The Seahawks spent the offseason doing what good teams do when they know their window is open: locking in the core before the price gets even steeper.
Seattle already has the kind of roster continuity most defending champions can only dream about. The Seahawks are bringing back 20 of 22 starters from last year’s Super Bowl-winning team, plus 32 of their top 37 players in offensive or defensive snaps from the regular season and postseason combined. Those are elite retention numbers, and they help explain why the front office moved aggressively to keep the roster’s pillars in place.
General manager John Schneider & Co. made a string of major commitments to players they view as foundational. Jaxon Smith-Njigba got a four-year, $168 million extension in March, making him the NFL’s highest-paid wide receiver and keeping him in Seattle through 2031. Devon Witherspoon followed with a four-year, $132 million extension earlier this month, which made him the league’s highest-paid cornerback and ties him to the Seahawks through 2031 as well.
Charles Cross had already been taken care of during Seattle’s first-round playoff bye week in January, when he signed a four-year, $104.4 million extension. That deal made him the NFL’s third-highest-paid left tackle and keeps him under contract through 2030. Leonard Williams also got a new three-year, $90 million pact last week, putting him tied for fifth among defensive tackles and under contract through 2029.
Seattle didn’t stop there. Rashid Shaheed signed a three-year, $51 million deal in March, and Derick Hall landed a three-year, $42 million extension in June. Shaheed is now signed through 2028, while Hall is tied to the Seahawks through 2029.
Even after all that spending, the cap sheet still looks clean. Seattle has approximately $27.7 million in salary cap space for 2026, which ranks 11th in the NFL according to Over The Cap.
A major reason is the Seahawks’ league-low $2.3 million in dead money. The median NFL team sits at about $38.6 million in dead money, so Seattle’s number stands out.
That flexibility gives the Seahawks room to keep thinking ahead. Of the 36 projected starters and top rotational or special teams players listed for 2026, 27 are already under contract through at least 2027, and three more are under team control through 2027 as restricted or exclusive rights free agents.
The longest-term pieces are Smith-Njigba and Witherspoon through 2031, followed by Cross through 2030. Williams, Derick Hall, Jadarian Price and Michael Dickson are signed through 2029. A second tier includes Nick Emmanwori, Grey Zabel, Abraham Lucas, Shaheed, Josh Jobe, Tory Horton, Elijah Arroyo and Rylie Mills, all under contract through 2028.
Another group is set through 2027: Sam Darnold, Byron Murphy II, AJ Barner, Ernest Jones IV, Julian Love, Cooper Kupp, Jarran Reed, Drake Thomas, Tyrice Knight, Jason Myers, Brady Russell and DeMarcus Lawrence, who is set to retire after 2026. Jalen Sundell is headed for exclusive rights free agency after 2026, while Ty Okada and George Holani are restricted free agents after 2026. Contracts for Uchenna Nwosu, Dante Fowler Jr., Zach Charbonnet, Anthony Bradford, Eric Saubert and Olu Oluwatimi expire after 2026.
The biggest extension watch starts with Darnold and Murphy. Darnold will be entering the final season of his three-year, $100.5 million deal, and he could be in line for something north of $50 million per year.
There are currently 12 quarterbacks above that annual mark. Murphy, meanwhile, is heading into the final year of his rookie contract and could push past $30 million per year if he lands among the league’s top defensive tackles.
Because Murphy was a first-round pick, Seattle could also use the fifth-year option on his rookie deal, the same approach it took with Smith-Njigba and Witherspoon this offseason.
Barner, Love and Jones also sit on the list of possible next-up extension candidates.
The cap outlook for 2027 remains workable, too. Seattle is sitting near the middle of the league with $31.6 million in cap space for that year.
Lawrence’s retirement after this season would remove $10.7 million from his 2027 cap charge, while the Seahawks could free up another $14 million by moving on from Kupp and $8 million by parting with Reed after this season. Both players are 33, but both are also described as core locker-room pieces whose value goes well beyond what they do on the field.
In Other News...
Seahawks Season Opener Just Picked Up An Ugly New Problem
A season opener that already carried the usual September pressure has picked up an unwelcome wrinkle for Seattle, with the NFL placing cornerback Terrion Arnold on the commissioners exempt list while his legal situation moves through the process. The league also put Denver linebacker Jonathon Cooper and Green Bay running back Josh Jacobs on the same list, a move that keeps those players away from games and practices for now even as they continue to be paid.
For the Seahawks, the immediate issue is less about the paperwork than the uncertainty around a key defensive piece as the opener approaches. The exempt list is designed to let investigations play out without forcing an on-field decision first, but it also leaves Seattle waiting for clarity on a situation that could affect the roster and the teams early-season plans. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Macdonald Brought One Harbaugh Trait Seattle Is Feeling Now
Mike Macdonald has made no secret of the coaching influences that helped shape him, and the Seahawks are starting to feel one of the clearest carryovers. He has spoken about learning leadership principles from Jim and John Harbaugh, and that outlook has shown up in the way he runs the team and pushes for more from his players. Seattles decision to bring in Jay Harbaugh as special teams coordinator only adds to that family connection, giving Macdonald another trusted voice with a strong resume of his own.
Jay Harbaugh arrives with experience that fits right into a program trying to build on a Super Bowl victory in Macdonalds second season. He has already won a Super Bowl with Seattle and a national championship with Michigan, which makes him a notable addition on a staff that values discipline and detail. The more interesting part for the Seahawks is how much of the Harbaugh approach is becoming visible in the daily work, and how far that influence can still take them. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Tryout Has One Small-School Pass Catcher Worth Watching
The Seahawks have spent the week taking a look at a cluster of tryout players at the VMAC, and the group includes a few pass catchers from smaller schools who fit the kind of under-the-radar profile teams often mine this time of year. Wide receivers and tight ends are in the mix, and names such as Chandler Brayboy, Marcus Sanders Jr. and Layne Pryor have surfaced as the most interesting ones to watch thanks to their athletic traits and, in some cases, prior practice squad exposure.
Seattles interest appears tied as much to special teams depth as to any immediate need on offense, which makes the tryout session worth tracking even if it does not produce a splashy addition. With roster spots always at a premium and the Seahawks still sorting through depth options, a signing could come soon, and one of these smaller-school prospects may have done enough to stick around a little longer. [Read more 🡒]