Roster Reset: Breaking Down Seahawks’ Defensive Depth Chart Prior to 2025 NFL Draft

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Seattle Seahawks free safety Julian Love #20 celebrates after an interception against the Los Angeles Rams during an NFL football game at SoFi Stadium. Credit: Sipa USA/Alamy Live News [/caption]

Now less than a month away from the 2025 NFL Draft, the Seattle Seahawks have undergone dramatic personnel changes on offense, but the same cannot be said on the defensive side of the ball, as the team brought back both of their big name pending free agents in Ernest Jones IV and Jarran Reed.

After general manager John Schneider and coach Mike Macdonald further fortified a defense that ended 2024 on a strong note, how do the Seahawks look at each positional group heading towards the draft next month in Green Bay?

Here’s a revised roster breakdown with projected starters, backups, and draft urgency at each respective position based on a 1 to 5 scale with five being a critical need and one being inessential:

Defensive End/Outside Linebacker

Starters: Uchenna Nwosu, Demarcus Lawrence

Backups: Boye Mafe, Derick Hall, Tyreke Smith, Jamie Sheriff, Kenneth Odumegwu

Draft Urgency: 3/5

Rather than rest on their laurels, the Seahawks made the expected move to release veteran Dre’Mont Jones, who failed to live up to a lucrative three-year contract with just 8.5 sacks in two seasons with the franchise. Replacing him on the depth chart, Schneider invested strong dollars in multi-time Pro Bowl talent Demarcus Lawrence, betting on the 12th year defender to bounce back from a Lisfranc fracture that ended his 2024 campaign after just four games and provide more bang for the buck than his predecessor did. After accepting a pay cut in exchange for more guaranteed money, Nwosu will be back coming off offseason knee surgery with hopes of finally staying healthy following two injury-marred seasons and paired with Lawrence as the expected starters.

For this position group, however, “starters” will likely just boil down to which players see the field for the first defensive snap, as both Mafe and Hall have made significant strides since being second round picks in 2022 and 2023 respectively and will undoubtedly see extensive playing time rotating into the lineup. Though Mafe wasn’t able to quite replicate his breakout sophomore season where he recorded a career-high nine sacks, he still produced six of them last season with 47 pressures on 200 fewer defensive snaps. As for Hall, he took his big second year leap with eight sacks and a fumble returned for a touchdown, looking the part of a potential long-term starting difference maker off the edge.

In the short term, Seattle has a good blend of proven veterans and talented youngsters, but Lawrence’s three-year deal could easily be a one-year pact if he doesn’t perform as expected, Nwosu has a massive cap hit next season that could lead to his release, and Mafe will be an unrestricted free agent next spring, creating clear potential needs at defensive end/outside linebacker. Smart teams address such needs a year too early, and with strong depth off the edge in this year’s draft class, selecting one early could very well be in the cards.

Defensive Tackle

Starters: Leonard Williams, Byron Murphy II

Backups: Jarran Reed, Mike Morris, Cameron Young, Quinton Bohanna, Brandon Pili

Draft Urgency: 2.5/5

For the most part, the Seahawks will roll into a new season with the same front line on defense that they had for Week 18 against the Rams back in January. Aside from Williams’ contract being restructured, Reed came back on a three-year contract to potentially finish his career where it started in the Pacific Northwest, while expectations will be through the roof for Murphy rolling into his second season after he produced an underwhelming stat line with just half a sack and two quarterback hits as a first-round selection. That trio should give Seattle as formidable of a trio of defensive tackles as any team in the NFC, particularly in the pass rushing department where Williams and Reed have been consistent contributors creating havoc pushing the pocket over the years.

But while Seattle has immense talent at the top of the depth chart, the loss of Roy Robertson-Harris to the Giants and Johnathan Hankins remaining an unsigned free agent have left the team with significant questions from a reserve standpoint. Young missed the majority of his second season with knee issues, landing on the PUP list as well as injured reserve, while Morris registered a grand total of five tackles in 15 games with limited defensive snaps, casting questions about whether either player can develop into anything more than a seldom used substitute. Bohanna and Pili each have extensive NFL experience, but both spent most of the 2024 season on practice squads and haven’t shown enough to warrant replacing Hankins without competition brought in to battle against them.

Considering potential depth concerns, the Seahawks absolutely should be looking to further reinforce one of their biggest strengths, especially with the position being arguably the deepest in the entire 2025 draft class. Even after using a first-round pick on Murphy this time last year, it wouldn’t be out of character for Schneider to do the same again this year, though the depth of this class should allow for landing a quality interior defender on day two or day three.

Inside Linebacker

Starters: Ernest Jones IV, Tyrice Knight

Backups: Drake Thomas, Patrick O’Connell, Josh Ross, Michael Dowell

Draft Urgency: 2/5

Unlike this time last year where the Seahawks had invested their chips on the table in one-year fliers on veterans Tyrel Dodson and Jerome Baker, the franchise now has a strong foundation in the middle for the present and the future. Re-signing to a three-year deal after coming over in a trade deadline deal, Jones instantly gives Macdonald the building block his scheme requires at middle linebacker, boasting the well-rounded skill set and sideline-to-sideline playmaking ability the coach covets from the position. Meanwhile, Knight eclipsed any reasonable expectations as a rookie, tallying 88 combined tackles, 1.5 sacks, and three tackles for loss while starting nine out of 16 games he dressed in.

With Jones and Knight, Seattle has a starting nucleus under contract for the next three years together. Behind them, the organization holds Thomas in high regard, but he has played limited snaps in the NFL, while O’Connell has primarily been on the practice squad and Ross has played special teams exclusively since coming into the league out of Michigan. Between those three players and Dowell, the quartet has combined to play just 41 defensive snaps in the regular season, and none of those players was drafted, so infusing the group with more young talent would make sense.

Investing an early draft choice at linebacker after re-signing Jones seems unlikely, if improbable. But with five picks on day three, reinforcing depth could be an underrated priority to develop another player who can be ready to go in the event Jones or Knight gets banged up during the season.

Cornerback

Starters: Devon Witherspoon, Riq Woolen, Josh Jobe

Backups: Nehemiah Pritchett, Shemar Jean-Charles, Damarion Williams, JT Woods, Tyler Hall

Draft Urgency: 3.5/5

Similar to the rest of the defense, the Seahawks should enter year two under Macdonald with the same trio of cornerbacks seeing the bulk of the snaps, led by the dynamic Witherspoon, who continued to be a tackle-making machine while playing both on the boundary and in the slot. When in nickel sets, Jobe will be back as a boundary starter after being a revelation last season after being released by the Eagles, looking to build off his breakout season working across from the enigmatic Woolen, who has millions to potentially play for with free agency on the horizon next spring following two solid, yet uneven seasons where he has been briefly benched before returning to the lineup.

While Witherspoon, Woolen, and Jobe will provide Seattle with much-needed continuity in the secondary, the latter two players have one year left under contract and like defensive tackle, concern about depth is warranted after the departures of Tre Brown and Artie Burns. Pritchett endured bumps in the road aplenty as a rookie, allowing a touchdown in coverage while missing on 33 percent of his tackle attempts, leading to several healthy scratches late in the season. Though a big jump may be part of his future, Jean-Charles could leap frog him after playing well in his first extensive defensive action with New Orleans last year, while the trio of Williams, Woods, and Hall spent all of last year either on practice squads or out of the league.

Believe it or not, even with Witherspoon and Woolen previously being Pro Bowlers, the Seahawks have significant questions at cornerback beyond 2025. As a hedge in case Woolen and/or Jobe doesn’t return after this season, drafting one in the first two days seems highly likely, with the second and third round being the sweet spot for the position in this year’s class.

Safety

Starters: Julian Love, Coby Bryant

Backups: D’Anthony Bell, Jerrick Reed II, Ty Okada, AJ Finley

Draft Urgency: 2.5/5

Things can change quickly in the NFL, for better or worse. Fortunately for the Seahawks, they now may have their two starting safeties for the foreseeable future with Love already under contract through 2027 after signing an extension last summer and Bryant emerging as a viable running mate in the second half last season. Love hit the 100-tackle mark for the third straight season while adding three interceptions, two forced fumbles, and nine pass breakups, stuffing the stat sheet with outstanding overall play. Once he replaced an injured Rayshawn Jenkins, Bryant picked off three passes in 11 starts, adding 73 tackles and a forced fumble for good measure as he transitioned from cornerback to his new position with ease, setting himself up for his own new contract.

Away from their starters, the Seahawks believe they upgraded depth-wise in free agency by signing the physical, tough-minded Bell as a replacement for Jenkins, banking on him replicating his stellar play on defense for the Browns two years ago as a third safety to rotate into the lineup along with being a core special teams standout. Now more than a year removed from a torn ACL, Reed could be an X-Factor to watch, as the organization loved what they saw from him as a rookie two years ago before the injury. Okada and Finley have both played NFL snaps on defense and special teams, providing quality insurance options to compete for roster spots in the summer.

With Love under contract for the next three seasons, safety isn’t the biggest of concerns for the Seahawks, though Bryant’s approaching free agency does add a wrinkle to the equation. Employing the best player available strategy, if someone like South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori remains available at pick 18, Macdonald may not be able to pass up on the opportunity to bring the unicorn on board as his new Kyle Hamilton in Seattle. Most likely, day two or early day three would be the ideal spot to take a shot on a safety if the right player is on the board.