Dec 8, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (11) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Seattle Seahawks have one of NFL's youngest teams going into 2025 season

Originally posted on Seattle Seahawks on SI
By Connor Benintendi | Last updated Jun 28, 2025 8:00 AM ET

The Seattle Seahawks have placed a heavy focus on building through the draft over the past few seasons, which has kept the team youthful even as some of those players near the end of their rookie contracts.

While difficult decisions on who to extend await Seattle this offseason and next, the Seahawks have one of the youngest starting corps of players in the entire NFL. They also have the youngest group in the NFC West by a decent margin.

According to SportsCasting Bets, which sourced its NFL depth charts from OurLads, the Seahawks have the sixth-youngest starters in the league at 25.23 years old. That's mostly a product of having many of its top-end draft picks from 2022-24 already stepping in as starters last year or are projected to start this season. The average age of an NFL starter heading into 2025 is 25.59 years old.

While being a young team on the rise is a plus, it also means the 2022 draft class is about to have its rookie contracts expire. That means the Seahawks are about to have to shovel out cash to keep some of their top players, while also planning ahead for keeping their stars drafted in 2023 and 2024. That's the side of the coin that can begin to tear a team apart when pay days are needed.

Still, the Seahawks are younger than their division rivals. The Los Angeles Rams are the next youngest at an average age of 25.55 (15th), while the Arizona Cardinals came in at 25.81 (24th). The San Francisco 49ers are the oldest team in the division at an average age of 26.14 years old (30th).

The Washington Commanders have by far the oldest group of starters at 27.13 years old. That's almost a whole year older than the next closest team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, at 26.37. The Green Bay Packers are the youngest at 24.80 years old.

Seattle has a handful of rising stars, which is a positive considering the team won 10 games a season ago. However, they still have to prove they can make a strong playoff push with their current personnel, and that would ideally happen before the big extensions start being handed out.

This article first appeared on Seattle Seahawks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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