It happened quickly and quietly. That rarely happens when a 340+ pound human is involved. Matt Gotel, the backup nose tackle for the Seahawks, left practice with an injury and was waived as injured just a few days later (August 20th). I did not think much of it at the time as the Seahawks defensive line is as deep as it has ever been, and players like Byron Murphy, Jarran Reed, and Leonard Williams can all play nose tackle. A tweet by Brady Henderson of ESPN.com has me rethinking the implications of that injury.
On reflection, it makes sense that the Seahawks would want to add more security behind starting nose tackle Johnathan Hankins. Even if the other guys are going to get snaps at nose tackle, none of them truly profile as a run-stuffing nose tackle should Hankins go down.
Part of the challenge is that Mike Macdonald has never kept more than five interior defensive tackles on his roster while acting as a defensive coordinator in Baltimore. In fact, he kept just four his first season.
If you assume Murphy, Reed, Williams, and Hankins are all locks, that leaves just one spot for either a backup nose tackle or Mike Morris. I struggle with the idea of cutting Morris, who has shown a lot of promise both outside and inside and brings unique length to the position. That leaves me thinking the team might stretch to six players at defensive tackle, but let’s leave that conversation for the 53-man roster projection I will publish after this article goes live.
The focus here is who would the Seahawks possibly target to bring in as a backup nose tackle.
The Veterans
Al Woods
Woods is beloved and respected, but he is also 37-years-old. It is not clear he still plans to play or that the team wants to bring in an older vet to backup.
Bryan Mone
Mone was known and respected in Seattle but the team cut him this offseason to get his salary off the books after he struggled to recover from an injury. There has been no conversations going on about him around the NFL, indicating his career might be over.
Isaiah Buggs
Buggs is a 28-year-old player who fits the bill, but had so many off-field incidents this offseason that the Chiefs cut him.
Eli Anjou
Ankou is 30-years-old, and is 325 pounds. Those are his best qualifications. He is currently on the Buffalo Bills roster, but is on the bubble and may not make it.
Bottom line: Veteran options do not make a ton of sense for Seattle. The more logical move would be to find a younger player could develop behind Hankins and possibly ascend next year.
The young bucks
Siaki Ika (6’3″ 358 lbs)
Ika was a hot topic among Seahawks draft fanatics last season, and some national draft experts had him as high as the 2nd round. He wound up going to the Cleveland Browns in the 3rd round with the 99th overall pick.
He has struggled mightily as an NFL player, not showing nearly the strength one would expect from a man this large. He is still just 23-years-old and may do better in a new defense and environment.
Word around the Browns is that Ika will not make their final roster, leaving him as a possible player the Seahawks could sign without giving up anything. Should John Schneider want to assure themselves of adding Ika, he could consider throwing a conditional 7th at the Browns.
Seattle will get an up-close look at Ika in their final preseason game when the Browns come to Seattle.
Taki Taimani (6’1″ 330 lbs)
Taimani played for the Oregon Ducks and was signed by the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent this year. Taimani has had an excellent preseason. He leads all interior linemen in run defense grade on PFF at 90.2. He has also done reasonably well collapsing the pocket while posting a 70.7 pass rush grade.
He is 24-years-old, and has a decent chance to make the Vikings roster. Minnesota has a number of other players, though, and would likely be willing to part with Taimani for a draft pick considering they signed him as a free agent. It would likely cost the Seahawks a conditional 6th.
Quinton Bohanna (6’4″ 360 lbs)
Bohanna plays for the Tennessee Titans, but has some connection to the Seahawks. Aden Durde coached him in Dallas in 2021 and 2022. Bohanna is on the roster bubble with the Titans. They are in need of edge rush and cornerback help. The trade of Darrell Taylor removes the option of swapping Taylor for a backup nose tackle directly, but Bohanna is probably available for a conditional 7th round pick.
The bigger question is whether Durde wants him. Bohanna had run defense grades of 42.4 and 30.5 while playing for Durde in Dallas. The team did just get an up close look at him during joint practices and the preseason game, so they should have a decent idea of what they would be acquiring.
Keondre Coburn (6’2″ 332 lbs)
Coburn, 24, was drafted last year by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 6th round. He was then waived and signed by the Denver Broncos, who then cut him in November. The Chiefs signed him back to their practice squad before the Titans signed him to their 53-man roster in December. That is a lot of moving around in one season.
Coburn was a polarizing draft prospect who some thought merited as high as a 3rd round pick. There were questions about his motor and desire.
He played reasonably well, though, with the Titans, posting a 66.6 overall grade and a 64.2 run defense grade. He has had a good preseason and is good bet to make the Titans roster.
He might be available, however, given the Titans drafted T’Vondre Sweat high in the 2nd round and have Jeffrey Simmons. The also have Bohanna.
Coburn makes a lot of sense for the Seahawks as a young nose tackle with upside who could learn behind Hankins in a veteran-laden defensive line room. His cost would likely be at least the 6th round pick Seattle just received for Taylor, but may need to be conditional up to a 5th.
What to do?
It is still entirely possible that the Seahawks roll without adding another nose tackle to the 53-man roster and simply comb through waivers for someone to sign to the practice squad. If they like one of these young players significantly more than the options they expect to be available on waivers, a trade would make sense.
Cameron Young is still on PUP and could be an option in week five of the season, but it is not clear he is a good fit for Macdonald’s scheme.
Taimani or Coburn may offer the most projectable upside as future starters, keeping in mind that starting nose tackles play roughly 25 snaps per game. Run-stuffing defensive tackles are fortunately easier to find than pass rushers, and Schneider has a decent track record of bargain shopping at that position.