Notable former Seahawks still on the free agent market

We’re two weeks into NFL free agency and while the majority of the top names on the market have either been re-signed or signed with other teams, there are still a few familiar faces yet to find a home.

There are some players with previous ties to the Seattle Seahawks worth highlighting as we near the start of April, and I’m going to note them here! Now the obvious thing to point out is that we have some of our own free agents like K.J. Wright yet to be signed or re-signed, but Wright isn’t a former Seahawk until he actually goes elsewhere. Everyone on this list played for someone else last season.

Richard Sherman. The future Hall of Fame cornerback spent the past three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers but found himself on the sidelines for much of 2020 due to injury. There have been murmurs about a reunion between Sherm and the Seahawks but that’s all there is to it. The most recent news I’ve found on Sherman was a reported visit with the New Orleans Saints, where Kris Richard is now an assistant coach.

Golden Tate. Tate had his best statistical years with the Detroit Lions but he’s not been able to come close to matching those numbers in his brief stints with the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants. His 2020 saw him catch just 35 passes for 388 yards and 2 touchdowns, and needless to say things weren’t smooth in the Meadowlands. I did see this on Twitter though...

Jadeveon Clowney. Well this was someone who dominated offseason headlines last year. Would he re-sign? Who was he visiting with? How much money would he command? And then he chose the Tennessee Titans and was staggeringly ineffective, injured, and went on IR with zero sacks on the season. Clowney visited the Cleveland Browns a few days ago but he otherwise remains a free agent. Seattle presumably is out of the running just by bringing back Dunlap and signing Kerry Hyder Jr.

Russell Okung. After leaving the Seahawks in 2016, Okung took a one-year deal with the Denver Broncos and turned his first fully healthy season into a four-year, $53 million contract with the Los Angeles Chargers. Okung was traded to the Carolina Panthers last season and started just seven games at his usual left tackle spot. In the preceding year he missed more than half the season with blood clots in his lungs, which can be fatal. Okung is 32 now and he’s clearly in the twilight of his career, and no doubt his health needs to be his main focus.

James Carpenter. The former tackle turned guard spent the last two years with the Atlanta Falcons, only to be released earlier this month. He left Seattle in 2015 to go to the New York Jets. Seattle has enough guard depth that I don’t really think any reunion with Carpenter is in the works.

Joey Hunt. Former backup center turned starter after Justin Britt’s 2019 season-ending ACL tear. He was signed off the street by the Indianapolis Colts last season but only played a handful of snaps.