Report: Seahawks Re-Sign TE Will Dissly to Multi-Year Contract
Continuing to re-sign their own players on the first day of free agency, the Seahawks have agreed to terms with veteran tight end Will Dissly on a multi-year contract.
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, Seattle locked up Dissly through the 2024 season with a three-year deal worth $24 million. Guaranteed money and other contract details have yet to be disclosed.
By opting to pay Dissly $8 million per year and bring Noah Fant on board as part of the deal packaging Russell Wilson to the Broncos last week, the Seahawks will likely move forward without Gerald Everett, who remains unsigned as an unrestricted free agent.
Drafted in the fourth round out of Washington in 2018, Dissly suffered two significant injuries in his first two seasons, rupturing his patellar tendon as a rookie and tearing his Achilles tendon in 2019. Prior to those injuries, however, the converted defensive tackle displayed surprisingly skills as a receiver, catching 31 passes for 418 yards and six touchdowns in only 10 games.
Bouncing back remarkably from two devastating injuries, Dissly has been far healthier over the past two seasons, playing in 31 out of 33 regular season games., But with the arrival of Everett last season and star receivers DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett on the outside, he wasn't near as much of a factor in the passing game, catching a combined 45 passes for 482 yards and three touchdowns.
On the plus side, though his opportunities diminished compared to his first two seasons, Dissly remained a reliable receiver when Wilson targeted him. He posted a catch rate of at least 80 percent in each of the past three seasons with only 10 passes thrown his way falling incomplete.
Where Dissly offers Seattle the most value, however, remains doing the dirty work in the trenches as an inline traditional blocking Y-tight end. Functioning like a sixth linemen in the run game, Pro Football Focus graded him as the ninth-best run blocker among 37 qualified tight ends (69.8) last season and he ranked 15th out of 46 players in the same category in 2020.
With offensive coordinator Shane Waldron likely to continue leaning heavily on 12 personnel with two tight ends on the field at the same time, Dissly and recently acquired Fant should see extensive snaps together for the Seahawks. Third-year tight end Colby Parkinson should also be in the mix for additional playing time rotating in as a pass-catching option.
Given the substantial investment the Seahawks made in Dissly, the organization clearly views him as a starter-caliber player moving forward. Along with being a key component of their rushing attack as a blocker, paying him top-15 tight end money indicates they expect he will be more involved as a receiver with a new quarterback under center next season.
