The offseason of discontent continues for the Seattle Seahawks and their fans. From getting consistently ranked around No. 19 in the league to seeing their projections rarely go higher than 8-9, it seems the national media is not at all sold on head coach Mike Macdonald and his talented but (previously) underachieving roster.
This week there’s a fresh round of insults, from ESPN’s Football Power Index projecting Seattle to only have a 29.1% chance of making the playoffs this year, to Pro Football Focus having 20 cornerbacks ranked ahead of rookie Pro Bowler Devon Witherspoon.
“In his first year in the NFL, Witherspoon allowed just 0.81 yards per cover snap and put up a 79.7 coverage grade. He battled with injuries, but his first year was excellent as far as rookie seasons go.”
Meanwhile his teammate Riq Woolen came in at No. 25 on PFF’s list:
“Woolen has reeled in eight interceptions over the past two years, the third-most at the position in that time frame, while his 79.0 coverage grade is good for 20th. With the emergence of Devon Witherspoon, Woolen was perhaps overlooked in 2023, but his overall play was arguably better in his second season.”
It’s a little surprising to see Woolen ranked so high given how much he struggled against the run in 2024. That only takes a little bit of the sting out of seeing Witherspoon at No. 21, though.
The good news is this is exactly the kind of thing that Witherspoon feeds on. If he can make the all-important Sophomore season leap he may be an All-Pro by this time next year. If Woolen gets back to his rookie level of play, that should give Seattle one of the top-five cornerback duos in the league.
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