Following a career-best season in 2023, Tyrel Dodson is heading west. The former Bills linebacker is signing with the Seahawks, according to Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz.
The former UDFA out of Texas A&M had spent his entire five-year career with the Bills. A suspension and a practice-squad stint led to a redshirt rookie campaign, and Dodson mostly played a special teams role in 2020 and 2021. After seeing an uptick in defensive snaps in 2022, the fifth-year player took off in 2023.
Dodson started 10 of his 17 appearances this past season while getting into more than half of the Bills’ defensive snaps. He finished the campaign with 74 tackles, 2.5 sacks and one forced fumble. Pro Football Focus was especially fond of his performance, ranking Dodson as its top linebacker for the 2023 season. The 25-year-old’s PFF grade was brought up by elite scores for run defense and coverage.
The Seahawks have lost some significant linebacker depth in free agency, with both Jordyn Brooks and Bobby Wagner signing elsewhere. Dodson provides the organization with some experience at outside linebacker. The team’s other options include Patrick O’Connell, Jon Rhattigan and Drake Thomas; that trio has combined for 23 career defensive snaps.
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