Byron Murphy II didn’t need long to figure out where the game was headed once he got to Texas. By the end of his college run, things had started to come naturally, and that same comfort has carried over to Seattle.
The Seahawks defensive lineman, drafted No. 16 in 2024 after a junior season at Texas that brought five sacks in 14 games and second-team All-American honors, says the pro game is beginning to feel routine. Seven games into his third NFL season, he sounds like a player who has settled in rather than one still searching for his footing.
“It’s starting to feel like college days,” he said last week. “Once the game is slowing down, it’s like now I’m not thinking about nothing.
I’m just going. I’m just being me.
I’m just being Byron Murphy.”
The production backs that up. Murphy has three sacks through seven games, which ties him with three teammates for the team lead. His 21 pressures are one behind Leonard Williams for the top spot, according to PFF via TruMedia, and he has already piled up five tackles for loss, two short of his career high.
Seattle’s coaches see more than numbers, though. Defensive coordinator Aden Durde pointed to Murphy’s growing command of the Seahawks’ scheme, something that has sharpened since his rookie season.
“In this defense, you’re not always in the same spot, so it’s not like you’re studying one player and, ‘I’m going to play this player, and I know how he sets,’” Durde said. “He’s going to be playing (against) three, maybe four different players throughout the game.
“Knowing how to deal in those moments, that’s him learning. That’s an experience that he’s gained over the last two years, and it’s coming to fruition now.”
Murphy’s 6-foot, 306-pound frame and athletic ability have also made him a problem for opposing offenses. Mike Macdonald called it “dominant football,” and Murphy’s knack for winning one-on-one battles has helped the whole defense function at a higher level.
That showed up again Sunday night in Seattle’s 20-3 rout of the Kansas City Chiefs. Murphy recorded only three tackles for the second straight week, but the Seahawks held former Seattle running back Kenneth Walker III to 36 yards on 14 carries, and Murphy’s work in the middle helped put Ernest Jones IV and Tyrice Knight in position to clean things up. The two linebackers finished with 17 tackles combined.
“It starts with Murph,” Macdonald said. “I think the cool thing is the guys know it, too.
They can see how well he’s playing. I hope everybody else sees it as well.”
Murphy’s play is coming at the right time for a different reason, too. As a first-round pick, his contract includes a fifth-year option for 2028, which Seattle has until May 2027 to decide on. He’ll also be eligible for an extension after the 2026 season, as players are after three years in the league.
That matters because the Seahawks have already shown a willingness to hand out real money to players with years left on their deals. This offseason, John Schneider exercised the fifth-year options for Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Devon Witherspoon, then signed both to extensions that reset the market at their positions. He also stepped outside his usual habits by giving Williams, at age 32, a three-year extension in August that paid top-five money at the position.
Jarran Reed thinks Murphy should be next.
“You don’t let someone like Byron walk out the door,” Reed said. “He’s like a generational-type player.”
The market around interior defensive linemen is only getting pricier. Since March, seven have signed extensions worth at least $26 million annually, including Williams at $30 million. That makes Murphy’s current surge especially timely, particularly with new ownership already showing a willingness to spend.
On Aug. 26, NFL owners unanimously approved the sale of the Seahawks to Vinod and Neeru Khosla for a league-record $9.612 billion. Williams’ deal came a day later, and Witherspoon’s came 11 days before that, just over a month after the Khoslas agreed to buy the team.
The Khoslas have said they want the Seahawks to remain Super Bowl contenders, and the early spending suggests they mean it. Seattle ranked 26th in cash spending from 2015 to 2024.
Last season, the club was 29th in total cash spending at $253.6 million, or 9.2 percent under the cap, according to Over the Cap. This year, it sits third at $372.9 million, 25.9 percent over the cap and up 43 percent from last year.
The team is also positioned for major spending in future seasons.
“Our approach is generally going to be long-term focused,” Vinod Khosla said in August. “That’s our inclination always. So keep winning, take a long-term approach, and learn a lot.”
Murphy’s rise has been one of the most important reasons Seattle’s defense looks so strong as the season nears its midpoint. The Seahawks have been even better by some measures than they were a year ago, when they led the league in fewest points per game.
They rank second in expected points added on defense this season at 62.92, per TruMedia, and they are on pace to finish with a higher total than last year’s 125.58, which led the NFL. Only four teams have allowed fewer points, and 47 of Seattle’s 125 points allowed have come on turnovers.
For Murphy, the payoff is simple. His confidence has grown, his role keeps expanding, and his game keeps flashing.
“I feel great about my play,” Murphy said. “I feel like I’m going in the right direction so far.
Everything is looking good so far. Everything is set up for me to get the stats I want to reach my goals.
So, all I got to do is just keep doing me.”
In Other News...
Seahawks Suddenly Loom In One Of The NFLs Biggest Trade Decisions
A roster-altering move in Indianapolis has put Seattle in the middle of one of the NFLs most eye-catching trade conversations, with the Colts sending guard Quenton Nelson to the Seahawks and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to the 49ers for future draft picks. For Seattle, the Nelson addition immediately stands out because it addresses the interior of the offensive line with one of the leagues most established blockers, a move that could change how the team thinks about protection and balance up front.
The bigger ripple effect comes from what else the deal suggests about the market, because it could influence how teams approach other star names being floated in trade chatter. Jonathan Taylor, Saquon Barkley, Jeffery Simmons, Brian Thomas and Budda Baker are all part of that broader speculation, but for the Seahawks the immediate focus is on what adding Nelson means now and whether a move this bold signals more aggressive activity could still be coming. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Are Suddenly Linked To A Blockbuster Move They Can't Ignore
The Seahawks have already made one notable move to strengthen the offense by bringing in guard Quenton Nelson, and now another name is popping up around their plans: Saquon Barkley. With Philadelphias direction suddenly under a brighter spotlight after a pair of losses, the possibility of the Eagles considering bigger roster decisions has opened the door to speculation, and Barkleys recent production and accolades only make the idea more intriguing for teams looking for an immediate difference-maker.
For Seattle, the appeal is obvious. A back like Barkley would change the shape of the offense and give the Seahawks another elite option to lean on if they were to get serious about making a push. Nothing is official, and there has been no confirmation of any trade or even direct word from either side, but this is the kind of potential blockbuster that would force Seattle to at least explore what it would take to get involved. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks O-Line Debate Comes Down To One Thing This Unit Lacks
Seattles offensive line is still being viewed through the same lens it has all season: a group built more for movement than brute force. The Seahawks have leaned into agility and space up front, but the conversation around the unit keeps circling back to whether it has enough edge when games call for body blows in the middle of the field.
Anthony Bradford stands out as the one starter who brings a more physical, aggressive element, the sort of presence that can help turn inside runs into something sturdier. Against the Chiefs, Seattle kept coming back to the run game between the tackles, and Emanuel Wilsons 4.2 yards per carry offered at least some proof that the approach can work, even if the bigger question about what this line still lacks remains very much in play. [Read more 🡒]