Riq Woolen was the only Seahawks player fined in Week 9

The Seattle Seahawks have displayed a lot of passion since head coach Mike Macdonald took over the team last year. Players are more active and want to dominate, which has been displayed through the first eight games of the season. Oftentimes, that overzealous energy can hurt the team and the player themselves.

On Saturday, the NFL released some of its list of fines for teams and players to pay, including the Seahawks. Cornerback Riq Woolen is fined $11,593 for taunting in the 38-14 Week 9 road win at the Washington Commanders. Woolen was seen taunting Commanders running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt after making a big tackle on the play. The taunting also drew a 15-yard penalty that gave the Commanders a new set of downs.

Seahawks Week 9 fines:

CB Tariq Woolen — $11,593 for taunting

Riq stood over and stared down Croskey-Merritt after making a tackle, as you see here. pic.twitter.com/iaH9ml7B2b
November 8, 2025
A total of five players were fined between the Seahawks and the Commanders last Sunday. Woolen was the only player for Seattle fined by the NFL on Saturday.
In terms of how vicious it was, Woolen’s taunting was light compared to other taunts aimed at players. Still, the NFL is looking to ensure that direct player taunts are limited or completely suppressed so there won;t be fights after the plays.
Woolen, however, is no stranger to facing fines from the league’s front office. He was fined twice in December last season for different penalties. The first was a roughing the passer penalty on quarterback Jordan Love in a game against the Green Bay Packers. The other was a previous taunting penalty in the game against the Buffalo Bills.
Woolen had a difficult start to start based on consistency despite a promising training camp. He also had to come back from a concussion he suffered in the Seahawks’ Week 5 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That concussion made him miss the Week 6 road win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The latest set of challenges Woolen faced was not starting in the game versus the Commanders last Sunday. He was, however, able to retake his place as one of the main coverage corners after Josh Jobe was forced to leave with a concussion.
It wasn't known why Woolen was benched. Devon Witherspoon started at the other cornerback position while rookie Nick Emmanwori started at the slot, leaving Woolen as the odd player out. It could’ve been that the Seahawks were wanting to keep him healthy at the height of NFL Trade Deadline talk, but Woolen had solid moments against the Commanders.
The Seahawks head into a big Week 10 matchup as they host the Arizona Cardinals. Seattle is looking for a more dominant performance against Arizona, and the Seahawks will likely have Woolen start while Jobe is out with a concussion. Seattle can’t afford many mental errors like Woolen’s last week, unless he could be finding himself on the bench again.
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