PHOENIX \u2014 As the Super Bowl champions, the Seattle Seahawks had less work to do than most entering the offseason. The first few waves of free agency are in the books, and there are only a few weeks remaining before the Seahawks are on the clock in the 2026 NFL Draft.<\/p>\n
Seattle has already checked many of the boxes on its offseason to-do list, including a new deal for Jaxon Smith-Njigba<\/a>, who is now the highest-paid receiver in NFL history. Here\u2019s what\u2019s next for the Seahawks.<\/p>\n Devon Witherspoon deal<\/p>\n The Seahawks exercised the fifth-year option in Devon Witherspoon\u2019s contract<\/a>, putting him on the books in 2027 for $21.2 million. Witherspoon is due $1.1 million in base salary this season and has a 2026 salary-cap hit of $10.1 million, according to Over the Cap.<\/p>\n Like Smith-Njigba, Witherspoon is due for a massive pay raise. The 25-year-old defensive back has been named to the Pro Bowl on the original ballot in each of his first three seasons and was voted second-team All-Pro in 2025.<\/p>\n The four highest-paid cornerbacks by average annual salary are Trent McDuffie of the Los Angeles Rams ($31 million), Sauce Gardner of the Indianapolis Colts ($30.1 million), Derek Stingley Jr. of the Houston Texans ($30 million) and Jaycee Horn of the Carolina Panthers ($25 million).<\/p>\n An extension for Witherspoon should land somewhere in that range. This would lock him up long term without putting much of a dent in Seattle\u2019s 2026 salary-cap space. For instance, Smith-Njigba\u2019s cap number is just $10.4 million this year.<\/p>\n Seattle can extend Witherspoon at any time, but the logic the team applied to negotiating Smith-Njigba\u2019s deal in the spring can be applied to his 2023 draft classmate<\/a> as well. One of the benefits of agreeing to a deal sooner rather than later is getting ahead of any changes to the top of the market.<\/p>\n In Witherspoon\u2019s case, a name to monitor is New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez. He was also drafted in 2023 and has a fifth-year option in his deal, but he\u2019s proven to be worth a long-term extension.<\/p>\n Witherspoon and Smith-Njigba are two of the team\u2019s best players, and the way they carry themselves helps set the standard for the locker room. Soon, they\u2019ll be two of the team\u2019s richest players as well.<\/p>\n \u201cI think what gets lost is what their role is as leaders on our team and how young they are,\u201d coach Mike Macdonald said of Witherspoon and Smith-Njigba at the NFL\u2019s annual spring meetings in Phoenix. \u201cThat\u2019s a unique combination of their impact on the team, but also, they\u2019ve only been here three years, so the opportunity to really lay a great foundation for the next 10 years is there. It\u2019s really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n Add another edge rusher<\/p>\n The Seahawks addressed most of their free-agent losses by adding external talent. After running back Ken Walker III, safety Coby Bryant and cornerback Riq Woolen signed elsewhere, Seattle brought in running back Emanuel Wilson, safety Rodney Thomas II and cornerback Noah Igbinoghene. Those three external free-agent signees aren\u2019t guaranteed to replace the players Seattle lost, but it was clear the team wanted to have another veteran in those position groups at least.<\/p>\n The one position the Seahawks didn\u2019t add was outside linebacker, a group that lost Boye Mafe to the Cincinnati Bengals.<\/p>\n \u201cIf there was a right opportunity, we probably would have done it,\u201d Macdonald said. \u201cThe right matchup hasn\u2019t happened yet. It\u2019s one of those things like, don\u2019t press it, and maybe there will be another (opportunity), either through the draft, maybe after the draft, free agency or something through training camp, or our guys rocking and rolling and they play great, and we\u2019ll roll with the guys we have.\u201d<\/p>\n The Seahawks are set to bring back their top three edge rushers from last season \u2014 DeMarcus Lawrence, Uchenna Nwosu and Derick Hall \u2014 along with a handful of seldom-used backups like Jared Ivey, Connor O\u2019Toole and Jamie Sheriff. Mike Morris and 2025 fifth-round pick Rylie Mills are hybrid linemen with positional flexibility, but in terms of body type and usage, they\u2019re closer to Leonard Williams than to Mafe.<\/p>\n Mafe didn\u2019t post great stats in 2025, but he still secured a three-year, $60 million contract on the open market because the Bengals saw the same traits Seattle liked about its 2022 second-round pick: speed and explosiveness off the edge.<\/p>\n \u201cSacks are a little bit overrated,\u201d Macdonald said. \u201cThe best thing that Boye does is quick wins, early, which is something that you need. You need to affect the quarterback fast. Can he finish a little bit better? Yeah, absolutely. But if you get somebody off the spot, that means somebody else is probably making that play. We\u2019re gonna miss him.\u201d<\/p>\n The Seahawks are not in a position where their first pick in the draft must be a pass rusher, but selecting one in the first or second round would make a lot of sense given the current makeup of the roster. Additionally, Lawrence is the only edge rusher from last year\u2019s rotation who is under contract beyond 2026 (extending Hall would change that, but for now, he\u2019s on an expiring deal).<\/p>\n