The Seattle Seahawks made some changes to their wide receiver group, to put it mildly. DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett are gone, while Cooper Kupp, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, and rookies Tory Horton and Ricky White III are in. Jaxon Smith-Njigba is all but assured to be the No. 1 option at receiver after being Seattle’s leader in targets and receptions last season, while Kupp is the presumptive No. 2 (or, at best, 1b).
Pro Football Focus ranked every receiving corps in the NFL, including tight ends and running backs. The Philadelphia Eagles took the top spot with the duo of A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith, as well as running back Saquon Barkley and tight end Dallas Goedert. As for the Seahawks? They’re a ways down the list in the bottom-half of the league.
20. SEATTLE SEAHAWKS
The Seahawks’ receiving corps will look much different in 2025 after they moved on from D.K. Metcalf (trade) and Tyler Lockett (free agency). Jaxson Smith-Njigba could be in for a huge 2025 season (83.5 PFF receiving grade in 2024), and the team added veteran Cooper Kupp this offseason. Kenneth Walker III has also earned back-to-back single-season PFF receiving grades above 71.0. Throw in Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who looked great in Klint Kubiak’s system last season (both now in Seattle), and it’s a decent group for Sam Darnold to throw to.
As for the rest of the NFC West, the San Francisco 49ers rank 5th but with the caveat that Christian McCaffrey and Brandon Aiyuk both had their respective 2024 seasons cut short by injuries. The Los Angeles Rams are 8th and led by Puka Nacua, while the Arizona Cardinals are 18th. In other words, the Seahawks are bottom of the NFC West.
I know I’ve dangled rage bait into the water hoping to get a bite, but I do not think this is a completely unreasonable ranking. A little lower than expected? Sure, but I’d say the gap between 20th and 16th (Jacksonville Jaguars) is not enormous.
Wide receiver is going to be fascinating to watch because of the overhaul. While JSN looks to be an emerging superstar, literally everyone else on this squad is a question mark or rookie potential. Cooper Kupp can still produce but can he stay on the field? MVS pretty much does one thing and has a history of awful drops. Jake Bobo is obviously headed for Canton so he does not factor into the equation. Horton is a rookie coming off injury and White is hardly a lock to make the team as a seventh-rounder.
At tight end, Noah Fant has been no better than decent in three seasons with the Seahawks, A.J. Barner has shown early promise as a pass catcher, and Elijah Arroyo is promising but he’s a rookie. Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet are capable receiving backs but not necessarily efficient targets. On the plus side, PFF likes the running back rotation a lot.
Seattle’s defense projects to be a very good if not great unit and its retained most of its starters from 2024. The entire offense is in “prove it” mode and it applies to the players and new assistant coaching staff. They will need to earn league-wide respect to make these rankings look silly. I do not think it’s outrageous to have tempered thoughts on Seattle’s offense until the upside (and there’s a lot of it) is realized.
