Seahawks hint at big upcoming move following first surprise cut

NFL cutdown day always brings curveballs and surprise moves, but some are more puzzling than others. The Seattle Seahawks pushed out an early head scratcher on Tuesday, releasing inside linebacker Patrick O'Connell, according to ESPN's Brady Henderson.

O'Connell, who went undrafted out of Montana in 2023, seemed like a shoo-in for one of Seattle's backup linebacker roles, as he'd run with the starters frequently during training camp when Tyrice Knight and Ernest Jones IV weren't on the field, per Henderson.

Even in the preseason, O'Connell and Drake Thomas — also a 2023 UDFA — appeared to be the clear-cut second-team inside linebacker duo for the Seahawks. O'Connell, despite also being waived as part of final cutdowns in each of his first two seasons, appeared in five games for Seattle on special teams in 2024.

The Seahawks have informed inside linebacker Patrick O'Connell that he's being waived, a source tells me. O'Connell appeared in five games last season and got a good amount of reps with the starters this offseason with Ernest Jones IV and Tyrice Knight both missing time.
— Brady Henderson (@BradyHenderson) August 26, 2025

The move suggests the Seahawks could be gearing up to reshape their inside linebacker room once again. Incumbent starter Tyrice Knight is still working back from injury, with no concrete update on whether he will be ready for the team's season opener against the San Francisco 49ers on Sept. 7. That means Seattle needs more depth, not less.

It is possible that the coaching staff likes what former edge rusher Jamie Sheriff is now doing at inside linebacker, or head coach Mike Macdonald feels that strongly about Josh Ross, who played under him with the Baltimore Ravens.

However, an upcoming trade or aggressive move on the waiver wire seems more likely. Henderson suggested a move at inside linebacker could be coming even before O'Connell was waived on Tuesday.

Seattle will likely try and bring O'Connell back on the practice squad again, but the coaching staff clearly doesn't feel confident in his ability to step in on defense during the regular season.

In three preseason appearances, O'Connell totaled 12 tackles. Even though he had seven in the preseason finale against the Green Bay Packers, he was arguably outshone by Sheriff, who totaled four tackles, one sack and two quarterback hits.

Follow along with all of Seattle's Tuesday roster moves until the 53-man roster drops at this link.

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