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Seattle Seahawks: 3 Remaining free agents to consider signing

By Samuel Teets

NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 30: Jermaine Kearse #15 of the Seattle Seahawks catches the ball out of bounds in the enzone at the end of the game over B.W. Webb #28 of the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 30, 2016 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Saints won the game 25 -20. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 30: Jermaine Kearse #15 of the Seattle Seahawks catches the ball out of bounds in the enzone at the end of the game over B.W. Webb #28 of the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 30, 2016 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Saints won the game 25 -20. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /
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EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY – NOVEMBER 25: Julian Edelman #11 of the New England Patriots dives into the end zone for a third quarter touchdown past Morris Claiborne #21 of the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on November 25, 2018 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY – NOVEMBER 25: Julian Edelman #11 of the New England Patriots dives into the end zone for a third quarter touchdown past Morris Claiborne #21 of the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on November 25, 2018 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) /

Morris Claiborne, CB

The biggest issue with the Seahawks secondary is a lack of star power, not a lack of depth, but signing Morris Claiborne could be beneficial in the short-term. Outside of starters Shaquill Griffin and Tre Flowers and rookie Ugo Amadi, the Seahawks have only long-term career backups at the cornerback position.

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Players like Akeem King, Jamar Taylor, Kalan Reed and Neiko Thorpe will be hard pressed to add a lot to the Seahawks defense. Some of those players are special teams assets, but they don’t have the starting experience of Claiborne.

Claiborne was originally taken sixth overall in 2012 by the Dallas Cowboys, but he didn’t pan out as a top pick and was widely considered a bust by the time he signed with the New York Jets before the 2017 season. During his two years in New York, Claiborne started and played in 30 games.

While he still isn’t a great cornerback, Pro Football Focus (subscription required) did grade him ninth highest among the top 10 cornerbacks available in this free agency class and PFF gave him a 62.7 grade for 2018. That mark puts him in the “average” category and was the 75th highest grade for a cornerback. For reference, Flowers got a grade of 64.1 and Griffin got a 50.7. Justin Coleman, who was terrific for the Seahawks as a slot cornerback last season, graded out at 67.3, but he left in free agency.

If the Seahawks had the money and desire to sign Claiborne, he wouldn’t necessarily start, even though his PFF grade was higher than Griffin’s. While Griffin has struggled, he and Flowers are much younger than Claiborne and seem to be Seattle’s plan at cornerback moving forward. If Claiborne was signed, it would likely be on a one- or two-year deal.

For more grades, advanced statistics and more at Pro Football Focus, subscribe to PFF’s EDGE or ELITE subscriptions at ProFootballFocus.com.

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