As of this writing, the Seattle Seahawks have added five players to their roster while seeing six others depart via free agency. That does not include the five veterans released before the beginning of the legal tampering period or the two high-profile players general manager John Schneider chose to trade away.
Nor does it take into account one additional free-agent signing – that of receiver Cody White, who was with the club last year and was scheduled to be an exclusive rights free agent. Because the Seahawks chose not to tender him, he was technically re-signed as an unrestricted free agent.
So much for the technicalities. Suffice to say that about a dozen players from the ’24 Seahawks are gone, while about half that many have joined. There will be some additional free agent signings as the spring turns into summer and of course, the draft is coming at the end of April. Schneider has a great deal of draft capital with which to play.
2025 Seattle Seahawks free agents who have not found a home yet
There is another group of Seahawk players who remain in a state of limbo. Ten players from last year’s squad are unrestricted free agents who have yet to sign with another club. Most are veterans. Half of them are on the far side of 30.
A few are younger players who, like Cody White, would have had certain restrictions on their movement had they been tendered. Because they were not, they are now unrestricted free agents, able to sign with any other club or perhaps even return to the Seahawks.
Let’s take a quick look at the players from Seattle’s 2024 roster who remain UFAs after the first week of free agency.
Artie Burns, cornerback
Burns's career got off to a very promising start with Pittsburgh, who made him a first-round draft pick back in 2016. After a couple of solid seasons playing as both a nickel and perimeter corner, Burns saw his snaps decrease, and the Steelers allowed him to leave via free agency in 2020.
He tore his ACL and missed his first season with the Bears, and eventually signed on with Seattle in 2022. He remained through three consecutive one-year deals, but his time in Seattle now appears to be finished. Burns is 29 years old and a reasonably productive corner. If he still wants to play, there will be a team in need of secondary depth that will snap him up at some point.
Jaelon Darden, wide receiver
Darden was taken by Tampa Bay in the fourth round of the 2021 draft. He never produced very much as a receiver but proved to be a decent return man. That was the role he played for Seattle in 2024, in a somewhat limited capacity. Darden is still young enough to garner some interest, but as an undersized receiver who has shown almost nothing in the NFL, he will have to be a return specialist.
George Fant, offensive tackle
Fant has forged a decent success story after signing on with Seattle as a UDFA in 2016. He was a spot starter for the Hawks for his first several years before signing a nice contract with the Jets in 2020. He started for the Jets and then for the Texans, playing both right and left tackle. The Seahawks brought him back as insurance while starting right tackle Abe Lucas was recovering from injury, but his own injury problems prevented him from contributing much.
Fant had been signed through the 2025 season but was one of the veterans released before the start of the new league year. Swing tackles are a valuable commodity in the league. However, Fant’s health concerns raise red flags.
Trevis Gipson, defensive end
Gipson had his best season with Chicago in 2021, recording seven sacks and seven tackles for loss. Since then, the former fifth-round pick from Tulsa has bounced around from Tennessee to Jacksonville and to Seattle in 2024. Schneider acquired him just before the start of the season after Uchenna Nwosu suffered a knee injury.
Gipson did not end up contributing much for Seattle. He is young enough to perhaps find another squad, but his lack of production over the past three seasons will keep interest on a low boil.
Johnathan Hankins, defensive tackle
Hankins turns 33 at the end of this month, and his 12-year career could be at an end. Seattle was the fifth club he played for. He had been a modestly productive starting tackle throughout the middle of his career, but he had struggled to be healthy in his later years.
A reasonably healthy 2023 with Dallas led Seattle to bring him in on a one-year deal in 2023. His play was nothing special. However, he did provide Mike Macdonald with a legitimate nose tackle, taking part in about one-third of the Hawks’ defensive snaps.
Rayshawn Jenkins, safety
Like George Fant, Jenkins was signed through the 2025 season but was released prior to the start of the new league year. He was brought in as part of an overhaul of the safety position and was eventually supplanted by Coby Bryant. Jenkins had been a solid young safety for the Chargers when he came into the league as a fourth-round pick in 2017. He fell off after leaving LA for Jacksonville in 2021 and, at 31, may have run out of chances.
Tyler Lockett, wide receiver
There’s not much I need to remind Seahawks fans about Tyler Lockett. He was a homegrown product, coming to Seattle in the third round of the 2015 draft. Though he initially made his mark as an All-Pro kick returner, Lockett eventually worked his way into the starting lineup on offense, providing a fairly seamless transition from franchise great Doug Baldwin.
He leaves Seattle second only to Hall of Famer Steve Largent in total catches, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns. His decline in 2024, not uncommon for a receiver past 30, may scare off other teams, but Lockett should find a decent situation with a team in need of some experienced depth in their receiver room.
Joshua Onujiogu, linebacker
Onujiogu was scheduled to be an exclusive rights free agent this season, but he was not tendered by the club. Therefore, he is now unrestricted. Just making the team as a UDFA out of Framingham State was quite a feat for the linebacker. He has remained with the franchise for the past several seasons but has been waived with an injury designation and has not seen the field.
Onujiogu made the team when Pete Carroll was coaching. The new regime appears to have little interest in him. Perhaps Carroll will bring him to Las Vegas as a depth player.
Josh Ross, linebacker
Like Onujiogu, Ross also would have been an ERFA had he been tendered. Unlike his fellow linebacker, Ross was brought to Seattle by Macdonald. The Seahawks’ coach knew him from their days in Baltimore and scooped him up when the Ravens released him in the middle of 2024.
There is very little to go on in assessing Ross’s prospects. Given the Macdonald connection, it would not be surprising if Seattle eventually brings him back.
K’Von Wallace, safety
Wallace was a fourth-round pick of the Eagles in 2020, but he has had trouble finding an NFL home. Seattle was his fourth team in five years. In his one season with the Hawks, Wallace served mainly as a special teams player.
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