Category Archives: The roster

The roster, Trades

Hawks relying on practice squad to help front seven

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John Schneider and Mike Macdonald are not finished tinkering with the back end of their roster, but the Seahawks seem about 95% set for the season opener against the 49ers on Sept. 7.

They went heavy on tight ends and fullbacks (six) and light on nose tackles and linebackers – although they are using the practice squad to maximum effect at those spots and also reportedly added a linebacker from the 49ers.

Let’s take a look at all the key moves the Seattle bosses have made this week, what Schneider said and what might be coming next …

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On the air, Preseason, The roster

Charbonnet should start over Walker

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The Seahawks have been plowing through the preseason, ramping up a running game that they plan to make the focal point of their offense in 2025. And it is looking more and more like the guy leading that ground attack – at least in the season opener vs. the 49ers — should and probably will be Zach Charbonnet.

Mike Macdonald seems frustrated that Kenneth Walker III (sore foot) has not been available, and he seemed to drop a huge hint that Charbs is probably the Week 1 starter when he said of Walker: “At some point, you’ve gotta do it on the field so you feel confident to go out there and execute at a high level and play your best football. So that’s something that we’re working through. He’s doing the best he can, and we’re doing the best we can as a coaching staff. We’ve just gotta work together on this thing as it unfolds.”

The way it is unfolding is for Charbonnet to be the main ballcarrier and Walker to potentially be the changeup – a home run back on a snap count.

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The roster, Training camp

Year 2 of Macdonald era starts — with playoff expectations

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Summer is still going strong in Seattle, which means there are more good times to be had before football season starts. But, for the Seahawks and the rest of the NFL, the preparation for football season starts this week.

It’s Year 2 of the Mike Macdonald era – with high expectations after his 10-win rookie season. The Hawks have a playoff-amenable schedule and an odd juxtaposition on offense and defense. The latter unit – a top-five defense — returns entirely intact, with two or three additions on top of that. The offense, meanwhile, is being rebuilt almost from the ground up – with just four definite returning starters (after Noah Fant was released this week) and a completely new staff.

It likely will take a while for the offense to jell. It starts with the line, which thankfully has a very solid left side in Charles Cross and rookie Grey Zabel but also has work to do at center and right guard. In the passing game, Sam Darnold, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp need to get synced up. Ideally, Klint Kubiak and his familiar staff can work some magic with the running game early on, to take pressure off Darnold.

The schedule lines up for 11 or 12 wins, by our estimation. That would mean a playoff spot and a shot to do even more.  

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NFL draft, The roster

With Darnold and Milroe, QB room is most exciting since 2001

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The Seahawks have put together the most interesting quarterback room since Matt Hasselbeck and Super Bowl-winning QB Trent Dilfer came along in 2001.

Back then, Mike Holmgren – then in his third year – added Hasselbeck and Dilfer to replace Jon Kitna and Brock Huard. Hasselbeck came in a trade with Green Bay and Dilfer came from Baltimore after stepping in as the starting QB there and winning the Super Bowl the previous year. It took a year or so for Hasselbeck to fully claim the job over Dilfer, but then the Hawks went on a five-year run of playoff seasons that included their own Super Bowl appearance (and controversial loss).

Pete Carroll and John Schneider also cleaned house at the position in 2012, when Russell Wilson and Matt Flynn replaced Tarvaris Jackson and Charlie Whitehurst. Wilson won the job as a rookie and went on to become the best QB in franchise history, overtaking Hasselbeck for that honor, while leading the Hawks to their only Super Bowl title and another Super Bowl that should have been a win.

Now the Seahawks have wiped the slate clean again, with the hope that it will lead to more Super Bowl wins under Mike Macdonald, now in his second season.

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Franchise history, NFL draft, The roster

Will Schneider deliver the dream: O-line consistency?

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Whether it has been draft misses, bad (or no) free-agent signings, poor coaching or injuries, Seattle just has not fielded a good offensive line during the majority of John Schneider’s tenure – that’s 15 seasons of mostly bottom-10 rankings.

Despite another whiff in free agency in 2025, Schneider has a chance to turn that around. But he needs to do something he has tried only a couple of times: Create continuity with top talent.

We’d call that living the dream.

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Free agency, The roster

After a week of free agency, a look at the roster

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John Schneider’s Seahawks had a stunning first week of free agency, unexpectedly trading both Geno Smith and DK Metcalf and then quickly replacing Smith with Sam Darnold.

They also re-signed two big pieces of their defense, Ernest Jones IV and Jarran Reed. And they brought in Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Cooper Kupp to help replace Metcalf and the released Tyler Lockett. DeMarcus Lawrence was added to beef up their front seven (especially in the run game).

They bid big ($17 million a year) but missed out on the top free-agent guard, Will Fries. But they still might end up with one of the top guards; Teven Jenkins (Chicago) is due in for a visit to the VMAC on Monday.

After a week of free agency, the defense – already on schedule to be a top-five unit in 2025 — is a bit better, and the offense is still rebuilding after the surprising mini-teardown.

Let’s take a look at the roster.

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Coaches, Free agency, The roster

Kubiak ties to Darnold & MVS countered losses of Geno & Metcalf

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Relationships make the NFL go round – and that was never more obvious than in all of the Seahawks’ dealings over the past week.

The franchise’s relationship with DK Metcalf soured to the point that he simply wanted to go play elsewhere. John Schneider said he could not work it out with Metcalf, so he traded him to Pittsburgh.

Then Geno Smith forced a trade when he and his agent refused to respond to Seattle’s fair contract offer – $40 million in 2025, per Brady Henderson. Whether Smith intended it or not, he got a reunion with his favorite coach, Pete Carroll, back in the NFL with the Raiders.

That might have left the Seahawks in a bind if not for Mike Macdonald’s preemptive move to hire Klint Kubiak as offensive coordinator. Kubiak’s previous relationship with Sam Darnold made it easy for the Hawks to quickly replace Smith with Darnold.

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Free agency, The roster

Free agency Day 3: Hawks apparently gave it a good shot for Fries

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The Seahawks apparently were willing to pay $17 million a year for guard Will Fries but got beat out on guaranteed money.

The Vikings reportedly guaranteed $34 million in a five-year, $88 million deal. The Hawks reportedly were offering a three-year contract similar to what they gave Dre Jones in 2023.

The Hawks also reportedly wanted Fries to take a physical so they could check his broken tibia (suffered in Week 5 last year). But he apparently did not want to wait until today when he had other good offers.

So the Hawks are on to cheaper options. The top guys available all have flaws, but most of them likely would be upgrades over what Seattle has at guard right now.

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Free agency, The roster

Free agency Day 2: Vikings strike back

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The disappointment continues for Seahawks fans who hold out hope every year that John Schneider will pay for a quality offensive lineman or two.

While Schneider did well to quickly sign Sam Darnold on Monday, he has yet to find a starting left guard — and the best options are dwindling.

In a small twist of irony that Darnold is probably chuckling over after he endured so much pressure in the playoff loss to the Rams, the Vikings actually have signed two linemen that Seahawks fans were hoping Schneider would get: center Ryan Kelly and guard Will Fries.

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Free agency, The roster

Would Darnold be only a ‘bridge’ quarterback?

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If Sam Darnold does indeed sign with the Seahawks, would he be the next Russell Wilson or just the next Geno Smith – a long-term answer or another so-called placeholder?

National media is abuzz with the projection that Darnold and the Seahawks are headed for a quick marriage – as soon as Monday, when teams can agree to deals with outside free agents.

Along with that informed speculation comes plenty of this: “Darnold would replace Smith as the bridge quarterback while Seattle looks to draft a potential franchise QB in 2025 or 2026.”

But why couldn’t the not-yet 28-year-old Darnold be the longish-term answer for Seattle?

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