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Khalil Mack Chose The Chargers Over The Ring. The Edge Rush Shopping List Just Got A Lot More Urgent.
Well, that didn’t take long.
Khalil Mack, the nine-time Pro Bowler, the future Hall of Famer, the guy ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler literally said “Seattle would be a great place for” four days ago, re-signed with the Los Angeles Chargers on Saturday. One year, $18 million, fully guaranteed. The exact deal ESPN’s Dan Graziano predicted he’d sign… with us.
The Chargers announced it today, per Adam Schefter, and just like that, one of the most logical edge rusher fits for the Seahawks evaporated before the legal tampering window even opened. Mack had 5.5 sacks and four forced fumbles in 12 games last season. He’s 35. He’s 0-6 in the postseason. He reportedly wanted a ring. Apparently he wanted $18 million guaranteed more. Or maybe he just really likes SoFi Stadium’s weather. Can’t blame him. It doesn’t rain sideways in Inglewood.
The pass rush plan just got thinner. Boye Mafe is walking. DeMarcus Lawrence is contemplating his couch. Uchenna Nwosu’s $19.99 million cap hit is a neon sign flashing CUT ME. And now the most proven, most affordable veteran edge option on the market is off the board entirely. Jonathan Greenard via trade is still alive, but he costs a second-round pick the Seahawks can barely afford to part with. Trey Hendrickson is reportedly leaning Tampa.
What’s left? Derick Hall and Rylie Mills are the returning foundation, and Mills is a genuine breakout candidate after flashing in only five Super Bowl snaps. But the depth behind them is a question mark with a goatee and a bad attitude. Schneider has 24 hours before the tampering window opens. The calculator is running hot.
SOURCES →
KW3 Watch
The Tampering Window Opens Tomorrow At Noon. The Chiefs Are Circling. This Is Really Happening.
Keep Reading ↓
The legal tampering window opens Monday, March 9 at noon ET. And the loudest noise heading into the weekend isn’t coming from the Pacific Northwest. It’s coming from Kansas City. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated reported that the Chiefs are expected to “at least make a run at Kenneth Walker III in free agency.” RickeyScoops went further, calling Kansas City “the current favorite” to land the Super Bowl MVP. The math is annoyingly clean: the Trent McDuffie trade cleared roughly $14 million in cap space, which, as Breer pointed out on The Herd, aligns almost perfectly with Walker’s expected contract.
But the Chiefs aren’t alone. ESPN’s Dan Graziano projected Walker to the Commanders at three years, $44 million with $22 million guaranteed. The Giants have “looked into” a Walker signing, per Heavy.com, with John Harbaugh wanting to build his rushing attack around an explosive back. NFL.com’s Nick Shook names the Broncos, Raiders, and Vikings as additional landing spots. There’s also the CBS Sports counterpoint: Jonathan Jones wrote that the Chiefs “may not be in the mix for a top-of-market player” and could pivot to a cheaper option in the $8 million range.
Seattle’s position hasn’t changed. Berry’s Combine intel still holds: Schneider essentially told Walker to test the market and come back if it’s around $10 million. Walker unfollowed the team on Instagram on Friday, which is the modern NFL equivalent of leaving your apartment key on the counter. The Seahawks’ RB room without Walker: George Holani (undrafted, mostly a special teamer), an ACL-recovering Charbonnet, and Kenny McIntosh (who missed all of 2025 with his own ACL tear). Tyler Allgeier and Brian Robinson Jr. remain the budget replacement targets.
By this time tomorrow, phones will be ringing. And Walker’s probably won’t have a 206 area code on the other end.
SOURCES →
AROUND THE COOP
Around the Coop
Happy anniversary! Exactly four years ago today, March 8, 2022, the Seahawks traded Russell Wilson to Denver for two first-round picks, two second-round picks, and three players. Those picks became Charles Cross, Devon Witherspoon, Boye Mafe, and Derick Hall. The trade became a Super Bowl. The Broncos got five wins. Pour one out for George Paton’s career. Seahawks.com
Geno Smith was released by the Raiders on March 6, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, and spoke out publicly about it. The man who replaced Russell Wilson and quarterbacked the Seahawks to a Comeback Player of the Year award is now looking for work. The NFL is a beautiful, heartless place. SI
The Maxx Crosby trade is official: the Raiders sent the five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher to the Ravens for their 2026 first-rounder (No. 14 overall) and a 2027 first. The price tag confirms why Schneider never seriously pursued Crosby. Seattle has four total picks and exactly zero of them to burn on a rental. Smart. Painful, but smart. Seattle Sports
The Seahawks signed defensive end Jalan Gaines on Friday. If you’re asking “who?” congratulations, you’re paying the right amount of attention. This is Schneider restocking the bottom of the roster like a guy reorganizing his spice rack the night before a dinner party. The edge rush depth chart is now: Hall, Mills, prayer, Gaines. Seahawks.com
NFC WEST SCHADENFREUDE REPORT
RAMS
Cornerback Darious Williams retired on Saturday after eight NFL seasons, including a Super Bowl ring from 2021. He was due $8.66 million in 2026, and his departure saves the Rams $7.5 million in cap space. The Rams now have Trent McDuffie (acquired from the Chiefs in exchange for draft picks) and… four pending free agent cornerbacks. This secondary is being rebuilt in real-time, mid-flight, while the plane is on fire. At least they have the Zachwards Pass rule change proposal to keep them warm at night.
NINERS
The 49ers’ offseason needs, per Niner Noise: wide receiver and defensive end, since both Brandon Aiyuk and Jauan Jennings have likely played their final snaps in San Francisco, while the defense registered a league-low 20 sacks last season. Oh, and George Kittle is recovering from a torn Achilles. And they signed Mac Jones. And Nick Bosa is rehabbing an ACL. This franchise went from the NFC Championship Game to the football equivalent of a garage sale in two years. Kyle Shanahan is currently googling “how to rebuild a dynasty without any of the original parts.”
CARDINALS
The Garoppolo-to-Arizona soap opera continues. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that Garoppolo is a “strong option” for the Cardinals, with a league source calling him Mike LaFleur’s “guy.” Meanwhile, Sean McVay is publicly begging Garoppolo to come back to the Rams as his backup, saying “I love Jimmy; I would absolutely want him back.” Two NFC West teams fighting over who gets to pay Jimmy Garoppolo in 2026. This division went from the Legion of Boom and the Greatest Show on Turf to… this.
SEACHICKENS TRIVIA
The Seahawks used the draft picks from the Russell Wilson trade to select four players over the 2022 and 2023 drafts: Charles Cross, Boye Mafe, Devon Witherspoon, and which fourth player — a second-round edge rusher out of Auburn?
Tap to Reveal the Answer
Derick Hall. Selected with the 37th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, Hall was taken using a second-round pick acquired from Denver in the Wilson trade.
THIS DAY IN SEAHAWKS HISTORY
2022
The Trade That Changed Everything: Russell Wilson Sent to Denver
On this date in 2022, the Seattle Seahawks agreed to trade quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos for a massive haul: two first-round picks, two second-round picks, a fifth-round pick, quarterback Drew Lock, tight end Noah Fant, and defensive end Shelby Harris. The trade netted the foundation of the Super Bowl LX roster — including Devon Witherspoon and Boye Mafe — and is now widely regarded as one of the most lopsided trades in NFL history.
THE MAILBAG
What happens to the team sale if the WA millionaires tax passes?
— Tax Bracket Terry in Tacoma
Oh, Terry. You beautiful, tax-code-obsessed maniac. I love this question because it’s the one nobody in the mainstream Seahawks media wants to touch, and it’s also the one that could genuinely matter more than anything happening on the field right now.
Here’s the deal: the Paul Allen Trust is selling 100% of the Seattle Seahawks. Allen & Co. and Latham & Watkins are running the process. No buyer has been named. But Washington state’s proposed millionaire tax, which would impose a new income tax on high earners, is reportedly already complicating the buyer pool. NFL team sales require 24 of 32 owners to approve, and the league cares deeply about the financial ecosystem a franchise sits in. A state-level income tax that didn’t exist when the franchise was valued would change the math for any prospective buyer.
Does it kill the sale? No. An NFL team is still a license to print money. The Commanders just sold for $6.05 billion despite being, well, the Commanders. But it could narrow the field of bidders, which could theoretically affect the final price, which could theoretically affect the new owner’s willingness to spend on things like… oh, I don’t know… a new stadium, roster payroll above the floor, or keeping the team in Seattle long-term.
The good news: Schneider and Macdonald are operating as if none of this exists. The football side is fully insulated. The bad news: someone is eventually going to write a check for north of $5 billion, and they’re going to care very much about the tax code in Olympia. Stay alert, Terry. This one’s a slow burn.
Got a Question? Got a Take? Got Opinions About the Millionaires Tax?
Drop your questions, rants, and overly detailed cap spreadsheets into the Mailbag. We read every one. We answer the good ones. We silently judge the rest. Hit reply or submit at seachickens.com/mailbag.
See you tomorrow. — The Rooster