots. His overall play has left much to be desired.
The team also has the recently acquired Avery Smith and Julian Neal, but both are rookies who haven't proven they can do anything positively (or negatively) in the league. Smith is new to the team, so he still needs to get used to Macdonald's scheme.
Trevon Diggs and Terrion Arnold were both recently signed as well, but Diggs is beginning on the practice squad, trying to show the Seattle Seahawks that he can stay healthy. Arnold is on the NFL's exempt list, and he might not be able to play at all.
Nick Emmanwori can also play slot cornerback and some on the outside, but he isn't a pure corner. He is also dealing with recovery from ankle surgery and hasn't practiced yet.
Last season at running back, the team had Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet somewhat splitting reps, but Walker left in free agency and signed with the Kansas City Chiefs. Charbonnet hurt his knee in last season's playoffs. Obviously, neither is going to be able to help Seattle in the first four games (at least, in the case of Charbonnet) of the season.
Instead, the Seahawks will have rookie Jadarian Price, George Holani (a backup who has mostly been on the Seattle practice squad the last couple of seasons), and Emanuel Wilson, a career-long backup who was previously with the Green Bay Packers.
Should Price get hurt, a team that will likely rely heavily on the run could be in real trouble. John Schneider might have needed to be more aggressive in pursuit of a more proven free-agent running back, but instead. Seattle has a Pete Carroll-era problem with a lack of proven depth at a key position.
All of the depth pieces could work out brilliantly for the Seattle Seahawks, of course, but 12s could also see the return of a Carroll problem. The team is good enough to win at a high-level as far as starters go, but backups at some key spots could sink the season.
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