Seahawks Midseason Report Card: How Have Devon Witherspoon, CBs Performed?

The Seahawks haven't seen Devon Witherspoon or Riq Woolen take a step towards superstardom, but an unsung hero has helped the secondary shine as of late.

Oct 10, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon (21) participates in pregame warmups against the San Francisco 49ers at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

In the midst of their bye week, the Seattle Seahawks find themselves searching for answers in all phases after dropping five of their past six games to plunge into last place in the NFC West.

With nine games down and eight left to play, Seattle has received its share of splash plays from Devon Witherspoon and a talented cornerback stable, but the group has been marred by inconsistency and injuries.

Revisiting the first half of the season, how have Witherspoon and the rest of the Seahawks' cornerback group performed in Mike Macdonald's defense? Midseason report card:

Areas of Strength: Though neither have quite elevated their play back to Pro Bowl or All-Pro levels, Witherspoon and Riq Woolen have flashed such talent in spurts this season. Witherspoon has yet to allow a touchdown in coverage, ranks 15th in yards allowed per catch (8.7), and has racked up 24 combined tackles defending the run. As for Woolen, he leads the team with two interceptions to go with three pass breakups while allowing just a 56 percent completion rate in coverage. Both players rank in the top 20 in yards allowed per catch and haven't been beaten often for big plays.

Away from Witherspoon and Woolen, practice squad signee Josh Jobe has provided an unexpected boost to the secondary in three starts replacing an injured Tre Brown. With over 100 coverage snaps now to his name, he ranks in the top five in completion rate allowed (43.8 percent) and passer rating (46.1) among qualified cornerbacks and also sits in the top 15 in forced incompletion rate, as he has produced an interception and three pass breakups in limited action.

Areas of Improvement: While Witherspoon hasn't allowed a touchdown yet this season, his 37 receptions and 323 receiving yards given up nearly have equaled his numbers from his full rookie campaign. He hasn't been able to get his hands on the football near as frequently either, as he only has three pass breakups and no interceptions on 50 targets. Pass-rush wise, he has just three pressures on 23 blitz attempts and hasn't recorded a sack, so game-changing plays haven't happened enough for a player of his talents, and most of his five penalties have been costly for the Seahawks.

Woolen, who missed two games in October with an ankle sprain, has also endured an inconsistent season in many ways. Quarterbacks have only completed 14 passes against him, but five of those, including a game-winner from Matthew Stafford to Demarcus Robinson in overtime in Week 9, have resulted in touchdowns. That's nearly a 50 percent touchdown rate on completions allowed. Additionally, though his tackling has been better against the run, he has missed four tackles in coverage and posted a dreadful 36 percent missed tackle rate.

Before going down with an ankle injury and likely losing his job to Jobe, Tre Brown struggled mightily in the final year of his contract, giving up 169 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions while quarterbacks posted a gaudy 136.6 passer rating when targeting him. He also had two penalties in six games that helped extend opposing drives.

Midseason Grade: B-

Coming into the season with incredibly high expectations, Witherspoon and Woolen have yet to elevate their respective play to that expected level. With that said, both starters have limited chunk plays in coverage, have gotten their hands on a fair amount of passes, and haven't been liabilities, while Jobe's surprise emergence as a viable starter provides reason for optimism that the group will put it all together after the bye and ultimately boosts the grade above average.

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