The Seattle Seahawks already brought back two key cogs from their defense last season, inking defensive back Akeem King to a one-year deal and bringing star edge rusher Frank Clark back on a franchise tag.
However, with 14 unrestricted free agents this offseason, Seattle still has some holes to fill – and they have a limited budget to do so assuming they plan to extend Russell Wilson and Jarran Reed within the next year.
One piece Seattle will have to decide what to do with is defensive tackle Shamar Stephen, who is set to hit free agency.
After spending the first four seasons of his career with Minnesota, Stephen started 14 games for Seattle last season, recording 25 combined tackles and a career-high two sacks. He was primarily useful as a run-stopper, but a chronic foot injury limited him throughout the season.
Stephen is the kind of low-risk signing that Seattle would love to have back on a similar one-year, incentive-laden deal. However, Seattle is expected to look for defensive line help in the draft, and the very surprising emergence of Poona Ford could push Stephen into a reserve role, making him expendable.
Should Seattle look to re-sign Stephen as solid depth, or should they roll with Ford and bring on a draft pick or cheaper free agent instead?
