Seahawks Take Flier on Former First Round Pick Noah Igbinoghene
[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="5557"]
Washington Commanders cornerback Noah Igbinoghene (1) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images [/caption]
Looking to replenish depth in the secondary after losing Riq Woolen and Coby Bryant in free agency, the Seattle Seahawks made their second cornerback signing in as many days on Saturday, bringing a former first round pick into the fold.
According to Mike Dugar of The Athletic, the Seahawks have agreed to terms with veteran cornerback Noah Igbinoghene on a one-year contract. Other terms of the deal have yet to be disclosed.
Once a highly touted prospect coming out of Auburn, Igbinoghene landed with the Dolphins as the 30th overall selection in the 2020 NFL Draft, breaking into the league at just 20 years old. He appeared in 16 games as a rookie with a pair of starts for Miami, struggling in his first action against NFL talent, allowing 18 yards per reception and three touchdowns with quarterbacks posting a 133.9 passer rating when targeting him in coverage.
The Dolphins hoped to see Igbinoghene take a big leap forward in his sophomore season, but he wound up being a healthy scratch for nearly as many games as he suited up for. In seven games, he allowed five receptions for 64 yards and a touchdown, once again yielding a passer rating against north of 130. Aside from a game-sealing interception against the Steelers, he didn’t fare much better overall in 2022, as Miami voluntarily made him inactive for eight games.
Further pushed down the depth chart by the arrival of Jalen Ramsey and rookie Cam Smith, Igbinoghene became expendable and Miami traded him in a player-for-player swap to Dallas for Kelvin Joseph. He got off to a roaring start with the Cowboys, returning a blocked field goal 58 yards for a touchdown in a 40-0 romp over the New York Giants, but he rarely played the rest of the season, suiting up a grand total of five games primarily as a special teamer.
Staying within the NFC East, Igbinoghene signed with the Commanders as a free agent in 2024 and enjoyed his best season as a pro in Dan Quinn’s defense. Logging nearly 700 snaps in the slot and starting 10 games for the eventual NFC runner ups, he yielded 65 tackles and six pass breakups while allowing receivers to post a career-low 10.3 yards per reception against him, earning himself a new one-year contract to stay in Washington.
Though he played roughly a third of the defensive snaps last season compared to his breakout 2024 campaign and did allow 15 yards per reception on the receiving end of a handful of explosive plays, Igbinoghene didn’t give up any touchdowns while generating four pass breakups in coverage. He also made the most of four blitz attempts, turning those opportunities into three pressures and a sack, and he added seven returns for 191 yards as a kick returner on special teams.
Still only 26 years old, Igbinoghene played respectable football at times for the Commanders, improving his overall coverage numbers while being more involved as a run defender and proving he could be effective as a pass rusher on slot blitzes. Dating back to his early years in Miami, consistency has been by far his biggest issue in six NFL seasons, as he has been plagued by surrendering the big play and up and down tackling with a career 15% missed tackle rate.
Joining the Seahawks as his fourth team, with only five cornerbacks currently on the roster, the 5-11, 197-pound Igbinoghene immediately will be thrust into the mix vying for snaps as a hybrid cornerback with previous experience both in the slot and on the boundary. After Woolen’s departure, All-Pro cornerback Devon Witherspoon may need to see more action playing outside moving forward, opening the door for other players to push to play snaps in the slot, particularly in dime packages with six defensive backs on the field at the same time.
With the NFL now requiring two returners on kick returns, Igbinoghene could emerge as the new sidekick for recently re-signed Rashid Shaheed, giving the team another experienced returner to help offset the free agent departure of Dareke Young. He also will likely need to be in the mix on kick and punt coverage units to ensure a spot on the roster once the team returns to the field this spring.
Ultimately, whether or not Igbinoghene has to be counted on beyond special teams will depend not only on how he performs in coach Mike Macdonald’s scheme, but on how Seattle approaches the upcoming draft. Even with only four selections at the moment, cornerback stands out as one of the deepest, most talented groups in this year’s class, and it would be a surprise if general manager John Schneider isn’t aggressive investing one of the team’s early selections on the position.
