Reviewing Projections: How Did Seahawks' Tyrel Dodson Experiment Fail?

Preseason Projections

- 92 tackles

- 9 tackles for loss

- 4.5 sacks

- 3 pass deflections

- 52 receptions allowed (64 targets)

- 504 receiving yards allowed

- 3 touchdowns allowed

- 81 percent completion rate allowed

- 9.7 yards per catch allowed

Dodson’s 2024 Season With Seahawks (9 games)

- 71 tackles

- 5 tackles for loss

- 2 sacks

- 2 pass deflections

- 24 receptions allowed (31 targets)

- 259 receiving yards allowed

- 0 touchdowns allowed

- 77.4 percent completion rate allowed

- 10.8 yards per catch allowed

Dodson’s 2024 Season Totals

- 107 tackles

- 5 tackles for los

- 2 sacks

- 4 pass deflections

- 3 interceptions

- 37 receptions allowed (48 targets)

- 371 receiving yards allowed

- 0 touchdowns allowed

- 77.1 percent completion rate allowed

- 10.0 yards per catch allowed

Before dissecting Dodson’s season, it’s important to understand what unfolded between him and the Seahawks.

Even during Seattle’s 3-0 start to begin the season, defending the run was a struggle for first-year head coach Mike Macdonald’s defense.

Once the team slid to 4-5 entering their Week 10 bye week, Macdonald said “everything is on the table” in terms of personnel changes and scheme adjustments on both sides of the football.

Macdonald wasn’t satisfied with the defensive performance, and the linebacker play in particular. Less than three weeks after trading starting linebacker Jerome Baker to the Tennessee Titans for new starter Ernest Jones IV, Dodson was also released on Nov. 11 — six days before the Seahawks were set to play the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara.

“I think it was an opportunity for us when we kind of sat and took a step back and realized where we were at, it was really the best thing for us to move forward that way,” Macdonald said after the team released Dodson. “Give the other guys in the room an opportunity to step up. I hope those guys grab that opportunity by the horns and take it and run with it.”

Rookie fourth-round pick Tyrice Knight stepped in alongside Jones, and Seattle gave up just under 100 rush yards per game over the team’s final eight games. The Seahawks allowed over 139 rush yards per game over their first nine games.

Of course, it wasn’t all on Dodson, and he managed to latch on with the Miami Dolphins. Dodson had 36 tackles, four pass deflections and three interceptions in three starts (eight games played) with Miami.

When he was released, Dodson led the Seahawks in tackles. Statistically, he was having a good season, but it wasn’t translating to the defense’s overall success.

There was too much stress on the defensive line, with Dodson and Baker frequently out of position to make stops when opposing running backs reached the second level. That also put stress on the back end of the defense to save Seattle from allowing big plays.

Seattle’s linebacker experiment failed. The Seahawks spent $11.26 million on one-year deals for Baker and Dodson each, and neither played more than nine games for the team.

Dodson isn’t a bad player; he clearly just didn’t fit the scheme and mentality Macdonald was trying to instill in the defense. His success in limited opportunities with the Dolphins proved that, and he earned an AFC Defensive Player of the Week award in Week 17.

In hindsight, it’s hard to argue with the move by Seattle considering how well the defense played down the stretch. Sometimes football marriages simply don’t work out. The Seahawks may have found a long-term starting linebacker duo as a result, assuming they can re-sign Jones.