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21 March 2023

• Seahawks release Al Woods in latest defensive line shakeup

  A big move by the Seahawks to let go of one of their defensive interior stalwarts.

  The revamp continues along the Seattle Seahawks defensive line.

  Veteran nose tackle and fan favorite Al Woods was released by the team on Monday in a somewhat surprising decision. Woods was a defensive co-captain last season and one of the few bright spots for an otherwise lackluster run defense. Cutting him saves over $3.6 million in cap space, but also takes on a dead money charge of $1.75 million.

  The 35-year-old Woods had a brief stint with the Seahawks in 2011, then returned to the squad in 2019, and after opting out of the 2020 season for COVID-19 reasons, had his third go-round with Seattle in 2021. He’s best known for being an absurdly strong human being, and over the past two seasons he started 30 games, as well as recorded 50 tackles, nine tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks.

  Seattle is making wholesale changes on the defensive side of the trenches, and that includes bringing back Jarran Reed and signing Dre’Mont Jones to a three-year, $51 million contract. Woods, Quinton Jefferson, and Shelby Harris are all gone from the 2022 defensive line rotation. Poona Ford remains an unsigned free agent, while Bryan Mone is recovering from a late-season torn ACL.

  At the moment, the Seahawks don’t have a natural nose tackle for a 3-4 front.

• ESPN ranks Geno Smith extension as one of NFL’s best offseason deals

  Smith signed a very team-friendly three-year deal to stay in Seattle.

  The Seattle Seahawks’ biggest offseason question was whether or not they would keep quarterback Geno Smith after a memorable and unexpectedly high-level 2022 season. Smith not only got a contract extension that will give him a significant pay bump, but the reported three-year, $105 million contract really isn’t one when you dig into the contract details.

  ESPN’s Seth Walder has been grading each major free agency move, and not too many have gotten an A. Geno and the Seahawks were an exception! Here’s a partial read of his analysis:

  Going into free agency, I thought the franchise tag was the play for Seattle here. One year ago, many saw Smith in the Jacoby Brissett and Marcus Mariota class of quarterbacks. Would it be that wild if we saw him there again a year from now? Why not take another year to make sure he plays well again before committing multiyear money to him?

  Initially, I thought this deal was a slightly unnecessary risk, based on the initial numbers that surfaced. But the actual deal means the Seahawks fully guaranteed less money than they would have with the franchise tag — or even the transition tag — while retaining all of the upside. If Smith plays well, the Seahawks retain the rights to him at what would then be a well-below-market price for a QB coming off two consecutive strong seasons.

  Seattle has the 5th overall pick and while it’s not a guarantee, there is a chance they could have one of the top prospects (Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud, Anthony Richardson, and Will Levis) even though they’ve re-upped with Geno.

  Really the only reason to complain about the Smith contract is if you wanted to sever ties entirely. If there was anxiety about the Seahawks breaking the bank for Geno off of a season so extraordinary that he won Comeback Player of the Year, John Schneider hopefully relaxed those worries.

• 2023 NFL Mock Draft: Seahawks take a Georgia player, but not the one you might expect

  From quarterback to tight end to linebacker, could the Seahawks go for SEC talent early in the NFL Draft?

  We haven’t done one of these NFL Mock Draft posts in a bit, and that’s because I can only do so much when multiple mocks keep saying the same thing (e.g. Jalen Carter at 5, Jaxon Smith-Njigba at 20, some cornerback the Seattle Seahawks are never going to draft at 20, so on and so forth). Now that the first wave of free agency is complete, we should have fresher, newer mock draft insights!

  Let’s start off with Draft Wire, which did a three-round mock draft and therefore made five predictions for the Seattle Seahawks. Jeff Risdon sees the Seahawks taking Anthony Richardson at 5th overall, and it’s certainly not implausible given the way Geno Smith’s contract is structured.

  5. Seattle Seahawks: Anthony Richardson, QB, Florida

  The Seahawks are in the perfect position to take a developmental QB with Richardson’s record-setting athleticism. Geno Smith makes for a great bridge, one too tantalizing for GM John Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll to resist taking the shot on Richardson.

  For the record, the other quarterbacks of note all went off the board before 5th, and Tyree Wilson was mocked to the Arizona Cardinals at 3rd.

  Seattle does address the defensive line some more with the selection of Calijah Kancey at 20th overall.

  20. Seattle Seahawks: Calijah Kancey, DT, Pittsburgh

  An undersized but lightning-quick interior penetrator from Pittsburgh; where have we heard this before…Kancey doesn’t have the playing strength anywhere close to Aaron Donald, but his ability to instantly win as a pass rusher is undeniable. The Seahawks can use him as an impact package player right away.

  There are no write-ups for the second- and third-round picks, but here are the selections anyway:

  • Darnell Washington, TE, Georgia (37th overall)
  • Felix Anudike-Uzomah, EDGE, Kansas State (52nd overall)
  • Owen Pappoe, LB, Auburn (83rd overall)

  Three SEC players taken in five picks!

  Washington is the big name here, because Seattle doesn’t necessarily need a tight end given Noah Fant, Will Dissly, and Colby Parkinson are all on the roster. But Fant is on an expiring contract, Dissly just had another season-ending injury, and Parkinson is also entering the last year of his rookie contract. Washington is a 6’7”, 265 lbs beast of a man who is the lesser known Georgia tight end compared to Brock Bowers, who’d probably be a first-round pick if he was eligible to declare.

  Here’s Pro Football Network’s scouting report on Washington:

  As a receiver, Washington combines a dominating catch radius and wingspan with high-level catching instincts, body control, timing, box-out ability, and indisputable hand strength. And once in open space as a RAC threat, he’s a bulldozer who’s nearly impossible to stop with solo tackles.

  Washington can churn through opponents with his leg drive, and that same size and physicality make him a hyper-elite blocker who essentially serves as an extra lineman.

  With his limitations in the functional athleticism department, Washington may never be a true TE1. He doesn’t have the natural separation ability to be a target funnel, and that lowers his ceiling as a prospect. But at the very least, Washington can be a superb rotational asset as a red-zone threat and short-range outlet with seam capabilities.

  Washington’s elite blocking ability will get him on the field early and often. And for teams that employ a heavy dose of 12 personnel and value multi-phase tight ends, Washington’s value is especially high. He has a projected niche as a receiver and game-changing ability as a blocker, and at his ceiling, he could become an above-average starter in the NFL.

  Seattle’s heavy use of tight ends this year makes taking a tight end early not inconceivable. Washington had just 44 catches in college and just three touchdowns, but raw volume numbers as a receiving tight end in college don’t always mean much in the NFL (see: George Kittle). Personally if Seattle is going to go for a tight end I’d rather they look at Dalton Kincaid or Luke Musgrave, but Washington is definitely a big-bodied target who could have the type of blocking value the Seahawks like in their TEs.

  As for the other picks, Anudike-Uzomah was the Big XII Defensive Player of the Year for 2022 and is the two-time conference Defensive Lineman of the Year. Anudike-Uzomah recorded 11 sacks in 2021 and 8.5 in 2022, and he has a penchant for forcing fumbles. Run defense is an area that apparently needs improvement.

  Lastly, Pappoe is a former five-star recruit who had 191 tackles and seven sacks in four seasons, including two as Auburn’s defensive captain. The Draft Network scouting report believes Pappoe could be a weak-side linebacker at the pro level, but notes “too many missed tackles” as a negative. At 6’0” and just 225 lbs he’s on the lighter side for an off-ball linebacker, but he’s got very impressive athletic traits. Seattle’s thin at the position and could use some depth there.

  Expect more mock drafts to come, including the big SB Nation NFL Community Mock Draft which starts in a couple of weeks!

• Yes, the Seahawks are out of cap space

  The Seahawks were uncharacteristically busy in the first wave of free agency, and now they’re likely to need to create additional space in the coming months.

  A week into free agency, the Seattle Seahawks have addressed several holes on the roster and set themselves up for success in the 2023 NFL Draft by eliminating most major needs. It’s certainly true that the team is still in need of bodies at certain positions, most notably running back and linebacker. However, those are positions that can be more readily addressed on Day 2 and Day 3 of the draft, and it seems likely that that is how the Hawks will opt to fill the voids at those spots.

  As for where the team stands in terms of the salary cap with five and a half weeks left before the draft, as always Field Gulls turns to OverTheCap.com as the starting point for that discussion. OTC currently lists the Seahawks as having $11,908,554 of cap space available for the 2023 season, however, as of publication that number does not include the cap hits of either Julian Love or Devin Bush. The signings of both Bush and Love were made official late last week, and the specifics of their contracts should be available sometime Monday or Tuesday. Should that prove to be the case, this post will be updated to reflect the numbers, but based on how the team traditionally structures contracts and using best guess, it’s likely the two carry a combined cap hit somewhere in the $6.5M to $7M range for 2023.

  Based on that assumed cap hit, the Seahawks currently have roughly $5M of available cap space, which, of course, is before the team must account for several cap expenses. The most noteworthy of the cap expenses the team will incur in the coming months are:

  • 2023 Draft Class: $8.741M net cap cost as of writing
  • Practice Squad: $3.456M
  • Injured Reserve Pool: $3M-$5M

  In total, those items combine for somewhere in the neighborhood of $15M, give or take some on either side. And, as astute readers will surely point out, $15M is larger than $5M, meaning that the team is not only effectively out of cap space for 2023, but will likely need to take steps to create additional space at some point in the future. However, for the time being the Seahawks effective cap space is well into the red, which means the speculation can run rampant regarding how the Hawks will go about creating the space needed between now and next January.

• 2023 Seahawks Free Agents: How much the Seahawks are paying Drew Lock

  The team signed Lock to a contract nearly identical to the contract Geno Smith played on during the 2022 season.

  The biggest storyline for the Seattle Seahawks for much of the offseason so far was whether or not the team would sign quarterback Geno Smith to a contract extension, and if so for how much. That question was answered two weeks ago Monday, and the focus then became whether the Hawks would turn to the draft or look to free agency to address the backup quarterback spot.

  That question was quickly answered, though, when the team agreed to terms on a one-year contract with Drew Lock, who served as Smith’s backup during the 2022 season after being acquired from the Denver Broncos in the Russell Wilson trade. And now, thanks to Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, the details of Lock’s extension are now known.

  #Seahawks Drew Lock one year, $4M, $1.75M signing bonus, salary $1.74M, $30K per game active roster bonus, $3.5M playtime-wins-passing yards, Pro Bowl, touchdowns incentive

  — Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) March 20, 2023

  Breaking that out into its different parts it becomes:

  • $1.75M signing bonus
  • $1.74M base salary
  • $510k in per game roster bonuses

  All of those come together for a combined cap hit for 2023 of $4M, with an additional $3.5M available via incentives should he become a starter and reach certain performance thresholds.

• 2023 NFL Draft preview: Scouting report on Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid

  Can the Utah product become the team's first round one tight end selection since 2002?

  We have heavily discussed the Seattle Seahawks need for a pass catcher in the draft. The wide receiver class is deep and could be the source for that. But the tight end class is even stronger and one of the best in recent memory. There are multiple high-end tight ends available in this class, one of whom we have already covered. In this article we are going to evaluate another one in Utah’s Dalton Kincaid.

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  Games watched - 2022Oregon,UCLA, both USC games

  Previous tight end reports -Michael Mayer

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  Relative Athletic Score

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  Strengths

  • Biggest strength - Hands -Kincaid is able to pluck balls out of the air with relative ease no matter his body positioning or the ball placement. He can easily make catches through contact no matter how far away his hands are from his body. Kincaid has receiver-like body control when contorting his body to make a catch near the sideline. He is able to get his body turned 180 degrees to find the ball in midair and bring it down before going out of bounds. He does a great job at high pointing the ball, not letting it travel down unless absolutely necessary.

  Dalton Kincaid , Utah
  6’4 , 240
  
  - 70 Catches
  - 890 Receiving
  - 8 TDs
  
  If we miss on Big O from UGA, c’mon down Mr Kincaid pic.twitter.com/qvHw6w6Xtf

  — IamMontyFetti ✊ (@4MR_Monty) December 15, 2022

  16 receptions 234 yards…in one game. dalton kincaid you have my undivided attention. #2023NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/eYDRf51qMg

  — Ray G (@RayGQue) October 16, 2022

  • With the ball in his hands, Kincaid is also more wide receiver than tight end. He has a quick burst that he shows off immediately after getting the catch whether he has to turn up field or is getting it in stride down field.
  • He has good (6) long-speed allowing him to maintain large yards after catch plays rather than only picking up a few due to his burst.
  • Kincaid is able to make defenders miss with juke moves as he is not a straight-line runner. Kincaid also brings a physical edge with the ball in his hands. He is to consistently run through defenders whilst forcing defenders to swarm him when he has the ball. Kincaid often requires two or three defenders to bring him down, but no matter what he is always going to fall forward.
  • He has good (6) contact balance as he is able to bounce off defenders and maintain his play speed and center of gravity.
  • On third downs, Kincaid has a great sense of where the first down markers are situating himself slightly past the line to gain. This allows him to still come back for the ball if necessary whilst still being able to pick up the first down.
  • Kincaid is extremely versatile as he can be used as an “X” receiver, in the slot and as an end line tight end.
  • Kincaid has a good understanding of zone coverage especially on hook and hitch routes, finding the exact spot to sit it down and protect himself.

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  Weaknesses

  • Biggest weakness - Run blocking -Surprisingly I cannot find any videos of Kincaid run blocking on Twitter, so you are going to have to take my word for it. He does not maintain his blocks for very long in the running game, more so getting his body in the way. On inside running plays he often oversets himself to the outside far too much which presents an extremely soft shoulder that defenders are routinely able to attack and exploit. On sift and wham blocks he can drop too far away from the line of scrimmage. This results in defenders being able to beat him to the spot inside and making a play on the ball carrier.
  • He was a little slow out of his stance when an end line tight end in the passing game.
  • He is not a bad route runner by any means grading out as sufficient for me (5), but he was not able to create natural separation with his route running ability.
  • Kincaid’s release was sufficient (5) as he did not show case any type of rhythm step or quick get off, off of the line.

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  Floor/ceiling - Kincaid’s mixture of very good hands, large catching radius, good play speed, burst, mismatch ability and FBI give him the ceiling of a solid starter. However, his struggles in run blocking and sufficient (5) release gives him the floor of a low end starting tight end.

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  Grade - 6.6 - Low end starter first day of second season - Round - Late 1st early 2nd

  Grade explanation - The reason Kincaid is a 6.6 and a low-end starter is because of his impact in the running game. As a pure receiver, he is a solid starter and extremely impactful. But, in order to receive a base grade of 6.7 or higher as a tight end you have to be considered a “complete tight end” which at this point in his career, he is not. Wherever he goes he is going to be impactful in the passing game. He gives off Travis Kelce vibes, but I cannot grade him higher, even though I want to because of how good of a pass catcher he is.

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  Schematic fit - Kincaid projects best as a low end starting move tight end in a pass heavy system. He can be used anywhere out wide, in the slot and as an end line tight end as well but his struggles in run blocking will be prevalent when lined up here. He will be a massive weapon in the red zone as well as on third down.

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  Player highlights
• Pre-Snap Reads 3/20: The Seahawks may have the best outlook of any team in the NFC West

  Read!

  Free agency has seen our Seattle Seahawks fill several holes in the roster and have put themselves in very good position do some interesting things in the upcoming draft. The 49ers, Cardinals, and Rams seem to be either treading water or sinking. Compared to their division rivals, do they have the brightest future?

  Seahawks News

  Rams now seem years behind Seahawks, are 49ers next? - Seaside Joe
  12 months ago, Rams were Super Bowl champs and Seattle traded Russell Wilson. What a league: Seaside Joe 1478

  Free agency reaction live stream at 3pm PT « Seahawks Draft Blog
  The Seahawks are having a GREAT free agency

  Seahawks Draft: Tulane's Tyjae Spears stands out in 'good' RB class - Seattle Sports
  The Seahawks lost two RBs early in free agency. Could they find a replacement in the draft? The Senior Bowl's Jim Nagy has a name in mind.

  Seattle Seahawks Free Agency: 5 Biggest Needs After First Week of Signings - Sports Illustrated Seattle Seahawks News, Analysis and More
  Spending a bit more than anticipated, the Seattle Seahawks have filled several holes on their roster with high-upside veterans over the past week. With five weeks until the draft, which positions still need to be fortified before the 2023 season?

  NFC West News

  NFL Free agency: 49ers sign former Panthers DB Myles Hartsfield - Niners Nation
  Hartsfield is an explosive athlete with experience at safety and in the slot

  Looking At 49ers Draft After Early Free Agency - Sports Illustrated San Francisco 49ers News, Analysis and More
  Analyzing what the San Francisco 49ers are likely to do in the upcoming NFL Draft given what they've done in free agency so far.

  Rams need to do more to help Matthew Stafford and Cooper Kupp - Turf Show Times
  We know Stafford could rank high in the NFC, how are the players around him?

  Three Corners Arizona Cardinals Could Target to Replace Byron Murphy - Sports Illustrated Arizona Cardinals News, Analysis and More
  Byron Murphy is now in the rearview mirror for the Arizona Cardinals. Here's three candidates to replace him.

  Around The NFL

  Adam Thielen agrees to sign with NFC team - Larry Brown Sports
  Free agent wide receiver Adam Thielen has agreed to sign as a free agent with one rebuilding NFC team, he revealed Sunday.

  Cowboys trade for Texans WR Brandin Cooks, ties record for most-traded player in NFL history - Yahoo Sports
  Cooks has wanted out of Houston since at least October, and is finally getting his wish.

  FMIA: The First-Week Free-Agency Files - ProFootballTalk
  Peter King assesses the free-agency moves of all 32 NFL teams so far this off-season, from the Bears-Panthers trade to the Eagles' faith in veteran players.

  Aaron Rodgers trade won't be easy for New York Jets, Green Bay Packers - New York Jets - ESPN
  The Jets, Packers and Rodgers himself all want a trade to happen -- so what's the holdup? It's a complex transaction. Here are the hurdles to a deal.

  What moves are next for Bill Belichick and the Patriots? - New England Patriots - ESPN
  Could DeAndre Hopkins, Jerry Jeudy, Lamar Jackson or Odell Beckham Jr. be realistic targets?

  Former Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson signing one-year, $8 million deal with Lions - NFL.com
  Former Philadelphia Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson is signing one-year, $8 million deal with the Detroit Lions, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported on Sunday.

  How the Bengals landed a franchise left tackle from ‘out of nowhere’ - The Athletic
  It was a development even Cincinnati didn't see coming, but a number of factors aligned to put Orlando Brown Jr. in Bengals stripes.

  How the first wave of free agency will impact the 2023 NFL Draft - The Athletic
  Moves by the Chiefs, Panthers, Eagles and Lions could set off a butterfly effect across the league.

  2023 NFL free agency and trade tracker, live updates: Latest rumors, signings, moves in busy offseason start - CBSSports.com
  Keep it locked here for the latest NFL free agency buzz and updates

• 2023 Seahawks Free Agents: Details of the Jarran Reed contract

  With the second week of free agency set to start for teams across the NFL Monday, the dust is still settling around the flurry of moves the Seattle Seahawks made during the first week. The big moves for the Hawks came on the defensive line, where the team replaced Quinton Jefferson and Shelby Harris with Jarran Reed and Dre’Mont Jones.

  The terms of the contract Jones signed with the team were reported almost immediately, but fans had still been waiting to learn how much the team had agreed to pay Reed. On Sunday Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 Houston provided the details.

  #Seahawks Jarran Reed two years, $9M, $4.19M gtd, $3M signing bonus, salaries $1.19M (gtd), $3.96M; $20K per game active roster bonus 2023, $30K per game active roster bonus 2024; $900K playtime-sacks incentive annual

  — Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) March 19, 2023

  What that means in terms of cap hits for Reed is the following:

  • 2023: $3.03M ($1.19M base salary, $1.5M pro rated signing bonus, $340k in per game active roster bonuses)
  • 2024: $5.97M ($3.96M base salary, $1.5M pro rated signing bonus, $510k in per game active roster bonuses)

  In addition, Reed can earn an additional $900k each year based on playing time and sacks, though the specifics of the incentive have not been made public.