Seahawks Free Agency: LB Cody Barton reportedly to Commanders
Mar 13, 2023, 3:15 PM | Updated: 9:46 pm
Seahawks LB Cody Barton prepares for a snap against the New York Jets during a Jan. 1, 2023 game. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
(Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
The linebacker room was already thin for the Seattle Seahawks. Now it’s nearly empty.
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Cody Barton is the first pending Seahawks free agent reportedly leaving the nest, as NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero tweeted Monday afternoon that the veteran linebacker has agreed to a one-year deal with the Washington Commanders.
The NFL’s two-day legal tampering period began Monday morning, with free agency set to begin at 1 p.m. Wednesday at the same time as the start of the new league year.
The reported loss of Barton to Washington leaves the Seahawks with essentially one experienced, traditional (non edge-rushing) linebacker on their roster: Jordyn Brooks, who suffered a torn ACL near the end of the 2022 season and isn’t expected to be ready for the start of the 2023 campaign.
Barton, 26, started a career-high 11 games and appeared in all 17 of Seattle’s contests in 2022, assuming a regular starting role for the first time in the NFL following the Seahawks’ parting of ways with legendary linebacker Bobby Wagner. Oddly enough, Wagner is a candidate to rejoin the Hawks after the Rams announced it would part ways with him even after he earned Pro Bowl honors for the eighth straight years. Seahawks general manager John Schneider said on his weekly Seattle Sports show last Thursday that they have had talks with Wagner, who serves as his own agent.
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Barton made 136 tackles, two sacks, two quarterback hits, four tackles for loss, two interceptions and six passes defensed for Seattle last season. He mainly played weakside linebacker but moved to middle linebacker for Seattle’s final regular season game and playoff loss to San Francisco following Brooks’ injury.
The Seahawks made Barton a third-round NFL Draft pick in 2019 out of Utah. He has spent his entire four-year career thus far with Seattle.
Watch Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob react to the news of Barton’s reported departure below.
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