Breaking Down the Seahawks’ Long-Term Future on Offense and Defense

This Is Devon Witherspoon’s Strongest Contract Argument Yet

The Seahawks were led to the Super Bowl by their defense and special teams last season, but when you break each side down by average age and length of contract, Seattle’s offense could take the lead in the future.

The Seahawks projected STARTING offense:

• 6 players signed for at least three more seasons

• 3 of the 5 exceptions are likely to get extended within the next year

• Average age: 2 years younger than the defense

And with only two minor tweaks—expected tweaks—Seattle’s offense gets even younger while also probably getting better long-term. This sets Brian Fleury up for a great start to his career as an offensive coordinator.

It’s not that the defense should be concerned—the Seahawks are once again projected to have one of the best defenses in the NFL (I gave 5 reasons why I think they’ll be EVEN BETTER than last year)—but Seattle’s average age and length of contract on that side of the ball turns into a GREAT argument for Devon Witherspoon to ask John Schneider for as much as he can get.

Less talk, more Hawk. What am I talking about? Let’s get specific:

Seahawks Offensive Depth Chart

Note that I count a player’s fifth-year option as “under contract” if he has one, so that would include Jadarian Price, Grey Zabel, Byron Murphy, and Devon Witherspoon. So for example, Zabel is signed through 2029 (five years of his rookie contract), not through 2028 even though Seattle hasn’t picked up his option yet.

Also a player’s age will be the age he is at the end of the season, not necessarily the age he is today.

The Outlier: Cooper Kupp

There is only one obvious outlier here, which is Cooper Kupp, but that’s fine because his career has always been as an outlier. Kupp has survived nine seasons in the NFL as a third-round pick who never had outstanding athleticism, and he had some success last season despite being one of the oldest receivers in the league.

The free agents: Bradford (not really Sundell)

The only players set to hit free agency next year are Jalen Sundell and Anthony Bradford, but Sundell is only a restricted free agent. Which means that unless Sundell loses his job for whatever reason, he will be back in 2027. That only leaves Bradford as a player on this graphic more likely than not to be entering his final season with the Seahawks, while Kupp is the only player who could retire or be a cap casualty.

Wouldn’t you know it: The Seahawks have been preparing for that.

Look at what happens with 2 minor tweaks:

Of the 11 players on this graphic, eight are signed through at least 2028.

The upcoming extensions: Darnold, Barner

The other three are Sundell (who we already talked about), plus Sam Darnold and A.J. Barner. There’s no question that, barring a catastrophe, Darnold will be extended in 2027.

Barner is also likely to be a priority next offseason.

The players with something to prove

The biggest question marks on this version of Seattle’s offense would be Tory Horton and Beau Stephens, as one is a rookie and the other was a rookie last season who missed half of the year. But guard and center are two positions where John Schneider has been stockpiling options, so it doesn’t necessarily have to be those two for the Seahawks to already have replacements on the roster.

Long-term offensive continuity

This version of Seattle’s offense could be 80 to 90 percent the same as the version we will see on the Seahawks in 2028.

The defense is in for much more change.

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Seahawks Defensive Depth Chart

Take note that there are actually 12 players on this graphic, not 11.

The defense is older, signed for less time

The first thing that jumps out to me is that there are four players in their thirties, and half of that group is 34. It’s a good age if you’re a citizen, but makes you among the oldest in the league if you’re in the NFL.

Not only that but there are only three players on this graphic signed through 2028, which is 3 to 5 fewer than the offense, and that includes Byron Murphy even though his option can’t be picked up until next year.

If it’s not an old defense, it’s certainly an old defensive line. What is Seattle’s long-term plan here?

Devon Witherspoon’s argument

The defense’s uncertain future in 1-3 years is Witherspoon’s greatest argument to demand a long-term extension. “You need defensive players in the future too, not just right now.”

Check it out when we tweak 3 positions:

A younger defense by 2 years

The average age of these players drops by almost two years when you replace Jarran Reed with Rylie Mills, DeMarcus Lawrence with Derick Hall, and Ty Okada with Bud Clark.

Not that Okada is an ancient player who needs to be replaced (he is an exclusive rights free agent next year, which is the same thing as being under contract) but it could happen anyway. Clark is meant to slot somewhere in the starting defense in the next year, if all goes to plan.

How does this help Witherspoon?

If I’m Witherspoon, I’m telling the Seahawks that they can’t run into the same problems that they had a few years ago when Seattle’s defense was talented but undisciplined and the locker room lacked leadership following the departures of players like Bobby Wagner and K.J. Wright.

Leadership is, in fact, one of the reasons that the Seahawks drafted Witherspoon to begin with. Because if players can stop listening to Pete Carroll, then they can stop listening to any head coach.

Players like Nick Emmanwori, Clark, Jobe, and Julian Neal undoubtedly look up to Witherspoon already, so who steps up after guys like Lawrence, Reed, Leonard Williams, and Uchenna Nwosu are gone?

That is Witherspoon’s best play when it comes to get Seattle to meet his contract demands: He could be the glue that holds everything together, not only with players already on the team, but also with the ones who join the defense in the future.

What stands out to you?

What do you see when you see these breakdowns on offense or defense? Share your thoughts in the comments:

Of course there are more players on the Seahawks, guys who didn’t make these graphics, but that doesn’t mean they don’t belong. They just didn’t fit in today. That could change very quickly, just as it did for Okada and Drake Thomas last year.

Here are some more notable players, mainly ones who could change the complexion of Seattle’s age and contract situations.

Notable Omissions:

• QB Jalen Milroe (age: 24, signed through: 2028)

• TE Elijah Arroyo (age: 23, signed through: 2028)

• FB Robbie Ouzts (age: 24, signed through: 2028)

• RB Zach Charbonnet (age: 25, signed through: 2026)

• WR Jake Bobo (age: 28, signed through: 2027)

• G Mason Richman (age: 24, signed through: 2028)

• G Bryce Cabeldue (age: 25, signed through: 2028)

• G Christian Haynes (age: 26, signed through: 2027)

• T Amari Kight (age: 26, signed through: several more years)

• RB George Holani (age: 27, signed through: ERFA in 2027)

• WR Emmanuel Henderson (age: 23, signed through: 2029)

There’s also Ricky White, Nick Kallerup, Federico Maranges, Logan Brown, Olu Oluwatimi, Emanuel Wilson, and others still.

Give it two months, this depth chart could have some significant changes. For now, each side has plusses and minuses. The defense has been even better than the offense, but the offense is setup to have a lot more continuity and time together in the future.

In either case, it sets the Seahawks up for more success in 2026. And that’s without even talking about special teams.

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