Seattle Seahawks Release Two Players Before Week 9

The Seattle Seahawks made a pair of practice-squad moves this week, releasing linebacker Jimmy Ciarlo and wide receiver Malick Meiga to clear roster space, according to the NFL transaction wire.

In their place, the club signed quarterback Adrian Martinez and linebacker Jamie Sheriff.

The transactions reflect the routine shuffling that occurs on a 17-man practice squad, yet they also address more immediate needs.

With starting quarterback Sam Darnold ruled out for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals because of a quad injury, and backup Drew Lock still managing an elbow issue that has kept him inactive in recent weeks, Seattle sought additional depth behind Lock and third-stringer Jalen Milroe.

Martinez, a dual-threat passer who starred at Nebraska and Kansas State before going undrafted in 2023, supplies that insurance.

He previously spent time with the Detroit Lions, New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers, and he earned United Football League MVP and championship-game honors with the Birmingham Stallions in 2024.

Sheriff’s return is more familiar.

The South Alabama product originally joined Seattle as an undrafted free agent in 2024, flashed in the preseason with multiple sacks, and later appeared in games for both the Seahawks and Carolina Panthers.

After missing the initial 53-man roster this year he spent time on the Los Angeles Rams’ practice squad before being released in mid-October. Re-signing him restores a known edge presence who has already worked within the Seahawks’ defensive system.

Ciarlo’s departure ends a short but active stint in Seattle.

The Army product, who gained visibility on HBO’s Hard Knocks while with the Buffalo Bills and logged special-teams snaps in one regular-season game for Buffalo last year, signed with the Seahawks’ practice squad on September 30.

He was elevated for multiple games, made his Seattle debut and recorded an assisted tackle while filling in amid linebacker injuries. Meiga, a 6-foot-4 receiver from Coastal Carolina who began his college career at Penn State, took a similarly winding path.

Born in Ivory Coast and raised in Quebec, he signed with the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent, was waived with an injury settlement, then joined Seattle’s practice squad in late September under a commissioner’s exemption while his work visa was processed.

He was released and re-signed earlier in October before being cut again on Wednesday. Neither player had accumulated regular-season offensive statistics with the Seahawks.

For Seattle, currently 4-4 and preparing for a divisional matchup that carries NFC West implications, the moves prioritize quarterback insurance and a known linebacker while clearing spots for two players the coaching staff preferred to have on hand.

Ciarlo and Meiga become free agents and can sign elsewhere once they clear any remaining procedural steps.