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# ‘Long Time Coming': Devon Witherspoon All Smiles After Seahawks Star Signs Historic Extension
- URL: https://www.emeraldcityspectrum.com/long-time-coming-devon-witherspoon-seattle-seahawks-all-smiles-historic-extension/
- Published: 2026-08-17T23:36:34.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-08T05:52:23.000Z
- Author: Corbin Smith
- Tags: News, Features, Seahawks, Devon Witherspoon

\[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="1542"\]

![  Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon smiles during warmups prior to the team’s August 17 practice. Credit: Corbin Smith/Emerald City Spectrum  ](https://storage.ghost.io/c/1d/f2/1df2f77b-83dd-4bc0-a6d2-6d1bb5df89a3/content/images/2026/10/chatgpt-image-aug-17-2c-2026-2c-03_26_12-pm-format-original.png)

Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon smiles during warmups prior to the team’s August 17 practice. Credit: Corbin Smith/Emerald City Spectrum \[/caption\]

RENTON, Wash. - Following a long, drawn out series of negotiations, it wouldn’t have been a surprise if Devon Witherspoon felt like the weight of the world had come off of his shoulders after officially signing a historic four-year, $132 million extension with the Seattle Seahawks on Monday afternoon.

However, as he maintained weeks earlier when asked for thoughts on his contract situation, while he acknowledged on Monday that his agent kept him up to date every step of the way, Witherspoon reiterated that keeping his mind on football eased the process. Some players would have chosen to hold out or “hold in,” being in attendance for training camp without actually participating until the ink dried on a new contract, but he didn’t want the situation to hinder his preparation at all for the upcoming season.

Not one to feel the pressure regardless of circumstances, whether on his rookie contract or making more money than any cornerback before him, a smiling Witherspoon thanked his Seahawk teammates for making it easy to stay focused on the task at hand on the field during camp while the front office and his representation took care business behind the scenes.

“It was easy,” Witherspoon said following Monday’s practice. “Like I say, when you come in and you come to work with guys like this, like D-Hall, EJ \[Ernest Jones\], and Leo \[Williams\]. When you come to work with guys like that, it means everything. I mean, it's easy to take the pressure off you because now I know what they're about and they know what I'm about. So it's just easy to come out here and just focus on football.”

When he arrived as a first round pick in 2023, long before helping the Seahawks win Super Bowl LX and inking his new contract, Witherspoon wasn’t thinking about the possibility of playing close to a decade for the same franchise. He kept his goals simple, aiming to be the best player he can be every day and bring a Lombardi Trophy to Seattle.

Already accomplishing that second goal in just his third NFL season along with making three straight Pro Bowl teams and earning Second-Team All-Pro honors last season, though the process to the finish line proved to be a long one, general manager John Schneider didn’t have any second thoughts about opening up the checkbook for the superstar defender. Now locked in through the 2031 season, Witherspoon’s new deal features $33 million in new money per year and more than $100 million in guaranteed money over the life of the deal.

Such generational wealth carries obvious perks, but as teammate Julian Love playfully indicated, Witherspoon will now be asked to step up to the plate paying for dinners and offering up gifts to secondary mates. The All-Pro defender took those comments in stride, laughing and stating that he’s ready for the responsibility that comes with No. 21 buying.

“I take the challenge on, man,” Witherspoon smiled. “I’m ready. I’ll be ready. I’ve got the gifts ready.”

More than deserving of the record-setting money he will now receive, Witherspoon quickly emerged as one of the NFL’s best all-around defenders right out of the gate. As a rookie, he showcased his versatile skill set with 79 tackles, three sacks, and an interception returned for a touchdown, wreaking havoc as a hard-hitting run defender, dangerous blitzer from all over the formation, and a capable shut down defender both on the boundary and in the slot. The following year, even with his pass rushing production down, he nearly hit the 100-tackle mark and once again earned Pro Bowl honors.

Even with an injury costing him five regular season games last season, Witherspoon still stuffed the stat sheet as a disruptive force multiplier, racking up 72 tackles, a sack, and six passes defensed in just 12 games to garner All-Pro distinction. In the playoffs, he saved his best football for the most crucial of moments, breaking up two passes on Seattle’s decisive final defensive drive in the red zone against the Los Angeles Rams to send the team back to the Super Bowl. Two weeks later, he sacked Drake Maye and then made a decisive quarterback hit that led to a back-breaking Uchenna Nwosu pick six as the Seahawks captured their second Super Bowl title in team history.

In the aftermath of those heroics, Schneider and the front office made extending Witherspoon and star receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba the top priority this offseason, first picking up their fifth-year option in March before opening negotiations with each player’s agent in earnest. Though it took significantly longer for the latter, both 2023 first round picks now will be tied to the Emerald City for more than half a decade under the terms of their new deals, with the fifth-year option ultimately making these contracts feel like five-year extensions.

For Witherspoon, the fact that he and Smith-Njigba, who have been instrumental in Seattle’s turnaround climbing back to the top of the NFL hierarchy and developed a strong bond early in their careers, each received historic long-term commitments from the franchise makes it all the more special.

“It means everything to us. We talked about it when we first got here and what we wanted to do. And then as the years passed, we just continued to grow and build. It changed at a point in time in the year, cause it's like stuff happens and we gotta adjust and adapt, but we just always talked about building on it and how could we be better every day and how could we take this program to an elite program?”

By locking up Witherspoon, the Seahawks ensured one of their most important foundational talents would stay for the long haul and further solidified their star-studded secondary for years to come. Earlier in the offseason, after Riq Woolen left to sign with the Eagles in free agency, fellow starting cornerback Josh Jobe signed a three-year, $24 million contract to stay with the team, while Love still has two years left on his contract and safeties Nick Emmanwori and Bud Clark each will be on their rookie contracts until at least 2028.

In his own position group, Witherspoon looks forward to continuing to “chase greatness” across from Jobe, as the two cornerbacks have blossomed together and built a strong friendship over the past two seasons. Now, they will be linked in the defensive backfield through 2028, providing outstanding continuity atop the depth chart.

Most importantly, Witherspoon will have the architect of the Seahawks’ defense steering the ship in Macdonald, who will aim to further unlock the Swiss army knife’s full arsenal of skills in their third season together and beyond. Thankful for that pairing to continue for the foreseeable future, with his contract now out of the way and any of the corresponding drama that came with it, he’s excited to see where they can take the team next as they begin their title defense.

“It's special, man. It’s kind of something you always dreamed of, but it's kind of something that I knew as well… I know I'm gonna be here. I know this is where my heart is. So that was never coming into question. So it just feels special to get it done.”