Leonard Williams Re-Signs With Seahawks For A Huge Three-Year Extension.
Leonard Williams was locked up by the Seattle Seahawks with a lucrative extension after they determined that he was their top priority going into free agency.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Network and team sources verified to AllSeahawks.com that the Seahawks and Williams reached an agreement on a three-year contract worth $64.5 million, or an average of $21.5 million annually. He is among the five highest-paid defensive linemen in the league with a contract that includes $43.5 million in guarantees, according to Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report.
In October, general manager John Schneider of Seattle traded two second-round and five fifth-round picks to the New York Giants in exchange for Williams, believing the move would help the team advance to the postseason. Even so, the team’s late-season collapse and eventual postseason absence weren’t brought on by their rookie defensive lineman’s subpar play.
Williams made an immediate impression in the trenches and, in his ten games following the trade, distinguished himself as one of the Seahawks’ rare bright spots, especially as an inside pass rusher. He finished with four sacks, eleven quarterback hits, and thirty-two pressures, relentlessly bothering the opposing team’s signal callers. He placed 13th among defensive tackles for the season in pressures (54) and fifth in Williams recorded nine tackles for loss after joining the team from the Giants, demonstrating his disruptive abilities to break gaps and penetrate the backfield even though he was a little more erratic as a run defender. According to Pro Football Focus, he participated in 18 games overall and ranked 16th in terms of total defensive tackle run stops.
As talks heated up last week and the two sides attempted to iron out a deal to keep Williams with the team long-term, Schneider made keeping Williams a key priority after he had performed so well in half of a season in Seattle.
As talks heated up last week and the two sides attempted to iron out a deal to keep Williams with the team long-term, Schneider made keeping Williams a key priority after he had performed so well in half of a season in Seattle.
Williams’ return will strengthen a defensive line that the Seahawks should consider a strength going into next season, especially considering the abundance of incentives they have to re-sign him, including the pay they forfeited to get him. Along with Dre’Mont Jones and Jarran Reed, the 30-year-old will be the team’s standout player, providing a three-headed monster with potential for pass rushes. Young players Mike Morris and Cameron Young will play supporting roles.
Williams’ contract extension until 2026 means that the Seahawks can now turn their attention to other internal free agents and external needs, namely defensive linebacker and safety. Schneider should still have more than $30 million in cap space available to him as he seeks to bolster the roster in the days ahead, depending on the terms of his deal.
