Seahawks Waive 5 Players to Start Offseason Program

Doing some mid-April house cleaning before workouts get underway, the Seattle Seahawks cut five former practice squad players, creating further depth issues at running back and defensive tackle before the upcoming NFL draft.

Before opening the first phase of their offseason program on Monday, the Seattle Seahawks executed a bit of spring roster cleaning by releasing five players to bring the roster down to 52 prior to the 2023 NFL Draft.

Among those heading to the waiver wire, Seattle cut running back Darwin Thompson, receivers Connor Wedington and Easop Winston, defensive tackle Jarrod Hewitt, and cornerback Chris Steele. Assuming they clear waivers, each player will become an unrestricted free agent free to sign with any team.

Interestingly, all five players were signed to future/reserve contracts by the Seahawks in January. But none of them played in any regular season games last season and clearly, the organization felt they had seen enough to move on before the draft later this month.

By waiving Thompson, a former Utah State standout, Seattle currently has only two running backs - Ken Walker III and DeeJay Dallas - on the active roster. The team already lost veterans Rashaad Penny and Travis Homer in free agency, leaving them with minimal backfield depth and all but assuring at least one back with be picked in the upcoming draft, potentially even in the early rounds.

Cutting Hewitt also further depletes a defensive tackle group that already has lost Quinton Jefferson, Al Woods, and Shelby Harris as cap casualties. At the moment, even after signing Dre'Mont Jones and Jarran Reed in free agency, the Seahawks only have four defensive tackles on the roster, including injured nose tackle Bryan Mone, who likely will open next season on the PUP list after tearing his ACL.

Already viewed as a major need for the team, Seattle may need to use three or more picks to address the interior defensive line.

As for the other three players released, the Seahawks likely will be in the market for a receiver at some point in the draft after cutting Wedington and Winston, potentially early due to the departure of Marquise Goodwin and former second-round pick Dee Eskridge's struggles staying healthy. Steele would have had a difficult time competing in a deep cornerback group that will bring back Tariq Woolen, Mike Jackson, Coby Bryant, Tre Brown, and added Julian Love as a potential nickel option.

Since the Seahawks won't be back on the practice field for on-field work until after the draft and only meetings and strength/conditioning can be done in phase one, there won't be any rush to make any moves to replace the players released on Monday. Expect a flurry of activity after the draft concludes, however.

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