Seahawks Free Agency Grades for Each Signing
By Ben Renner
The Seahawks have added veteran depth in several areas ahead of the NFL Draft, which is about a month away. How have John Schneider and Pete Carroll done in finding reinforcements to fix issues from last season?
Seahawks General Manager John Schneider has been busier than in recent years in signing free agents this offseason. The Seahawks’ relative aggressiveness in free agency this year could be the result of several factors, probably because of the perceived weak overall draft class (especially for offensive linemen), and a few more million dollars to play with than Seattle normally has.
Either way, the Seahawks have made several signings, some more important than others. Even the isolationist Packers make a few signings to round out their roster and add some competition to Training Camp. I’ll attempt to grade the Seahawks signings so far.
The Seahawks like to retain their star players and draft depth behind them. Schneider probably learned this from his days in Green Bay. Different good teams have different advantages over their opposition that keep them good. The Packers draft well and sign players to team-friendly deals. The Patriots double down on draft capital, have impeccable offensive and defensive systems, deflate footballs for their Hall of Fame quarterback, and videotape opposing team’s practices. The Seahawks have a knack for finding gold in later rounds of the draft, then keep them in Seattle uniforms.
Free agency usually isn’t a formula for success, but Seattle needed depth pieces badly.
Let’s take a look at a few of the more notable signings by the Seahawks first, and grade them based on the player, the terms of the contract, and team needs. Let’s start with the first signing of the NFL Free Agency period: