The Seattle Seahawks won Super Bowl 60, and part of their success was their strong free-agent class.
However, every franchise has a crop of free agents that may lead fans to believe it’ll improve their NFL futures odds for things like a Super Bowl, but they don’t work out.
With that said, below, I’ll rank the seven worst free agent signings in Seahawks history.
Worst Seattle Seahawks Free Agent Signings of All Time
7. Eddie Lacy, Running Back
While Lacy got worse each season of his career with the Green Bay Packers, he signed a one-year deal with the Seahawks in 2017.
As a rookie, Lacy had 11 touchdowns. In the two seasons after that, he scored 12 combined, including just three in 2015.
However, the Seahawks were looking to find a replacement for what Marshawn Lynch brought to the table, and needless to say, it didn’t work out with Lacy.
He appeared in nine games and had 69 carries for 179 (2.6 yards per carry) and didn’t find the end zone.
6. Ezekiel Ansah, Edge Rusher
The No. 5 overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, Ansah put together some quality seasons with the team, posting double-digit sacks twice and going for 7.5 sacks or more in four of his six seasons with the team.
In 2018, he didn’t play much due to shoulder injuries, so in 2019, the Seahawks brought him in on a one-year, $9 million “prove it” deal.
That season, he dealt with even more injuries, but this time to his ankle, back, and neck. He appeared in 11 games and had just 2.5 sacks.
This was his penultimate season in the NFL.
5. Sidney Rice, Wide Receiver
After spending the first four seasons of his career with the Minnesota Vikings and making the Pro Bowl in 2009, the Seahawks signed Rice to a sizable deal of $41 million over five years in 2011. This came after he played just six games in 2010 due to hip surgery.
Despite that, his deal with the Seahawks reunited him with offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell, who came to the team from the Vikings.
He spent three seasons with the Seahawks, and while he caught 50 passes for 748 yards and seven touchdowns in 2012, he combined for just 47 catches, 715 yards, and five touchdowns in 2011 and 2013.
The cherry on top? He tore his ACL in 2013 against the then-St. Louis Rams in Week 8 and missed the rest of the season.
He later signed a one-year, $1.4 million deal with the Seahawks in 2014 after being initially released, but retired later that year.
4. Robert Gallery, Guard
The No. 2 overall pick from the 2004 NFL Draft, Gallery never quite lived up to the hype, but he had some decent seasons with the then-Oakland Raiders.
Still, in 2011, the Seahawks signed him to a three-year, $15 million deal, and he lasted just one season, allowing three sacks and 21 pressures across 432 pass-blocking snaps as a left guard.
3. Jeremy Lane, Cornerback
Less than a year after recording his first-ever interception in Super Bowl 49 against the New England Patriots and Tom Brady, the Seahawks awarded Lane, a player they drafted in the sixth round in 2012, with a four-year, $23 million deal.
After signing the deal in 2016, Lane allowed 71.8% of the passes thrown his way to be caught. Opponents racked up 51 catches on 71 targets for 649 yards and five touchdowns against him.
The Seahawks attempted to ship him to the Houston Texans in October 2017 for offensive tackle Duane Brown, but Lane failed his physical and stayed with the team.
He played in 13 games and, once again, allowed more than 70% of his passes to be caught.
Nearly two years to the day after signing his extension with the team, the Seahawks released him.
So, when it was all said and done, Lane, after signing the deal, allowed 72 catches on 101 targets (71.3%) for 910 yards, five touchdowns, and no interceptions across 753 coverage snaps.
Brutal.
2. Cary Williams, Cornerback
After losing Byron Maxwell to the Philadelphia Eagles, the Seahawks brought in Williams from, ironically, the Eagles, to replace him. He signed a three-year, $18 million deal with the team on March 10, 2015, and he was released on December 7, 2015.
He struggled in coverage, allowing two touchdowns in his final two games with the team before being replaced by DeShawn Shead.
A complete bust of a contract.
1. Nate Odomes, Cornerback
A marquee free agent in 1994, Odomes signed a four-year, $8.4 million deal with the Seahawks. While that’s nothing in today’s NFL, keep in mind that the salary cap back then was under $35 million.
Odomes was a fantastic cornerback for the Buffalo Bills, earning Pro Bowl honours in 1992 and 1993, but after signing with the Seahawks, he never saw the field.
He was injured during a charity basketball game, suffering a knee injury.
That was a lot of money to commit to a player in those days — especially one that never actually got on the field.
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