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# Analysis: Where Does Derion Kendrick Fit Into Seahawks’ Secondary Plans?
- URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/analysis-seattle-seahawks-derion-kendrick-fit-secondary/
- Published: 2025-08-27T19:17:04.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-08T05:36:40.000Z
- Author: Corbin Smith
- Tags: Analysis, Seahawks, Derion Kendrick

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![  The Seattle Seahawks bolstered their secondary depth by claiming former Los Angeles Rams starter Derion Kendrick off of waivers on Wednesday. Credit: Derion Kendrick/Instagram  ](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1d/f2/1df2f77b-83dd-4bc0-a6d2-6d1bb5df89a3/content/images/2026/10/473250089_18480057349044665_5721195384251891383_n-format-original.jpg)

The Seattle Seahawks bolstered their secondary depth by claiming former Los Angeles Rams starter Derion Kendrick off of waivers on Wednesday. Credit: Derion Kendrick/Instagram \[/caption\]

While the Seattle Seahawks didn’t have any of their cut players claimed by another team on Wednesday, general manager John Schneider did add to the secondary plucking an experienced veteran cornerback away from a division rival by being awarded former Los Angeles Rams starter Derion Kendrick off the waiver wire.

In a corresponding move, the Seahawks released veteran cornerback Shaquill Griffin, who had re-signed with the team in June.

The 25-year old Kendrick broke into the league as a sixth-round pick out of Georgia in 2022, suiting up for 15 games with six starts for the Rams as a rookie and producing 43 tackles and four pass breakups. He started 12 out of 17 games in 2023, producing 49 tackles, an interception, and seven pass breakups as one of the anchors of Los Angeles’ defensive backfield, helping the team bounce back from a down season to return to the playoffs with a wild card berth.

During that second season, however, Kendrick, who had previously been kicked off the team by Clemson in college for multiple disciplinary issues before landing at Georgia, was arrested in Hollywood, California for possession of a concealed weapon, continuing a history of troubled behavior.

After stepping his game up in many ways in 2023, at least on the field, Kendrick suffered an unfortunate torn ACL early in training camp last year and wound up missing the entire season. The Rams cut him in June, only to re-sign him on a new deal four days later, and he wasn’t retained during final roster cuts despite being recovered from his injury and playing in all three preseason games.

Joining the Seahawks, even with Griffin on the way out in a switcheroo to make things a little less crowded, Kendrick faces a steep climb when it comes to earning defensive snaps with his new team. He will be entering a cornerback room headlined by Pro Bowl starters Devon Witherspoon and Riq Woolen that also features a rock-solid third cornerback in Josh Jobe and a rising second-year defender in Nehemiah Pritchett already on the roster.

Now playing in a scheme that covets versatility, the 6-0, 190-pound Kendrick also has primarily played on the boundary in his NFL career, logging just nine snaps in the slot in his first two seasons before sitting out all of 2024 recovering from knee surgery. Going into last season, the Rams hoped to expand his positional flexibility a bit with more opportunities lined up inside, but that didn’t happen due to his injury.

The other thing that makes Seattle’s decision to claim Kendrick a bit more puzzling is his lack of special teams contributions in previous seasons. He didn’t produce a single tackle or assist in the third phase of the game in his first two seasons and played under a 15 percent snap share on special teams, so that has not been a big part of his game in the NFL either.

Having faced Kendrick numerous times in the past, however, Schneider and Seattle’s personnel department clearly saw something they liked to justify plucking him off the waiver wire. He’s significantly younger than Griffin and has been a steady tackler with blitzing talent in limited NFL action, so it’s possible coach Mike Macdonald believes he can coax more versatility out of the player in his scheme playing in the slot or even seeing some work as a converted safety while also logging more time on special teams than in the past.

Either way, considering Kendrick ran a sluggish 4.79 40-yard dash coming out of Georgia, has shorter 31-inch arms, and has legitimate character questions from his checkered past, it’s a somewhat peculiar move by the Seahawks for a defender who doesn’t check off many of the boxes the team has preferred from depth cornerbacks previously. It will be interesting to see what Macdonald and his staff have in mind for him now that he will need to be added to the 53-man roster.