Seattle Seahawks 53-man roster projection for 2026 season
KANSAS CITY, MO - AUGUST 28: Jalen Milroe #6 of the Seattle Seahawks hands off to Jacardia Wright #31 in the fourth quarter of an NFL preseason game between the Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs on Aug 28, 2026 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas Ci (Scott Winters / Icon Sportswire / Getty Images)
The preseason is over for the Seattle Seahawks after a 9-9 tie with the Kansas City Chiefs on Friday night. Now the process of trimming the roster down to 53 players for the 2026 season will commence.
The Seahawks have to trim the roster from 91 players down to just 53 by Sunday's 3 p.m. PT deadline. They can get there by releasing veterans, waiving players, trading players, or placing injured players on reserve lists such as the Physically Unable to Perform list.
So why not project what roster will remain?
Some things to note off the top:
– There is no way to reasonably forecast any trades that could occur. So for this projection, we aren't including any guesses on that front.
– The roster will be far from final. Teams can make waiver claims the day after players are released to add players released by other teams. A player added via waivers means another player must go to create room. Players on injured reserve, physically unable to perform (PUP), and non-football injury (NFI) lists don't count against the active roster limit.
– With teams able to easily elevate players off the practice squad to play in games each week, cutting veterans that don't have to go through waivers so that they can be on the practice squad instead is a far more normal practice than was possible in past seasons.
Featured
Leonard Williams reflects on Seattle’s impact after signing new extension with Seahawks
Leonard Williams celebrated a new three-year Seahawks extension with his family and reflected on the career resurgence and personal growth he has experienced since arriving in Seattle.
Dig deeper:
Offense:
Quarterback (3): Sam Darnold, Drew Lock, Jalen Milroe.
Jalen Milroe has real issues as a passer, but he finished the preseason strongly against the Chiefs. That should be enough to keep him on the roster. Drew Lock is a really solid backup option to clear No. 1 option Sam Darnold.
Running Back (5): Jadarian Price, George Holani, Emmanuel Wilson, Velus Jones Jr., Brady Russell (FB).
With Zach Charbonnet likely to begin the year on the PUP list, and Emmanuel Wilson sidelined recently due to an injury, the Seahawks keep an extra running back to begin the season in Velus Jones Jr. Jones has a receiver background too, if needed in a pinch, and can play special teams roles.
Price and Holani will hold down the primary running back roles until Wilson and Charbonnet can get into the mix. Brady Russell becomes the primary fullback over Brock Lampe with Robbie Ouzts out for the year.
Tight End (4): A.J. Barner, Elijah Arroyo, Eric Saubert, Nick Kallerup
The same tight end room from last year returns intact. Elijah Arroyo has had a really strong camp. Nick Kallerup is a really strong blocking tight end.
Wide Receiver (5): Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Cooper Kupp, Rashid Shaheed, Tory Horton, Montorie Foster Jr.
The top four spots are locked in. The question is whether the Seahawks keep five or six receivers. It's hard to imagine Montorie Foster Jr. getting through waivers without being claimed given the Hard Knocks love for him this preseason, so he sticks on the roster. With Velus Jones Jr.'s ability to play receiver, the Seahawks may try to hope Cody White, Ricky White III and Emmanuel Henderson Jr. can all clear waivers to get to the practice squad.
Offensive Line (9): Charles Cross, Grey Zabel, Jalen Sundell, Anthony Bradford, Abe Lucas, Josh Jones, Olu Oluwatimi, Christian Haynes, Beau Stephens.
The starting five have been set all offseason and return intact from last year. Josh Jones (tackle), Olu Oluwatimi (center), and Christian Haynes (guard) return as primary backups as well, with fifth-round pick Beau Stephens the last lineman.
Defense:
Defensive Line (5): Leonard Williams, Byron Murphy II, Jarran Reed, Rylie Mills, Mike Morris.
The top four DL spots are firm. Mike Morris contributes heavily on special teams and should be safe. Brandon Pili has had a nice camp too and played in 13 games last season, which would make him prone to being claimed if available. But there just doesn't seem to be a spot.
Edge (5): Demarcus Lawrence, Uchenna Nwosu, Derick Hall, Dante Fowler Jr., Connor O'Toole.
Dante Fowler Jr. replaces Boye Mafe's spot in the edge rotation. Connor O'Toole and Jared Ivey were carried on the roster all of last season, but Rylie Mills being healthy leaves room for just one this year. O'Toole gets the nod over Ivey, who they'd like to be able to have reach the practice squad.
Linebacker (4): Ernest Jones IV, Drake Thomas, Tyrice Knight, Chazz Surratt.
Patrick O'Connell remains a very solid depth linebacker option that just can't quite crack a 53-man roster out of camp. Chazz Surratt is a core special teams option and gets the nod as O'Connell is more likely to clear waivers.
Cornerback (5): Devon Witherspoon, Josh Jobe, Nehemiah Pritchett, Julian Neal, Trevon Diggs.
One of the most interesting position groups on the roster to try and figure out the depth behind Devon Witherspoon and Josh Jobe. Nehemiah Pritchett and Noah Igbinoghene battled for the No. 3 job through much of camp. Pritchett would have to clear waivers, while Igbinoghene would not. That gives him the advantage. Seattle would still hope to re-sign Igbinoghene to the practice squad to play Week 1.
Julain Neal has missed most of training camp, but he'll still make the roster. Trevon Diggs has made a strong early impression since joining the team and has higher upside than Igbinoghene (if he's healthy). They could make the same arrangement with Diggs to go to the practice squad, too, given both Diggs and Igbinoghene are vested veterans that wouldn't need to clear waivers. But we'll give Diggs the 53-man spot.
It also remains expected that the Seahawks will sign Terrion Arnold and have him moved to the Commissioner's Exempt List prior to roster cuts on Sunday, which doesn't count against the team's roster limits.
Safety (5): Julian Love, Ty Okada, Nick Emmanwori, D'Anthony Bell, Rodney Thomas II.
Nick Emmanwori seems unlikely to play Week 1 after his surgery prior to the start of training camp. D'Anthony Bell has handled his role throughout the preseason. Rodney Thomas II and A.J. Finley have been battling for a depth role on the roster. Thomas is the more accomplished player and Finley might be able to clear waivers.
Special Teams (3): Jason Myers, Michael Dickson, Chris Stoll.
All three spots are set.
PUP (1): Running back Zach Charbonnet.
Charbonnet is just over six months removed from surgery to repair a torn ACL in his knee. While the progress he's made has been impressive, it seems unlikely he'd be available early enough in the season to keep him on the roster right now at the expense of another player.
Injured Reserve (4): Wide receiver Jake Bobo, safety Bud Clark, fullback Robbie Ouzts, guard Mason Richman.
All four players are out for the season due to preseason injuries. They could be joined by players waived/injured through the roster cut process.
Practice Squad (17): RB Jacardia Wright, TE Nick Vannett, OL Bryce Cabeldue, OL Bobby Hart, C Federico Maranges, WR Cody White, WR Ricky White III, WR Emmanuel Henderson, DT Brandon Pili, DT Deven Eastern, DE Jared Ivey, LB Jalan Gaines, LB Jamie Sheriff, LB Patrick O'Connell, CB Noah Igbinoghene, CB Michael Dansby, S A.J. Finley.
The practice squad changes weekly and several of these options could get claimed or signed by other teams, but this is a projection of possible options for the squad if they clear waivers.
Fullback Brock Lampe is another strong option, as is seventh-round cornerback Andre Fuller. The Seahawks get an extra practice squad spot for center Federico Maranges as he's a part of the NFL's international player pathway program.
The Source: Information in this story comes from FOX 13 Seattle reporting.
MORE SEAHAWKS NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE
Leonard Williams reflects on Seattle’s impact after signing new extension with Seahawks
Report: Seattle Seahawks, Leonard Williams agree to 3-year, $90M extension
Though sale has been approved by NFL, the Khosla family doesn't own the Seattle Seahawks just yet
Soundgarden reunites to perform halftime show of Seattle Seahawks' season opener
NFL owners vote to approve sale of Seattle Seahawks to Vinod Khosla family
To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.
Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.