The Seattle Seahawks offseason saw many key contributors leave for other organizations, but the results have presented major cap savings as well as future draft capital.
General manager John Schneider lived through previous eras of turnover with the Seattle Seahawks, so he uses a lot of experience with these types of decisions. The Seahawks actually retained most of their own free agents outside of a few expensive options.
The Seahawks currently hold just a little over $25 million in cap space after the Dante Fowler signing. Accounting for the $10 million used for the practice squad and injury replacement players, they only have about $15 million to spend. However, that is a significant amount compared to other NFL franchises.
Key Departures for Seattle Seahawks Cap Savings
GettyKenneth Walker III’s new contract ranks as one of the highest among running backs.
Kenneth Walker III (Kansas City Chiefs): Signed a three year $43.05 million contract with $28.7 million guaranteed. With how the Seahawks constructed their roster, Walker leaving Seattle became inevitable. Paying a running back that much money feels unwise regarding the Seahawk’s other future obligations.
Boye Mafe (Cincinnati Bengals): Signed a three year $60 million contract with $19 million guaranteed. The Seahawks letting Mafe walk for this price makes sense given that he participated as a rotational pass rusher in 2025.
Coby Bryant (Chicago Bears): Signed a three year $40 million contract with $25.75 guaranteed. While Bryant performed greatly in 2025, the Seahawks still roster Ty Okada. Okada comes at a much cheaper rate and played at a similar level as Bryant in 2025.
Riq Woolen (Philadelphia Eagles): Signed a one year $12 million fully guaranteed contract with one $8 million void year in 2027. While Woolen played a significant role in dime sets, Josh Jobe overtook his place in the starting nickel lineup early in the season.
Overall, the Seahawks avoided over $150 million in total contracts on their books. Seattle also obtains compensatory picks for letting these players leave. Over the Cap projects the Seahawks earning a fourth round pick and three fifth round picks.
Key Additions for Seattle Seahawks
GettyCompared to the price of Boye Mafe, Dante Fowler signifies a massive bargain for an edge rusher.
Dante Fowler (free agent): Signed a one year $5 million contract. The Seahawks still need to release the official numbers, but expect a maximum cap hit of $5 million. Compared to the $20 million rate for Mafe, Fowler at $5 million seems like easy savings.
Jadarian Price (first round draft pick): Being the 32nd overall pick, Price should obtain a 4-year $16.78 million. Compared to Walker’s contract, Price on a rookie deal should look like a steal if he’s productive.
Bud Clark (second round draft pick): Being the 64th overall pick, Clark should obtain an $8 million deal. With Clark set to split the positions that Okada did with Bryant, they save over $10-11 million a year in cap space.
Julian Neal (third round draft pick): Being the 96th overall pick, Neal earned a $6.69 million contract with $1.3 million guaranteed. In this season alone, Neal will cost almost $10-11 million less than Woolen.
In total (as tabulated by Tyler Aslin of Field Gulls), the Seahawks let $155 million in total maximum value go while replacing that with $36.48 million, a total surplus of $118.52 million in cap savings.
Overall, the Seahawks accomplished their offseason goals of cost-effectively recreating their roster. Now they’ll just have to see how that translates on the field this season and moving forward.
Seattle Seahawks Cap Savings Showcase Schneider’s Brilliance