Seattle Seahawks make trade, swapping linebackers with Titans

The Seattle Seahawks have made a trade to change course at linebacker.

The Seahawks have agreed to trade veteran linebacker Jerome Baker and draft pick compensation to the Tennessee Titans for Ernest Jones IV. Per reports by multiple NFL insiders, the draft pick compensation is a fourth-round pick.

Bump: What changes for Seahawks with trade for LB Ernest Jones IV

The Seahawks get younger at inside linebacker with the move, as Jones will turn 25 next month while Baker will be 28 in late December.

Jones was a third-round selection by the Los Angeles Rams out of South Carolina in 2021, and this is already the second time he’s been traded this year. The Titans sent the Rams a 2026 fifth-round pick for Jones and a conditional 2026 sixth-rounder in August.

Jones spent his first three pro seasons with the Rams, with his best year being 2023 when he started all 15 games he appeared in, making 145 combined tackles, 4.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, six QB hits, and six passes defensed.

THERE WE GO, ERNEST!

📺 @SNFonNBC | @ernestjones53 pic.twitter.com/lLC4oAE8cT

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) January 15, 2024

In six games (five starts) this year with the Titans, Jones has 44 combined tackles, three tackles for loss, one QB hit and two passes defensed. Per Spotrac, Jones is making $3.116 million this year, and he’s set to hit free agency at the end of the season.

The 6-foot-2, 232-pound Baker signed with Seattle as a free agent last offseason after spending six seasons with Miami. The Dolphins drafted Baker in the third round in 2018 out of Ohio State.

In five games with the Seahawks, Baker registered 30 combined tackles, two tackles for loss, a QB hit, one sack, two passes defensed, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

Brock Huard Reacts: Why Seattle Seahawks made LB trade

Seattle signed Baker to a one-year, $7 million contract in March.

.@BrockHuard and @TheMikeSalk react to the breaking #Seahawks trade news. https://t.co/E2jmHWk0Yw pic.twitter.com/Fl4S65FRt4

— Seattle Sports (@SeattleSports) October 23, 2024

Jones joins an inside linebackers crew in Seattle that includes Tyrel Dodson and rookie Tyrice Knight.

This is the second trade the Seahawks have made since last week, as they picked up veteran defensive tackle Roy Robertson-Harris on Oct. 14 from the Jacksonville Jaguars. The NFL trade deadline is Nov. 5.

The Seahawks (4-3) currently lead the NFC West and are gearing up for a Week 8 showdown with the AFC East-leading Buffalo Bills (5-2) in Seattle at 1:05 p.m. Sunday.

More on the Seattle Seahawks

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• A look at Buffalo Bills, the Seahawks’ Week 8 opponent
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