DeMarcus Lawrence didn’t come to Seattle to ease into the back half of his career. He arrived with a clear idea of what he wanted, and one season in, the Seahawks are already seeing the payoff: production, edge pressure, and a veteran presence that’s reaching younger players as much as quarterbacks.
That mattered right away. Lawrence became one of two Seahawks free-agent additions last offseason to earn Pro Bowl recognition in their first year with the team, and he did it while turning in one of the best seasons of his career.
At 34, he isn’t talking like a player winding down. He wants another Super Bowl title, and he wants to be the kind of leader who helps the next wave grow into something bigger.
Lawrence’s path to this point has been a long one. He was a multi-position athlete in high school, then sharpened into a dependable edge rusher at Butler Community College.
After two developmental years, he moved on to Boise State and piled up 120 total tackles, 34 tackles for loss, 20 sacks, and seven forced fumbles. The Dallas Cowboys took him in the second round with the 34th overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, and after a year of adjusting to the speed of the league, he became a fixture on their defense.
In 11 seasons with Dallas, he made four Pro Bowls and posted 126 quarterback hits, 97 tackles for loss, and 61.5 sacks.
The move to Seattle was about more than a change of scenery. Lawrence believed Dallas wasn’t the place where the Super Bowl chance he wanted would happen, and he felt the Seahawks offered a path that could get him there.
He bought into head coach Mike Macdonald and defensive coordinator Aden Durde, who had been the Cowboys’ defensive line coach from 2021 to 2023. That trust paid off fast.
Lawrence looked revived, reestablishing himself as a top-end edge rusher and finishing the season with 53 total tackles, 20 quarterback hits, 11 tackles for loss, six sacks, three forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries.
Seattle thought it was getting enough juice and talent to make him a cornerstone of the Dark Side Defense, and Lawrence has delivered exactly that. He’s still one of the more feared and underappreciated edge rushers in the league, in both the regular season and the postseason.
His game is built on a rare mix of explosiveness, strength, and speed, and it shows in the way he lives in the backfield, creates disruption, and gets after the quarterback. He’s also disciplined in how he reads plays, tracks the ball carrier, and takes the right pursuit angle to finish.
What stands out just as much is the voice he’s brought into the locker room. Lawrence has quickly become a leader, and that matters in a defense that wants to play with more precision and more bite.
He has pushed younger players like Derick Hall to raise their level, and he has helped slot cornerback Nick Emmanwori by sharing tips and coaching him on pass-rushing skills. That influence could help both players take a big step forward.
Lawrence also played a role in getting veteran Deante Fowler Jr to join the Seahawks this offseason.
Even with the team drawing plenty of doubt about its chances in the NFC West, Lawrence’s decision to stay committed stands out as one of Seattle’s biggest boosts. Not a draft pick, not a splashy signing - just the continued presence of a veteran who still believes in what the Seahawks are building.
The retirement talk hasn’t gotten to him. Lawrence is preparing for his second season in Seattle, still bringing the physical style and urgency of a player who refuses to act his age. Another Pro Bowl season wouldn’t be a surprise.
In Other News...
Seahawks Offseason Choice Reopened A Debate Fans Thought Was Over
The Seahawks edge-rusher debate has been revived by one of those offseason moves that looks simple on paper and complicated everywhere else. Seattle chose to keep Derick Hall around with a three-year extension beyond 2026, a deal worth up to $42 million, even as Boye Mafe headed elsewhere. On a pure dollar-for-dollar basis, the comparison invites instant hand-wringing, especially for fans who remember how much the pass rush depended on both players over the past two seasons.
But the case for Seattle is rooted less in headline numbers than in how the defense is built and what the staff values on Sundays. Hall has been viewed as a stronger fit in Mike Macdonalds scheme and as a steadier presence against the run on all three downs, which is why the Seahawks were comfortable making him part of the long-term plan rather than chasing a different kind of price tag. An ESPN analyst still floated the idea of moving Hall and using the savings to bring Mafe back, but that line of thinking runs against the way Seattle has approached this roster choice. [Read more 🡒]
Lumen Field Is About To Host A Massive USMNT Turning Point
Lumen Field has already delivered one of the biggest soccer moments in its history, with the United States men beating Bosnia and Herzegovina 2-0 in a World Cup knockout-stage match in Seattle. For a program that has spent more than two decades waiting to clear this particular hurdle, the result felt like more than just another win on the bracket.
The next round now brings a higher-stakes test, with a quarterfinal berth on the line and the kind of tension that usually exposes every small mistake. Seattle will also have to host the match with one of the teams most important attacking pieces unavailable, which adds another layer of intrigue to a night that already figures to carry serious weight. [Read more 🡒]