The Seattle Seahawks added a player from their next opponent less than 24 hours before the teams meet.
Seattle claimed offensive tackle Kellen Diesch off waivers from the Kansas City Chiefs on August 27, the Seahawks announced. Kansas City had waived Diesch a day earlier, ending a brief stint with the Chiefs that began only last week.
The timing adds some intrigue to what otherwise looks like a depth move. Seattle travels to Arrowhead Stadium to face Kansas City in its preseason finale on Friday, August 28, with kickoff scheduled for 5 p.m. Pacific.
Seattle waived linebacker Chris Paul Jr. with an injury designation to make room for Diesch on the 90-man roster. Paul will revert to injured reserve if he clears waivers, according to the Seahawks.
Kellen Diesch Gets Another NFL Opportunity With Seahawks
Diesch, 26, has taken a long route to Seattle.
The 6-foot-7, 300-pound tackle went undrafted out of Arizona State in 2022 before signing with the Miami Dolphins. He has since spent time with the Chicago Bears, Pittsburgh Steelers, Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans without appearing in a regular-season NFL game.
His most recent extended playing time came outside the NFL.
Kansas City noted after signing Diesch that he had played 274 offensive snaps for the Louisville Kings of the United Football League, helping the team win a league championship earlier this summer. The Chiefs signed him on August 19 after waiving tackle Matt Waletzko with an injury designation.
Diesch’s stay in Kansas City lasted just one week. The Chiefs waived him August 26, the same day they acquired offensive lineman Joshua Ezeudu in a trade with the New York Giants.
Now he immediately gets another chance with Seattle — and his first trip with his new team takes him straight back to Kansas City.
Seahawks’ Offensive Line Leaves Diesch Fighting for a Depth Role
Diesch is joining a much different Seahawks offensive line than the one that entered recent seasons surrounded by questions.
Seattle returned all five starters from its Super Bowl-winning 2025 team: Charles Cross, Grey Zabel, Jalen Sundell, Anthony Bradford and Abraham Lucas. The group allowed only 27 sacks last season, tied for fifth-fewest in the NFL.
That means Diesch isn’t being brought in with an obvious path to a starting job.
Cross and Lucas remain Seattle’s starting tackles, while the Seahawks’ depth chart also lists Josh Jones and Amari Kight behind Cross and Bobby Hart and Logan Brown behind Lucas.
For Diesch, the immediate objective is more likely to be convincing Seattle he belongs somewhere in that depth picture as NFL rosters move toward the regular season.
And for the Seahawks, there is little downside in getting another look at an experienced tackle who just finished a championship run in the UFL.
The twist is that Seattle’s newest offensive lineman was preparing with Kansas City only days before the Seahawks’ final preseason test.
Seattle Faces Kansas City Twice in 2026
Friday won’t be the last Seahawks-Chiefs meeting this year.
Seattle is scheduled to host Kansas City in a regular-season Sunday night game on October 25, giving the teams a second matchup less than two months after the preseason finale. The Seahawks open the regular season September 9 against the New England Patriots.
Whether Diesch remains on the roster long enough to see either of those games will depend on how quickly he can make an impression in a crowded offensive-line room.
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