Speaking of Jamal Adams, let’s look at the current state of the Seahawks’ roster because it’s not great, which is to be expected when you draft as poorly in the early rounds as they have.
Seattle’s core building blocks are currently wide receivers D.K. Metcalf and Lockett, Jamal Adams — a safety they traded multiple first-round picks for — and maybe pass rusher Darrell Taylor, one of Schneider’s rare hits in recent drafts.
That’s pretty much it. They have some solid role players, but their two best offensive linemen are on the wrong side of 30, their secondary is far from its Legion of Boom days, and the quarterback room reads like a listicle article titled “Draft Twitter’s Favorite Busts.”
Schneider hasn’t drafted well, and the current roster isn’t anything to write home about either. What about the cap? I mean Seattle must be in good shape there since they’ve got so many lesser known players on the roster.
Nope.
Seattle currently owns the highest dead cap space hit in the NFL. Most of that is coming from the Wilson deal, and the numbers will likely change a bit during the offseason, but it doesn’t exactly bode well for a team trying to make a quick turnaround.
Wilson’s dead cap hit was likely unavoidable for Schneider since Wilson wanted out of Seattle so badly, but it doesn’t make things any better for him or the team. Given that his bad decision making helped push a bonafide franchise quarterback out in the first place, I find it hard to feel sorry for him.
To his credit, Schneider has spent some money in free agency this year to improve the team. Bringing back players like Quandre Diggs, Sidney Jones, and Al Woods is solid. Adding Uchenna Nwosu at linebacker and Austin Blythe at center makes a ton of sense. They will all make the Seahawks better. I just don’t think they make the Seahawks a legitimate contender. This roster is constructed like a team treading water, at best.
Seattle’s roster, recent draft history, and cap situation screams rebuild, yet the Seahawks are screaming win now by keeping around the architects of the team’s fall from grace.
Half measures are, rarely, if ever successful in the NFL. Quarterback, head coach, and general manager represent the three foundational pillars of every organization. Seattle’s best one is gone, and the other two have been crumbling for years.
I understand it is hard to move on from arguably the team’s greatest ever duo of decision makers, but it’s the right time. Seattle’s championship window has closed, and I’d argue Carroll and Schneider are the ones that slammed it shut.
Betting on them to open it again with their recent track record is looking less and less likely every day.
