Stacy Rost: 3 players who can elevate Seahawks’ ceiling in ’26

The Seattle Seahawks face an uphill battle to defend their Super Bowl title, and it’s not due to a lack of talent. But there have been just two back-to-back champs since 2000, and the Seahawks will need to knock off an absolutely loaded Los Angeles Rams roster to become the third.

What stood out from Seahawks’ ‘Hard Knocks’ finale

The Seahawks have a few advantages of their own, including one of the best wide receivers in the league and a defense littered with Pro Bowlers. Stars like Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Leonard Williams and Devon Witherspoon keep the floor of this team high, but which players could elevate the ceiling of a team coming off 14 wins in 2025?

Jadarian Price

It’s almost cheating to have this as the first answer because it’s also the most important. The Seahawks lost Kenneth Walker III to free agency and will be without Zach Charbonnet for at least the first four weeks with him opening the season on the PUP list. The running back room was by far Seattle’s biggest question entering the offseason, and its success will dictate just how far the offense can get this year. Even then, there’s a chance Price surpasses expectations.

Las Vegas’ Ashton Jeanty led all rookie running backs in rushing yards last year (975), followed by New England’s TreVeyon Henderson (911). Seattle might still turn to veterans like George Holani (and later Charbonnet) in the red zone, but Price will start the season behind one of the best offensive lines Seattle has had in over a decade (it’s also one that’s returning all five starters) and has a chance to rack up yards early for a Seahawks offense that – despite Walker’s stellar postseason – struggled to run efficiently through the first half of 2025.

AJ Barner

Sure, it’s no coincidence that a rookie running back and a veteran tight end are two picks here under a new offensive coordinator who oversaw the run game and tight ends during his tenure with the San Francisco 49ers. But this is more heavily driven by Barner’s jump over his first two seasons.

The 2024 fourth-round pick finished with 519 receiving yards (more than doubling his rookie total) and six touchdowns last year. He saw twice as many receptions per game and more yards per target under Sam Darnold, who was top three in intended air yards through most of the season. JSN was the biggest beneficiary there with 36% of Darnold’s targets, but that share (the most by a receiver since 2012) figures to decrease this season, and Barner feels like a prime candidate to see a few more come his way.

Rashid Shaheed

Shaheed was a godsend for special teams last year, but never fully integrated into the offense. He finished with just 188 receiving yards on 26 targets across nine regular-season games with Seattle.

Part of the issue was the second-half passing offense and pass protection. Darnold was sacked more often down the stretch (two-plus sacks in five of the final six games after one or fewer sacks in eight of the first 11) and threw more interceptions. But even then, it was fair for fans to expect more from a speedy addition, especially with a quarterback so effective with downfield threats. Could a full offseason with Seattle help Shaheed bring the kind of production (719 yards and five touchdowns) he had in a career-best 2023 season with New Orleans?

Seattle Seahawks news and more

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