Seahawks 90-Man Countdown: CB Isaiah Dunn - Gunning For Gunner Role?

After finding his way back to the Pacific Northwest with the Seattle Seahawks last season, former Oregon State standout Isaiah Dunn will have his work cut out for him competing in a talented cornerback room now featuring Devon Witherspoon.

Corbin K. Smith | Jun 20, 2023

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Seattle Seahawks

With the calendar flipping to June and offseason activities wrapping up league-wide, the Seattle Seahawks will open training camp at the VMAC in less than two months, officially ushering in the 2023 season.

To celebrate the new incoming season, we'll be detailing every member of the Seahawks 90-man roster over the next several weeks, exploring best and worst case scenarios and what to expect from each player entering the 2023 campaign.

Isaiah Dunn, Cornerback

Height/Weight: 6-0, 193 pounds

2022 Stats: Three tackles

A multi-year starter at Oregon State, Dunn appeared in 33 games and amassed 115 tackles and 18 passes defensed in his college career. After going undrafted in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Jets signed him as a priority free agent and following an impressive preseason, he earned a spot on the 53-man roster, appearing in 12 games with one start while registering eight tackles and two pass breakups. Unfortunately, with the arrival of top-five pick Sauce Gardner and former Seahawks starter D.J. Reed, he became expendable and the team waived him last August.

Claimed off waivers by Seattle, Dunn dressed for five regular season games with his new team before landing on injured reserve with a hamstring injury. Inactive for the rest of the season, he finished with a trio of special teams tackles and played one defensive snap in a Week 4 win over Detroit.

Best-Case Scenario: While defensive snaps are hard to come by with Tariq Woolen, Mike Jackson, Devon Witherspoon, and Tre Brown all ahead of him, Dunn makes several impressive tackles on kick and punt coverage during the preseason, making a name for himself as a gunner and locking up one of the final roster spots.

Worst-Case Scenario: Outnumbered in arguably the deepest, most talented position group on Seattle's entire roster, Dunn only sees a handful of defensive snaps in the preseason and with several undrafted free agents standing out, he isn't brought back to the practice squad after being waived in August.

What to Expect in 2023: As a rookie in New York, Dunn flashed playing 115 defensive snaps, including generating pass breakups on his first two NFL targets and posting a perfect 100 percent tackling efficiency. However, he also played like an undrafted rookie at times, particularly in his lone start against Miami when he allowed a 65-yard touchdown and 106 yards on four receptions in coverage. Those miscues coupled with major personnel additions led to his eventual departure and now, he faces a similar situation in Seattle.

While only 24 years old and possessing untapped upside, Witherspoon's arrival and Brown's return to health will make it quite challenging for Dunn to move back onto the right side of the roster bubble. Barring injuries or a dominant training camp on special teams that leads to one of the final spots, he likely will be a practice squad candidate for the Seahawks or land with another team by September.

Previous Seahawks 90-Man Profiles

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Published Jun 20, 2023

CORBIN K. SMITH

Graduating from Manchester College in 2012, Smith began his professional career as a high school Economics teacher in Indianapolis and launched his own NFL website covering the Seahawks as a hobby. After teaching and coaching high school football for five years, he transitioned to a full-time sports reporter in 2017, writing for USA Today's Seahawks Wire while continuing to produce the Legion of 12 podcast. He joined the Arena Group in August 2018 and also currently hosts the daily Locked On Seahawks podcast with Rob Rang and Nick Lee. Away from his coverage of the Seahawks and the NFL, Smith dabbles in standup comedy, is a heavy metal enthusiast and previously performed as lead vocalist for a metal band, and enjoys distance running and weight lifting. A habitual commuter, he resides with his wife Natalia in Colorado and spends extensive time reporting from his second residence in the Pacific Northwest.