He isn’t always expected to be the splashiest player on the Seattle Seahawks defense, but ninth-year veteran defensive tackle Jarran Reed occasionally flashes the talent that made him a mid-second-round pick in 2018.
Reed had one of those games on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings. He finished with four tackles, one sack, one forced fumble, one batted pass and two quarterback hits while playing just 61 percent of Seattle’s defensive snaps, according to Pro Football Reference.
That’s the same percentage of snaps Reed has taken out of the Seahawks’ total defensive plays this season. But occasionally he looks like one of Seattle’s best players.
“I think it’s similar to [Leonard Williams’] curve for the middle of the season. We just knew he was playing really good football, and it was great to see [Williams] kind of break away, break up the stat category and I put Jarran in the same sentence of guys playing really good football,” Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald said on Monday. “He’s playing really hard. How they’re working together in some of the pass rush stuff is pretty cool to see and it’s exciting to see him get some production.”
Reed tied his season high of two quarterback hits and he entered the game with just 2.5 sacks in 2024. In 15 games this season, Reed has 43 tackles, four tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two batted passes and 13 quarterback hits.
Seven of Reed’s nine NFL seasons have been in Seattle. The Seahawks drafted him 49th overall in 2016, and he played his home games at Lumen Field for five seasons.
Reed took a detour to Green Bay and Kansas City, each for one season, before returning to Seattle in 2023. He’s been one of the key veterans along the Seahawks’ defensive line that is helping lead the young, developing stars in Macdonald’s defense.
With his locker room leadership and occasional impact game, Reed remains one of the most important players on the Seahawks’ current roster.
