On Day 2 of the 2023 league year, the visit stage of free agency appears upon us. The Seahawks will act accordingly, being set to host two defenders coming off their respective rookie contracts.
Linebacker Devin Bush and safety Julian Love will head to Seattle for summits with Seahawks brass Thursday, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The Seahawks have been busy along their defensive front but have thus far waited out the markets at linebacker and in the secondary.
Love’s inclusion here is interesting, both given the Seahawks’ personnel at the position and the Giants’ in retaining their young safety starter. Love is just 24 (25 this weekend) despite having been in the NFL four seasons, and after Jabrill Peppers and Logan Ryan relocated last year, the former Giants fourth-round pick played a vital role for Don Martindale’s defense. He logged 1,006 snaps during a season in which Xavier McKinney and Adoree’ Jackson missed extended stretches, helping Big Blue secure its first playoff berth in six years. Love made 124 tackles and intercepted two passes last season.
The Seahawks are already the most well-invested team at the safety position, having Jamal Adams still on a top-market contract and having re-signed Quandre Diggs last year. Even after the Falcons added Jessie Bates for $16MM on average, Diggs’ $13MM-per-year contract still ranks within the top 10 at the position. The Seahawks are coming off a season in which Adams played one game, but Love might prove too pricey for a role alongside this duo.
Following a productive rookie season, Bush could not become a Steelers anchor at linebacker. The team, which traded up for Bush in the 2019 first round, reduced his playing time last season. Bush logged a career-low 62% defensive snap rate with Pittsburgh in 2022, after the team passed on his fifth-year option.
Pro Football Focus slotted Bush just outside the top 50 at linebacker last season; that did mark a bump after the advanced metrics site rated him as one of the worst players at the position in 2021. The Michigan product did play 17 games, making a sufficient recovery from the ACL tear that sidetracked his career back in 2020, but he did not check in as one of this crowded off-ball linebacker market’s top options heading into free agency.
Seattle has Jordyn Brooks signed through 2023, with a fifth-year option decision looming, but lost 2022 starter Cody Barton to the Commanders. The team has been connected to a possible Bobby Wagner…