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The Seahawks Are Hosting Three Edge Rushers at the VMAC. That’s Not a Coincidence.
The VMAC guest list just told you what Schneider’s thinking. Per Field Gulls’ John Tapia, the Seahawks are hosting a trio of edge rushers for pre-draft visits: Oklahoma’s R Mason Thomas, Auburn’s Keyron Crawford, and New Mexico’s Keyshawn James-Newby. Three edge rushers. Not one. Not a corner and an edge. Three pass rushers walking through the same door.
Thomas is the headliner. He’s a consensus top-50 prospect who totaled 15.5 sacks, 22 tackles for loss, and four forced fumbles over the past two seasons at Oklahoma, earning first-team All-SEC honors in 2025. Daniel Jeremiah called him “the absolute home run pick” for Seattle on Brock and Salk, projecting him as a rotational terror who’d thrive as a third rusher kept fresh and throwing fastballs. Thomas also has visits lined up with the Dolphins, Buccaneers, and Patriots.
15.5
Sacks by R Mason Thomas over his final two seasons at Oklahoma. First-team All-SEC in 2025.
Crawford is the under-the-radar add from Auburn, where he logged 58 combined tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, and 5 sacks in 24 games after transferring from Arkansas State. James-Newby is the sixth-round sleeper Seattle is meeting for the second time, a signal that Schneider sees something. He posted 9 sacks and 15 TFLs at New Mexico last season.
The math here is simple. Boye Mafe is in Cincinnati. Derick Hall and Uchenna Nwosu are both in contract years. DeMarcus Lawrence turns 34 later this month. The Seahawks aren’t browsing. They’re shopping with a list.
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The Seahawks aren’t browsing. They’re shopping with a list.
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Stadium
Say Goodbye to the Bleachers. The Hawks’ Nest Just Got a Permanent Upgrade.
Keep Reading ↓
3,000
Bleacher seats in the Hawks’ Nest since 2002. Now replaced with permanent backed seats.
The upgrade was mandated by FIFA, which forbids bleacher seating at World Cup venues. Lumen Field is hosting six matches this summer, including a USA vs. Australia group stage game on Juneteenth. The grass surface being installed for the tournament is temporary. The seats are not. When the Seahawks raise their banner on September 9, the Hawks’ Nest will look different for the first time in 24 years.
Season ticket holders in sections 146, 147, 149, and 150 have already noticed the price increase. Now they know why. Welcome to the chair era.
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AROUND THE COOP
Around the Coop
Seahawks.com launched its position-by-position draft preview series, starting with quarterback and running back. Rob Rang’s RB breakdown names Jadarian Price, Jonah Coleman, and Mike Washington Jr. as fits. The beat reporters are building the mood board. Schneider’s building his. Seahawks.com
Field Gulls launched a new SBNation Reacts survey asking whether Seattle will draft an edge rusher. Last week’s RB survey overwhelmingly favored Day 2. This week’s question: same position group math, different position. Place your bets accordingly. Field Gulls
SI on Seahawks published a piece arguing Seattle should draft a Leonard Williams replacement this month. Williams and Brandon Pili are both free agents in 2027. Getting ahead of a problem before it becomes one? That’s the kind of thinking that wins Super Bowls. SI on Seahawks
NFC WEST SCHADENFREUDE REPORT
RAMS
The Rams are dreaming about Japan. SI on Seahawks reports LA is already lobbying to be the first NFL team to play a regular-season game in Tokyo, building on their Melbourne opener against the 49ers on September 10. Sean McVay’s team is more focused on being a global brand than a functional football team. Matthew Stafford is returning for his 18th NFL season, which is inspirational right up until the moment you remember he’s 38 and his best receiver’s extension remains unsigned. Schneider’s best receiver is locked up through 2031.
NINERS
The Chiefs are circling. Jason La Canfora reports Kansas City is “ready to pounce” on Trent Williams if the 49ers’ contract standoff collapses. Williams carries a $46.3 million cap hit with zero guaranteed dollars, turns 38 in July, and Lynch’s latest update is that he feels “hopeful” about negotiations. Hopeful. Meanwhile, multiple mock drafts have San Francisco taking a tackle at 27 to replace Williams before they’ve even lost him. That’s not a negotiation. That’s a surrender dressed up as a contingency plan.
CARDINALS
SI on Seahawks summed up the Cardinals’ draft situation with their headline: “Nobody Knows Where Cardinals Will Go.” Arizona holds the third pick, and the mock draft consensus ranges from edge rusher David Bailey (+230 at DraftKings) to Francis Mauigoa (+270) to Jeremiyah Love (+750) to a possible trade down. Todd McShay reports the Cardinals want to move back because they don’t have a tackle graded high enough at three. They passed on Will Anderson at this exact spot in 2023. The franchise’s defining skill is drafting in the top five and still not getting better.
SEACHICKENS TRIVIA
The Seahawks are the only NFL team to have switched conferences twice. They played their inaugural 1976 season in the NFC West before moving to the AFC West in 1977, then returned to the NFC West during the 2002 league realignment. During their 25-season stretch in the AFC West (1977–2001), the Seahawks won two division titles. What years did they win the AFC West?
Tap to Reveal the Answer
The Seahawks won the AFC West in 1988 and 1999. The 1988 title came under Chuck Knox during a 9-7 season, while the 1999 title was Mike Holmgren’s first year as head coach with an also 9-7 record.
THIS DAY IN SEAHAWKS HISTORY
1976
April 8, 1976
Steve Niehaus Becomes the Seahawks’ First-Ever Draft Pick
On this date 50 years ago, Notre Dame defensive lineman Steve Niehaus became the first college draft pick in Seattle Seahawks history when the expansion franchise selected him with the second overall pick in the 1976 NFL Draft. Niehaus was named NFC Defensive Rookie of the Year after recording 9.5 sacks in his debut season, a franchise rookie record that still stands. Knee injuries limited his career to just 36 games over three seasons, but his selection marked the beginning of a franchise that would go on to win two Super Bowls.
Got a Question for The Rooster?
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Fifteen days to Pittsburgh. Three edge rushers walking through the VMAC door. Three thousand bleacher seats walking out of Lumen Field forever. The draft is almost here. Go Hawks. — The Rooster