Seahawks Analysis: Grading Seattle's 2025 Free Agent Signings
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Replacing Geno Smith, Sam Darnold stands out as the crown jewel of the Seattle Seahawks’ latest free agent class. [/caption]
With the new league year officially in full swing, the Seattle Seahawks and all 31 other teams have been working around the clock to retain their own prioritized free agents and improve their rosters for the upcoming 2025 season.
Reverting back to a more normal offseason with coach Mike Macdonald entering year No. 2, even following a lengthy process hiring a new offensive coaching staff, the Seahawks weren’t behind the 8-ball this offseason, allowing them to enter negotiations and finish the deal with their top two pending unrestricted free agents before the legal tampering period opened. This opened the door for general manager John Schneider to shift his attention towards locking up a replacement for quarterback Geno Smith along with several other deals early in the free agency period to begin taking advantage of more than $60 million in salary cap space.
As Seattle looks to get back into contention in the NFC West after a busy pre-free agency period, I'll be breaking down each of the team's signings with contract length, key financial details, and an overall grade. Make sure to check back often as moves continue to trickle in throughout free agency and leading up to April's NFL draft.
Jarran Reed
Contract: Three years, $22 million
Grade: B+
An average salary of $7.3 million per year for an aging defensive tackle may seem pricy, but Reed has remained a critical component of Seattle’s defensive line in the Macdonald era, offering the versatility to play multiple alignments in the trenches while contributing both as a pass rusher and stalwart run defender. Though his sack numbers were cut by nearly in half in 2024 compared to the previous season, he finished with the second-most quarterback pressures in his career and ranked 11th among defensive tackles in quarterback hits, illustrating his continued effectiveness harassing signal callers from the interior. He also racked up 25 solo tackles while only missing one, posting a stellar 2.6 percent missed tackle rate that ranked 10th among qualified defensive tackles and tallying 18 run stops total. Add in his invaluable impact as a veteran leader and mentor on and off the field on a contract with only $8 million guaranteed and this looks like a strong value for the Seahawks to retain one of their own.
Ernest Jones
Contract: Three years, $33 million
Grade: A
Considering how the market had been trending for off-ball linebackers in the same age range, the Seahawks pulled off an absolute steal locking up the 25-year old Jones, who proved to be a transformative addition for Macdonald’s defense after he arrived from Tennessee in a midseason trade. Going 6-2 in the final eight games, the unit allowed under 19 points per game and saw their run defense improve by almost 50 yards a game, a testament to the impact No. 13 had in the middle next to rookie Tyrice Knight. He finished with 94 combined tackles in 10 starts for Seattle while adding an interception and a forced fumble, setting himself up for a massive contract. While $11 million per year marks a substantial pay raise, however, Schneider and the front office deserves major kudos for inking him at that price when the Chiefs had to pay Nick Bolton, who has near identical numbers in most categories through four NFL seasons and is only a few months younger, $15 million per year on a three-year extension.
Sam Darnold
Contract: Three years, $100.5 million
Grade: B
Moving on from a quality starter in Geno Smith carries risk, particularly with a quarterback in Darnold who barely had thrown more touchdowns than interceptions in his first six seasons with three different teams. However, while the Seahawks did invest significant money in the former top-five pick coming off a breakout year with 35 touchdown passes for the Vikings, they didn’t necessarily break the bank either by handing him a contract that puts him 18th among quarterbacks in annual salary. In the event that the 27-year old takes a regressive step back in 2025, the team has given themselves affordable outs in 2026 or 2027 to move on. At the same time, if he thrives in coordinator Klint Kubiak’s system and builds off his Pro Bowl campaign in Minnesota, the deal could quickly turn into one of the NFL’s biggest bargains with a cap hit under $14 million in 2025 and it’s possible given his youth that the team could have a potential long-term franchise quarterback, making the investment more than worth the gamble for Schneider and company.
Josh Jones
Contract: One year, $4.75 million
Grade: C+
After swinging and missing on a reunion with George Fant, who missed all but two games last season, the Seahawks decided to go significantly younger this time around seeking a quality swing tackle behind Charles Cross and Abraham Lucas by signing Jones, who has played every position except center during his five NFL seasons up to this point. That versatility alone makes him worth a bit more than veteran minimum and like Darnold, he’s still just 27 years old, so there may be untapped potential that can be squeezed out of him by new line coach John Benton and an experienced coaching staff. With that said, he struggled mightily with penalties and never posted better than a 96.5 percent pass block efficiency rate during two seasons as a starter with the Cardinals, so asking him to take on more than a spot starting role may be asking for more than he can handle, which isn’t the type of impact signing fans were clamoring for.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling
Contract: One year, $5.5 million
Grade: B
Few receivers have fit the bill as “boom or bust” weapons better than Valdes-Scantling has in seven NFL seasons. He’s only posted a catch rate above the 50 percent threshold four times and per PFF, he has amassed 24 career drops, but he’s also been a lethal big play target with a league-best 17.4 yards per catch average since 2018 while adding 13 touchdown catches of 20-plus yards. Two of those came in just eight games with the Saints playing in Kubiak’s offense last season and given the success he had in a small sample size in New Orleans, it makes a ton of sense why the Seahawks would take a flier on the speedy 6-4 receiver as a complementary target to pair with Jaxon Smith-Njigba and likely a high draft pick in April. He’s not a No. 2 receiver in the league, but he offers enough juice as a vertical threat to help offset some of the production lost by DK Metcalf’s departure at a fraction of the cost.
Demarcus Lawrence
Contract: Three years, $42 million
Grade: A-
Set to turn 33 years old and coming off a Lisfranc fracture in his foot, Lawrence may no longer be in his prime and banking on him to rebound from a significant injury at this stage of his career could be deemed as a roll of the dice. But before he went down last season, he had three sacks in Dallas’ first four games and he had made the Pro Bowl in each of the previous two seasons with current Seattle defensive coordinator Aden Durde working with him as the Cowboys defensive line coach. Over the course of 11 NFL seasons, few players have been more consistent all-around performers at their respective position, as he has 61.5 sacks on his resume along with a well-earned reputation as an elite edge setter against the run. He won’t be asked to shoulder the load on his own with Seattle still having Uchenna Nwosu, Boye Mafe, and Derick Hall on the roster, and bringing him on board as a supplemental chess piece with a cap hit under $8 million for 2025 has the potential to be a game changer for Macdonald’s defense similar to what Jadeveon Clowney did for him with the Ravens in 2023.
Cooper Kupp
Contract: Three years, $45 million
Grade: B
If the Seahawks were acquiring the 2021 version of Kupp who captured Offensive Player of the Year and Super Bowl MVP honors, this easily would be a slam dunk A-plus for Schneider and the front office. However, the 31-year old has not been near as productive over the past three years battling a bevy of injuries, failing to hit the 900-yard mark during that span while missing 17 regular season games, which led to the Rams releasing him earlier in the week as a cap casualty to open the door for signing Davante Adams as his replacement. But while he may not be the same player that he was in his prime, he would have caught 94 passes with 1,005 yards last season with his numbers extrapolated over 17 games and Klint Kubiak’s offense should cater well to his skill set as a savvy route running possession receiver who complements Smith-Njigba and Valdes-Scantling quite well. Health will be the key to this deal working out, and the franchise has a potential out as early as next offseason with no fully guaranteed money on the books after year one. But if he can stay healthy, this contract could wind up looking like a relative in bargain with him catching a bunch of passes from Darnold despite the obvious risks that go with signing an aging receiver with durability concerns.
D’Anthony Bell
Contract: One year, $1.37 million
Grade: A-
Since making the Browns roster as an undrafted free agent out of West Florida in 2022, Bell hasn’t played many snaps on the defensive side of the ball, but he has held his own when given the opportunity to shine as an interchangeable safety and money linebacker. When injuries struck Cleveland’s secondary in 2023, he started five games to close out the season and produced a pair of interceptions and three pass breakups during that span, allowing just seven yards per catch and no touchdowns in coverage. Away from making the most of his chances on defense, he has been a core special teamer for the Browns, including racking up 11 combined tackles on kick and punt coverage last season. The 6-1, 211-pound defender should be able to not only excel on special teams in Seattle, but also push for snaps as a third safety with his positional versatility, potentially providing similar or better production in comparison to Rayshawn Jenkins at a fraction of the cost with a base salary under $1.2 million for 2025.
