Seahawks Final Report Card: Did Defensive Tackle Group Exceed Expectations?

Though the Seattle Seahawks again finished near rock bottom defending the run, a revamped defensive interior up front led by Jarran Reed and Leonard Williams was the least of the team's concerns and emerged as one of the team's most consistent groups.

Despite finishing with a winning record for a second straight season, the Seattle Seahawks weren't fortunate enough to earn a playoff spot in 2023, bringing a disappointing season to a close earlier than expected.

Before the start of the season, even after signing Dre'Mont Jones and Jarran Reed in free agency as part of a full-scale shake up, defensive tackle stood out as a potential Achilles heel for Seattle. But while the run defense remained a sieve for much of the year, the defensive interior up front surprisingly performed quite well, with the addition of Leonard Williams further bolstering the unit in the second half.

In part two of my annual post-season report card series, I hand out my year-end grades with areas of strength and areas of improvement while taking a look into the crystal ball to see what's next for the Seahawks in the defensive trenches.

*All stats courtesy of Pro Football Focus unless otherwise noted.

Dre'Mont Jones

Overall Grade: 70.0

Areas of Strength: Nearly equaling his career-high set in 2022 with the Broncos, Jones continued to be effective harassing quarterbacks in his first season with the Seahawks, tallying 44 total pressures to rank 21st among defensive tackles in that category. Based on PFF's Pass Rush Productivity metric, he ranked 20th in his position group (9.6) on true passing sets, and according to Pro Football Reference, he set a new personal best with 12 quarterback hits on the season. When he got his hands on ball carriers, he excelled at getting them to the ground, posting only three missed tackles on 762 defensive snaps.

Dre'Mont Jones quietly had a very strong game on Sunday for #Seahawks. Couple of nice run stops to go with partial sack while moving all over the line. pic.twitter.com/izVXUupcsS

— Corbin K. Smith (@CorbinSmithNFL) November 14, 2023

Areas of Improvement: Away from pressures, Jones' first season in the Pacific Northwest largely proved to be a forgettable one after signing a massive three-year, $51 million contract in March. He only registered 4.5 sacks and five tackles for loss, his lowest totals in both categories since his rookie season, while playing in all 17 games for the first time in his career. As a run defender, he finished with just seven run stops per PFF, the fewest of any interior lineman on the team with at least 100 run defense snaps, and his average depth of tackle (4.3 yards) ranked dead last out of 68 qualified defensive tackles this season.

Jarran Reed

Overall Grade: 86.0

Areas of Strength: Enjoying quite the resurgence in his return to the Emerald City, Reed re-emerged as a potent interior pass rusher and provided invaluable leadership for the Seahawks. Ranking second on the team behind Boye Mafe, he finished with seven sacks, the second-highest total of his career and most since he recorded 10.5 sacks in 2018. Per PFF, his 43 quarterback pressures ranked 22nd among defensive tackles and he tied for 11th with two batted passes at the line of scrimmage. He also made a substantial impact as a run defender for Seattle, finishing 12th among defensive tackles in run stops (27) while producing 44 combined tackles on run plays for the season.

There weren't many positives for #Seahawks defense on Sunday, but Jarran Reed continued making plays and was active in the middle, including blowing up this run play with a quick arm over move off the snap. pic.twitter.com/KQyxM393PP

— Corbin K. Smith (@CorbinSmithNFL) January 3, 2024

Areas of Improvement: While Reed played quite well for most of the season, the veteran defender did have issues leaving tackles on the field. His six missed tackles on run plays tied for sixth-worst among defensive tackles and his 12 percent missed tackle rate ranked 12th-worst out of 68 players. Like Jones, he also ranked near the bottom of the league in average depth per tackle (2.4), though he was significantly better in that department than his teammate.

Leonard Williams

Overall Grade: 85.0

Areas of Strength: Acquired at the trade deadline to bolster Seattle's defensive line, Williams lived up to high expectations despite the team struggling to win games after his arrival. From his team debut in Week 9 until the season finale, he ranked 10th among defensive tackles with 32 pressures, tied for 14th with four sacks, and finished 16th in PFF's Pass Rush Productivity metric (6.8). Accounting for true pass sets, he performed even better, ranking 10th overall in Pass Rush Productivity (12.1) and 18th in win rate (17.2).

Even as the rest of the defense around him crumbled against the run, Williams also thrived slowing down opposing rushing attacks, consistently penetrating his way into the backfield. After making just one tackle for loss with the Giants in the first eight games, he racked up nine tackles for loss after joining the Seahawks and finished tied for 18th in run stops in the final 10 games of the season.

Areas of Improvement: Williams occasionally got pushed around at the line of scrimmage, which resulted in a sub-par average depth of tackle (3.0) that ranked 44th out of 53 defensive tackles. Missed tackles also were a bit of a problem for him in his partial season in Seattle, as PFF charged him with four missed tackles and a 12.5 percent missed tackle rate after the trade.

Mario Edwards

Overall Grade: 75.0

Areas of Strength: Signed in early May, Edwards gave the Seahawks unexpected juice as a pass rusher in limited opportunities primarily playing 3-tech alignment. On 225 passing snaps, he generated 22 pressures, a batted pass, and a forced fumble while posting a respectable 11.7 percent win rate. Out of 128 defensive tackles with at least 115 snaps on passing downs this season, he earned PFF's 15th best pass rushing grade and ranked 35th in Pass Rush Productivity and 36th in win rate.

Areas of Improvement: While Edwards ranked in the top 20 among qualified defensive tackles in average depth of tackle (1.5) defending the run and posted quality pass rushing numbers, he didn't provide many impact plays in the trenches. He converted his 20-plus pressures into only two sacks and finished with just six quarterback hits, nearly half of his 11 from the season prior with the Titans.

Cameron Young

Overall Grade: 70.0

Areas of Strength: Logging 101 run defense snaps in his first NFL season, Young packed some punch at the line of scrimmage as a reserve nose tackle. Per PFF, he finished with 10 run stops and a team-best 9.9 percent run stop rate, which ranked 19th out of 143 qualified defensive tackles.

Areas of Improvement: Young had trouble finishing plays as a rookie, posting a 19 percent missed tackle rate, the seventh-worst out of 143 players. As expected given his minimal pass rushing production in college, he only produced three pressures on 100 passing snaps with a 5.3 percent win rate.

Myles Adams

Overall Grade: 75.0

Areas of Strength: Though he didn't play much in the second half of the season after Williams arrived, Adams used his athleticism to his advantage as an interior rusher when granted the opportunity to suit up. On 61 pass rushing snaps, he produced six pressures and a sack while posting an excellent 16.7 percent win rate. He also didn't miss any tackles in his abbreviated action.

Areas of Improvement: Albeit a tiny sample size with only 26 snaps defending the run, Adams received a 36.6 grade from PFF with just one tackle.

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What's Next?

After completely turning over their defensive tackle group last offseason with solid results, the Seahawks should have some continuity in the trenches in 2024. Though his first season with the team should be viewed as a disappointment overall, Jones likely isn't going anywhere with two years remaining on his contract, while Reed also is under contract for one more season at a reasonable $5.97 million to anchor the front line. The team will also be counting on growth from Young and Mike Morris, who missed all but one game with a shoulder injury as a rookie.

'Played Out Perfect': Leonard Williams Keeps Coming Up Big as Seahawks Clip Eagles

As far as question marks go, Williams will now become an unrestricted free agent, potentially turning into an expensive rental after Seattle gave up a second and fifth-round pick to acquire him in October. Based on comments from coach Pete Carroll, the team intends to re-sign the veteran, but that may be tricky due to a tight salary cap situation and moves will need to be made to create enough space to facilitate a multi-year extension. Edwards also has an expiring contract, but he should be far more affordable to bring back as a depth piece if necessary.

It also remains to be seen whether or not nose tackle Bryan Mone, who missed the entire season recovering from a torn ACL, will be able to return as a contributor. His status will be worth monitoring in coming months, but even if he's healthy and able to return to action, adding size to the interior in free agency and/or the draft should be a top priority for the front office.

Previous Seahawks Report Cards: Quarterback