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KW3 Unfollowed The Seahawks On Instagram. The Chiefs Are Now The Frontrunner. The Tampering Window Opens In 48 Hours. This Is Fine.
It’s the kind of thing that shouldn’t matter and absolutely does. Kenneth Walker III unfollowed the Seattle Seahawks on Instagram, and if you think that’s meaningless, you’ve never been in a relationship. The timing is exquisite, right after the franchise tag deadline passed and right before the legal tampering window opens Monday at noon ET. In the Instagram age, this is the equivalent of leaving your ring on the kitchen counter and slamming the front door.
And the suitors are lining up. Pro Football Network reports that the Kansas City Chiefs have emerged as the current frontrunner to land Walker, with the Giants also expressing interest. ESPN’s Dan Graziano separately predicted the Commanders will sign Walker to a three-year, $44 million deal with $22 million guaranteed. Washington has $87 million in cap space and hasn’t had a true No. 1 back since, what, the Antonio Gibson era? The FanSided crew adds Baltimore, Arizona, and Denver to the list. Half the league, basically.
Here’s the thing that stings: Schneider didn’t just decide not to tag Walker. He decided the math didn’t work, not with JSN’s extension coming, not with Witherspoon’s extension coming, not with the entire edge rusher room on fire. The Seahawks reportedly won’t match anything over ~$12 million per year, and Walker’s camp clearly believes he’ll do better than that. He just won Super Bowl MVP. He rushed for 135 yards in the biggest game of his life. You don’t unfollow a team that’s about to give you what you want.
FOX Sports has already projected Tyler Allgeier to Seattle as Walker’s replacement, and Corbin K. Smith of Emerald City Spectrum reports the team is also monitoring Brian Robinson Jr. Both together would cost less per year than the franchise tag. That’s the Schneider special: let the star walk, replace him with two discount-aisle guys, and dare you to be mad about it while he cashes the savings into extending your All-Pro cornerback. It’s infuriating and probably correct.
Legal tampering opens Monday. The new league year starts Wednesday. Forty-eight hours from now, phones start ringing. And Kenneth Walker III’s phone won’t have the Seahawks’ number in his recent calls. That unfollow told you everything you needed to know.
SOURCES →
Edge Rush
The Edge Rusher Shopping List Just Got A New Name: Khalil Mack, Future Hall Of Famer, Ring Chaser, Potential Seahawk
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ESPN’s Dan Graziano projected the Seahawks to sign the nine-time Pro Bowler on a one-year, $18 million deal. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler went further, saying Mack would be “this year’s DeMarcus Lawrence” for Seattle. The pitch writes itself: Mack is 35, has 113 career sacks, is 0-6 in the playoffs, and has never won a ring. He told reporters after the season, “I want to ultimately be a champion.” The Seahawks are the defending Super Bowl champions. You see where this is going.
Mack had 5.5 sacks and four forced fumbles in 12 games with the Chargers last season. He’s not the 17-sack destroyer from 2023 anymore, but he doesn’t need to be. Seattle’s defense works by committee, with Williams, Murphy, Hall, and Mills all rotating. Mack would be the veteran rotational piece who sets the tone, teaches the young guys, and converts third downs into sacks when it matters. Exactly what Lawrence did in 2025, exactly the role Schneider loves to fill with a one-year rental.
The Chargers consider Mack a priority to re-sign. But if you’re Khalil Mack and you’re choosing between a Chargers team that still hasn’t won a Super Bowl and the defending champions with Macdonald calling the defense? Come to Seattle, Khalil. We have a trophy and a gray sky with your name on it.
SOURCES →
AROUND THE COOP
Around the Coop
Geno Smith is free. The Raiders are releasing Geno after going 3-14 and firing Pete Carroll. Smith threw a league-high 17 interceptions, went 2-13 as a starter, and pocketed over $58 million for his troubles. Tom Brady reportedly blocked the Raiders from pursuing Sam Darnold last offseason. The Seahawks got Darnold, won a Super Bowl. The Raiders got Geno, got the No. 1 pick, and got a restraining order from competence. Schneider’s best trade might be the one he made by letting Geno leave. Seattle Sports
Maxx Crosby to Baltimore. The Ravens traded two first-round picks for the five-time Pro Bowl edge rusher Friday night. The Cowboys offered a first and a second but got outbid. This is relevant to Seattle because (a) it removes Crosby from the edge rusher market entirely, (b) it confirms that elite pass rushers cost two firsts on the trade market, and (c) the Greenard asking price of a second-rounder + Day 3 pick suddenly looks like the bargain bin. Schneider, your move. ESPN
Greenard update: half the league is calling. Corbin K. Smith reports that Minnesota has received inquiries from “half the league” about Jonathan Greenard, including the Seahawks. Schefter says a trade is “probably more likely than not.” The price remains a Day 2 pick, a second-rounder and a Day 3 pick in the “sweet spot.” Seattle has four total picks. Four. This decision is going to come down to whether Schneider believes Greenard’s 47 pressures on a bum shoulder are worth mortgaging the draft. The clock is ticking. Sports Illustrated
NFL Spin Zone projects KW3 to the Giants at 3yr/$45M. Meanwhile, ESPN’s Graziano has the Commanders signing Walker to 3yr/$44M with $22M guaranteed — and Rashid Shaheed alongside him. Yes, both of them. To the same team. Washington has $87 million in cap space and apparently a shopping cart with Seattle’s name on it. The Commanders want Walker as their first true No. 1 back since the Alfred Morris era. Nothing says “this is fine” like watching two of your Super Bowl contributors sign with the same NFC team. Heavy.com
NFC WEST SCHADENFREUDE REPORT
RAMS
Sean McVay is out here publicly lobbying for Jimmy Garoppolo to come back as his backup. “I love Jimmy; I would absolutely want him back,” McVay said, before adding, “I did see those reports too on Mike [LaFleur] trying to steal our guy.” Imagine being the head coach of an NFL franchise and your biggest offseason drama is a custody battle over a 34-year-old backup quarterback who hasn’t started a game since 2023. Meanwhile, the Rams also acquired Trent McDuffie by trading away the 29th pick and three more selections. That’s a lot of draft capital for a team that just got Zachwards’d into oblivion in the NFC Championship. Speaking of which — have the Rams formally withdrawn their rule change proposal yet? No? Perfect. We’ll keep the lights on for them.
NINERS
The San Francisco 49ers finished the 2025 season with 20 sacks. Twenty. That was dead last in the NFL, six fewer than the next-worst team. They had Nick Bosa, and they still managed to produce fewer sacks than some high school teams in Texas. Their solution? Hire Matt Eberflus as assistant head coach of defense. The man who went 14-32 as head coach of the Bears, the man who was fired mid-season. The 49ers looked at that résumé and said: “yes, this is the energy we need in our building.” They also went 12-5, lost to us 41-6 in the divisional round, and are now eyeing Jonathan Greenard and Cameron Jordan because they literally cannot get to the quarterback. Some teams are reloading. The 49ers are rebooting in Safe Mode.
CARDINALS
The Jimmy Garoppolo-to-Arizona pipeline has reached full flood stage. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that new head coach Mike LaFleur is “considered very close” with Garoppolo, with a league source calling Jimmy G “his guy.” Let me say that again for the people in the back: the Arizona Cardinals’ 2026 quarterback plan is potentially Jimmy Garoppolo. A man who hasn’t started an NFL game since the Raiders benched him in 2023. A man who made $3 million as the Rams’ backup last year. This franchise released Kyler Murray, has the No. 3 pick in the draft, and their big swing is a 34-year-old who threw 334 yards last season. Total. Not per game. Total. The NFC West tank race has found its driver.
SEACHICKENS TRIVIA
Today — March 7 — is the birthday of Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Franco Harris, who played his final NFL season with the Seattle Seahawks in 1984. How many rushing yards did Harris gain in his eight games as a Seahawk?
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170 yards. Harris signed with Seattle after the Steelers released him during training camp in a contract dispute, but he gained just 170 yards on 68 carries before retiring — 192 yards short of Jim Brown’s all-time rushing record.
THIS DAY IN SEAHAWKS HISTORY
1950
Franco Harris, Future Seahawk and Hall of Famer, Is Born
On this date in 1950, Franco Harris was born in Fort Dix, New Jersey. Harris would go on to become one of the greatest running backs in NFL history, winning four Super Bowls with the Pittsburgh Steelers, earning nine Pro Bowl selections, and scoring the legendary “Immaculate Reception.” After a contract dispute with the Steelers, Harris spent his final season — 1984 — as a member of the Seattle Seahawks, appearing in eight games before retiring just 192 yards short of Jim Brown’s career rushing record. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990.
THE MAILBAG
What happens to the team sale if the WA millionaires tax passes?
— Tax Bracket Terry in Tacoma
Terry, you beautiful civic-minded monster, you’ve asked a question that makes every potential buyer’s accountant break out in hives.
Here’s the situation: the Paul Allen Trust is selling 100% of the Seattle Seahawks, with Allen & Co. and Latham & Watkins managing the process. Washington state’s millionaire tax, technically a capital gains excise tax on high earners, is already reportedly complicating the buyer pool. A full NFL franchise sale in 2026 is likely to be in the $5-6 billion range. That’s a lot of capital gains for the seller, and any additional state-level taxation on high-income individuals makes Washington a less attractive domicile for prospective owners compared to, say, Texas or Florida (which have no state income tax at all).
The sale doesn’t affect football operations. Schneider and Macdonald are operating normally. The roster decisions, the draft, free agency — none of that changes regardless of who signs the big check. NFL rules require the new owner to keep the team in its current market, so the Seahawks aren’t moving. But if the tax environment gets restrictive enough, it could narrow the buyer field to people who either already live in Washington, don’t care about the tax hit (billionaires often have creative accountants), or plan to structure the purchase in a way that minimizes exposure.
Bottom line: the tax makes it slightly harder to sell, but this is an NFL franchise. There are maybe 32 of them on the planet. Someone will pay. Sleep lightly, Terry, but sleep.
Got a Question for the Mailbag?
Send us your burning Seahawks question — cap space confusion, draft conspiracy theories, complaints about the weather at Lumen Field, whatever. Hit us up and you might see your name in Monday’s issue. We read everything. We answer what we can. We judge silently.
See you tomorrow. — The Rooster