If there was any doubt about the Seattle Seahawks’ infrequent use of the franchise or transition tag, let 2026 be another example of John Schneider’s philosophy regarding his top free agents.
None of Seattle’s unrestricted free agents — notably Kenneth Walker III, Rick Woolen, Rasheed Shahid, Josh Jobe and Kobe Bryant — received the franchise tag after Tuesday’s 1 p.m. PT deadline. In fact, as was the case last offseason, the NFL as a whole no longer appears to be using this tag on any free agents.
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Franchise tag players around the NFL
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RB Breece Hall, New York Jets
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WR George Pickens, Dallas Cowboys
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TE Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones also received the transition tag.
Only six players total have been tagged over the past two offseasons. Only once from 2010 to 2023 have fewer than six players received the franchise or transition tag in an offseason. Is this a long-term pattern? We need more sample size.
The franchise tag most associated with the Seahawks is Breece Hall, who is expected to make $14.3 million on a non-exclusive tag before a new contract is finalized. Maybe gauging the RB market would be more interesting if Hall wasn’t tagged. The value of the tag itself alone is enough to estimate the cost of Walker’s services.
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There’s almost certainly a healthy market for Walker’s services after he won Super Bowl MVP and came close to having his best season since his rookie year. With Walker gone and Zach Charbonnet (along with Kenny McIntosh) recovering from an ACL injury, the Seahawks’ backfield will be overhauled.
