K.J. Wright or Richard Sherman, which Seahawks legend would you sign?
By Mookie Alexander@mookiealexander Jul 6, 2021, 11:53am PDT
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Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images
Let's do a fun little exercise that will most likely end up with the Seattle Seahawks choosing "neither."
K.J. Wright remains a free agent a month out from the start of the 2021 NFL preseason. I love K.J. and so do all of you, but it's clear the market value for an off-ball 4-3 linebacker on the wrong side of 30 is virtually non-existent. It sucks but it's true. Seattle has "left the door open" for a return but that's almost always code for "he's not coming back."
Meanwhile, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler kept afloat the potential for a reunion between the Seahawks and cornerback Richard Sherman alive, although there haven't been any reports of serious talks materializing. Sherman is also a free agent after three seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, but the 33-year-old is coming off a very injury-riddled 2020 on what was an injury-riddled team. Your mileage may vary on PFF grades but his 67.7 was the worst of his career, albeit on a five-game sample size.
The Seahawks' cornerback situation is an interesting one if largely because they are arguably overloaded with at least capable slot options — if only the 2019 team had this much depth. Ugo Amadi, Marquise Blair, and D.J. Reed can all play the slot but Reed is the one who impressed when he moved to the outside in place of the injured Tre Flowers. It's projected that Reed and Ahkello Witherspoon will be the Week 1 starters, but the notable depth of Flowers, Pierre Desir, and rookie Tre Brown has some fans a bit nervous.
On the linebacker front, we have grown accustomed to seeing Wright alongside Bobby Wagner since 2012. That appears to be over and done with for 2021 and it's second-year player Jordyn Brooks' time to shine. But beyond Wagner and Brooks are predominantly special teamers Cody Barton and Ben Burr-Kirven, then a whole lot of camp fodder. Darrell Taylor and Benson Mayowa are both lined up for linebacker snaps, particularly at the SAM position so that's worth monitoring, but we know nothing of Taylor in that role at an NFL level because he's literally not played a snap yet.
My belief is that the Seahawks will largely stick with what they have, which means not re-signing Wright and not bringing back Sherm. It seems more than notable that no one else has really made a major play for Sherman either and I have to think the injury concerns and his age are both major factors. If you gave me the choice of one or the other I'd actually pick Wright, as while the Seahawks' outside CB depth is not ideal, my concern is that there's a greater potential for Sherman to drop off into a shell of himself than for KJ, who was outstanding last season.
But I'm not giving you a neither option because that's not the point of this poll. You are choosing one over the other for what you believe to be the betterment of this roster.
You can sign one but not the other, which one are you choosing?
KJ Wright
(1613 votes)
Richard Sherman