The Seattle Seahawks will look remarkably different in 2024 as the franchise is releasing three projected starters: Jamal Adams, Will Dissly and Quandre Diggs. Seattle officially announced the three roster cuts hours after reports surfaced that the Seahawks were moving on from the veterans.
“It’s a standard release with Jamal Adams, I’m told. Not a post-June 1,” ESPN’s Brady Henderson detailed in a March 5, 2024 message on X. “That means the Seahawks will eat all the dead money in 2024. Seattle is also releasing Quandre Diggs and Will Dissly, as @TomPelissero reported.”
Adams’ release had appeared likely, but Diggs’ future was more uncertain given his consistency on the field. The three-time Pro-Bowler had been a highly productive player since Seattle acquired Diggs from the Detroit Lions in a 2019 mid-season trade.
Seahawks News: 3-Time Pro Bowler Quandre Diggs Was Slated to Enter Final Season of 3-Year, $39 Million Deal
The two safeties represent Seahawks trades that resulted in wildly different outcomes. Seattle landed Diggs and a seventh rounder in exchange for a fifth-round pick. This turned out to be one of the great bargain deals of the John Schneider-Pete Carroll era.
Diggs went on to make three straight Pro Bowls from 2020 to 2022. The veteran was slated to enter the final season of a three-year, $39 million contract in 2024.
The only question regarding Adams’ future is whether the presence of new head coach Mike Macdonald could buy the safety another season in Seattle. Adams was scheduled to have a $16.5 million salary along with a massive $26.9 million cap hit in 2024.
The former Pro Bowler had two seasons remaining on a four-year, $70.5 million contract. Seattle takes a $20.8 million dead cap hit with the release of Adams but still saves more than $6 million in room, per Spotrac. It also allows the Seahawks not to be responsible for Adams’ contract in 2025.
The Seahawks Blockbuster Trade With the Jets for Jamal Adams Proved to be a Disaster
The blockbuster deal for Adams during the 2020 offseason will go down as one of the worst trades in Seahawks history. Unfortunately, Adams’ four seasons in Seattle will be defined by injuries. The Seahawks gave up two first-round picks, a third rounder and safety Bradley McDougald in exchange for Adams as well as a fourth-round selection.
Adams played in just a combined 10 games over the last two seasons. The safety missed at least four games in all four of his seasons in Seattle.
Adams posted 48 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 2 quarterback hits and 2 pass deflections during his 9 starts in 2023. The safety set a career-high with 9.5 sacks in 2020. Adams has not recorded a sack in any of the last three seasons.
Quandre Diggs on Seahawks’ Release: ‘Forever Grateful’
Diggs broke the news of his release with a two-word cryptic message on X. Minutes later, league insiders revealed that Diggs, Adams and Dissly were all being released. The post is already approaching one million views just hours after the message appeared.
“Forever grateful,” Diggs noted in a March 5 message on X.
These are challenging days for the franchise, but it is not all bad news in Seattle. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that releasing the three veterans created an estimated $34.5 million in cap space. Macdonald and Schneider now have a good bit of cap space to help reconstruct the Seahawks roster.
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Seahawks Cut $39 Million 3-Time Pro Bowler & TE After Jamal Adams Move