Report: Nick Sorensen Leaving Seahawks, Accepts Special Teams Gig With Jaguars

Only two months away from the start of training camp, the Seahawks suddenly have a significant vacancy on their coaching staff.

According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, long-time assistant coach Nick Sorensen is expected to bolt Seattle to accept a special teams coordinator position with the Jacksonville Jaguars. A deal has yet to be confirmed by either team.

Sorenson, who played 10 seasons in the NFL with the Jaguars, Browns, and Rams, has spent the past eight years on the Seahawks coaching staff, starting as a special teams assistant under Brian Schneider in 2013. He earned a promotion to secondary coach in March 2017 and has served that role the past four seasons. He also earned the title of nickel specialist prior to the 2020 season.

Interestingly, Sorensen will be replacing Schneider, who recently stepped away from the team due to personal reasons after being hired by coach Urban Meyer back in January. Schneider also took a leave of absence with the Seahawks last year and ultimately was replaced by Larry Izzo.

With his departure, Sorensen will become the third former Seahawks assistant to join Meyer's staff this offseason. Darrell Bevell and Brian Schottenheimer, who each spent at least three seasons as Seattle's offensive coordinator, were hired prior to the start of the new league year, with Bevell stepping in as Jacksonville's offensive coordinator and Schottenheimer taking over as passing game coordinator.

Trying to fill coaching vacancies this late in the offseason can be tricky and aside from first-year assistant DeShawn Shead, the team doesn't have any internal options that could be promoted into Sorensen's role. Thankfully for Seattle, coach Pete Carroll has ample connections with more than 40 years of coaching experience at the NFL and college level, which should allow the team to find a capable replacement.