Seahawks Wisely Dodged Two of Free Agency’s Worst Deals This Offseason

Winning the Super Bowl boosted the stock for multiple Seattle Seahawks free agents this offseason, including the MVP of that game, running back Kenneth Walker III.

Walker secured a lucrative deal in free agency, signing with the Kansas City Chiefs worth $43 million over three seasons. Good on Walker for securing that deal, but the Seahawks were never going to devote that much to a running back.

The same was true for Boye Mafe, who signed a three-year, $60 million deal with the Cincinnati Bengals. While Mafe has shown flashes, that’s a lot to pay for a player who had two sacks in 2025.

It’s not just Seattle fans who believe those deals were inflated, however, with Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport naming them both among the 10 worst free agency signings this year.

Kenneth Walker is being paid like a franchise back

Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III celebrates a touchdown against the San Francisco 49ers. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Walker was instrumental to the Seahawks taking home the title. That much cannot be debated. Even so, his average annual salary of $14.33 million per season is far too much for a back who doesn’t add much in the passing game and had issues with blitz pick ups.

In addition to those concerns, Davenport points to Walker’s injury concerns, saying 2025 was the only time he’s played in all 17 games. That means the Chiefs are paying him to be one of the focal points of the offense, but he wasn’t durable as part of a committee.

Boye Mafe signing was an act of desperation

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Boye Mafe speaks to the media during a press conference at Paycor Stadium. — Bengals defensive end Boye Mafe speaks to the media during a press conference at Paycor Stadium. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Originally a second-round pick out of Minnesota in 2022, Mafe broke out in 2023 with nine sacks. Since then, however, he’s had just eight sacks with six of them coming in 2024. While he was better against the run than he gets credit for, Mafe was paid to get after the quarterback, and he hasn’t done that consistently the past couple of years.

With the Bengals paying him $20 million per season, Davenport says this was a case of a team “seeing what they wanted to see.” They’re banking on Mafe returning to 2023 form, which isn’t a guarantee by any means.

Seahawks avoided overpaying by drafting and developing depth

Seattle Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Head coach Mike Macdonald is building a roster where no one player is irreplaceable. They proved this by winning a title during Sam Darnold’s first year as their quarterback.

This is done by drafting well and developing from within. The Seahawks have done that, which is why they felt comfortable turning to Zach Charbonnet at running back and Derrick Hall on the edge.

While they will ask for more from these players, Seattle will also continue to load their depth chart during the draft. That’s especially true at running back with Charbonnet coming off a torn ACL and entering a contract year.

This strategy has kept them competitive and they avoided two of the most questionable free agency signings in the process.

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