Seahawks plant seeds for another run with $90M Williams move

Seattle Seahawks defensive end Leonard Williams. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Seahawks plant seeds for another Super Bowl run with $90M Leonard Williams move

By Clark Dalton | Last updated Aug 27, 2026 1:56 PM ET

Seattle Seahawks defensive tackle Leonard Williams can now spend way more on his garden that was featured in HBO's "Hard Knocks."

On Thursday, the Seahawks and Williams agreed to a three-year, $90M extension with $56M guaranteed, via multiple reports. That's a significant bump for the 32-year-old DT who was making $21.5M annually on his previous deal.

The Seahawks shouldn't regret giving Williams the raise. He played a key role in the team's second Super Bowl win last season, and retaining him, along with other star players, gives Seattle a strong chance to bring home its third Lombardi Trophy.

Leonard Williams move ensures Seahawks' core remains intact

The Seahawks have also signed wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba (four years, $168.6M), cornerback Devon Witherspoon (four years, $132M) and linebacker Derick Hall (three years, $42M) to extensions. Smith-Njigba and Witherspoon are now the highest-paid players at their respective positions in terms of average annual salary. Consider these contracts money well spent for Seattle.

Leonard Williams’ three-year extension includes $56 million guaranteed. https://t.co/1izYiRSdUU
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 27, 2026

@leonardwilliams Football’s my job, but my garden is where I actually reset. I’ve learned that to grow healthy plants, water and sun alone don’t cut it. Feed the plants, feed the mind. @Miracle Gro ♬ original sound - Leonard Williams

Smith-Njigba won 2025 Offensive Player of the Year after leading the league in receiving yards (1,793) during the regular season. Witherspoon, meanwhile, earned a second-team All-Pro nod after allowing career lows in touchdown catches (two) and yards per reception (8.9, 409 yards on 46 receptions), per Pro Football Focus.

Williams joined Witherspoon as a second-team All-Pro after ranking fourth in total pressures (58) during the regular season, via PFF. Hall has yet to make a Pro Bowl, but the 25-year-old edge-rusher is clearly an ascending player after posting a career-high 72.6 PFF pass-rushing grade last season.

Despite the roster continuity, the Seahawks will face a more challenging road to the Super Bowl in 2026. After going 14-3 and winning the NFC West last season, Tankathon rates Seattle's schedule as the fifth-most difficult in the NFL. It opens the season at home against the New England Patriots in a Super Bowl LX rematch on Sept. 9 (NBC, 8:20 p.m. ET).

Not to mention, the Los Angeles Rams, Seattle's NFC West rival, look like a juggernaut after acquiring defensive end Myles Garrett from the Cleveland Browns this offseason. The Seahawks will face the Rams in a series of high-stakes division games in Weeks 16 and 18.

Seattle should still be prepared for that challenge. It has planted the seeds for another Super Bowl run by extending Williams, its "Garden Warrior."

Clark Dalton

Clark Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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