This is exciting news!
Here’s the deal: the New York Giants sent Leonard Williams; the Seahawks sent a 2nd round pick in 2024 and a 5th round pick in 2025. The Giants are also paying the lion’s share of Williams’ remaining salary, which means the Seahawks only have to pay the pro-rated portion of the veteran minimum, or around $647K.
It’s not an insignificant price for the Seahawks. A second round pick for a guy on the final year of his deal isn’t nothing. But, given our cap situation, it was a necessary one if we wanted to make this upgrade along the interior of our defensive line. The rationale – if any face-saving is to be had post-2023 – is that the Seahawks could be in line for a compensatory 4th or even 3rd round pick next year, should Williams sign with another team next year.
Of course, that would mean we don’t bring in too many outside free agents to negate that possibility. That would also mean he doesn’t suffer a significant injury, or otherwise play himself into a lower-than-expected new contract. Don’t forget the whole Sheldon Richardson debacle. Part of the appeal of giving up a second rounder to the Jets was the likelihood that he would kick ass in Seattle and sign a huge deal the following year. He ended up sucking and had to settle for a prove-it deal that netted us nothing in compensatory picks. Since then, I’ve stopped believing in those things, taking more of an I’ll Believe It When I See It approach.
That would also mean, not for nothing, that the Seahawks don’t find a way to extend Williams after the season, or even sometime during this season, if he plays well and we can fit him into our future plans!
But, enough about that. This is clearly a move designed to win NOW, and I for one couldn’t be more thrilled.
Are we a Leonard Williams away from being a Super Bowl contender? That remains to be seen. Even with him, and even with an inordinate amount of good injury luck the rest of the way, it’s probably iffy at best. But this shores up what could be argued as our biggest weakness.
For what it’s worth, I don’t like the word “weakness” when it comes to our D-Line. I think our D-Line has been solid-to-good this year as it is. But, Williams playing at his best could take the D-Line from good-to-great, and that’s vital if we do want to be a Super Bowl contender. I would argue we weren’t one before; now, at least we have the potential to be.
An interior with Williams, Jones, and Reed is as good as it gets, across the board. There’s no one uber-stud, but three very good players, with little drop-off behind them. Throw in our outside guys – Clark, Edwards, Mafe, Hall, Taylor – along with Wagner and Brooks, and you’ve got a front seven that’s pretty remarkable. The secondary has been coming along nicely since Witherspoon, Woolen, and Adams have gotten healthier, so there’s really not a weak link on that side of the ball.
It could be argued – especially as the offensive line gets healthier – that the biggest “weakness” on this team is Geno Smith (depending on your opinion of Jason Myers). But, at this point, as long as we don’t suffer a rash of injuries to our best guys, Geno Smith shouldn’t be the reason why we don’t contend for a Super Bowl. That’s not a huge ringing endorsement of his abilities, but if he plays within himself, the Seahawks have as good a chance as anyone to go all the way.
It’s interesting, because part of me still feels like the Seahawks are a year away. Another small part of me feels like the Seahawks are infinity away, because Geno Smith will never be the guy to take us all the way. I guess we’ll see. But, with the addition of Williams, this is as good as this roster has been – top to bottom – since 2015. I don’t know if this team could hang with that team, but it can certainly hang with what the NFC is trotting out there in 2023.
Leonard Williams is great. He’s got 39.5 career sacks, spanning 8 and a half seasons. He’s ranged anywhere from 0.5 to 11.5 sacks per year, which is quite the span. He’s got 1.5 sacks so far this year, but is coming off of an excellent three-game stretch, where the Giants have really picked it up on that side of the ball. Williams is no small part of that; even when he’s not filling up the stat sheet, he’s commanding enough attention to open up opportunities for others around him. He’s also, obviously, got a lot of incentive to continue being great, given his free agent status at season’s end. And, I’m sure there will be a considerable morale boost going from a 2-win Giants team that just lost to the Jets, to a 5-win Seahawks team currently sitting in first place in the NFC West.
And, like I said, there’s always a chance we could keep him around, if he has a good time here and we’re able to pony up the dough. Jarran Reed is under contract for a very reasonable amount next year (he could also be cut with a low dead cap hit). We might want to wrap up Boye Mafe before he hits his final year in 2024; that could buy us a little savings. Jordyn Brooks will be a free agent, and could command a lot of attention, but he’s still an inside linebacker, and they don’t necessarily break the bank. My point is – without knowing every single in and out of the Seahawks’ cap situation next year – I think we should have some wiggle room if Williams proves he’s worthy of being a part of this thing going forward. It’s always better, in this case, to have the guy in your system ahead of time, to know for sure if he’s a fit. This is a win all the way around, in my book.