Former University of Washington standout Sidney Jones IV, who entered training camp as a starter for the Seahawks at left cornerback, was waived by the team on Tuesday.
The move came minutes after the NFL trade deadline passed. The Seahawks tried to trade Jones but found no takers with other teams realizing the Seahawks were likely to waive him if they could not find a team to trade for him.
Jones signed a one-year contract worth up to $3.56 million with Seattle in March.
His waiving means the Seahawks will get out of having to pay any portion of a prorated share of $680,000 in per-game roster bonuses on Jones’ contract for being on the active roster on gameday — or $40,000 per game.
If Jones is claimed, another team will pick up the possibility of paying those bonuses as well as the rest of a prorated share of his $1.62 million salary, But Seattle will still be on the hook for the $1.3 million signing bonus in his contract, which he signed after starting 11 games for Seattle in 2021. The Seahawks acquired him from Jacksonville on Aug. 31, 2021, for a 2022 sixth-round pick.
The Seahawks re-signed Jones in March with the expectation that he would again start at corner, and he entered camp working with the first team on the left side.
But he suffered a concussion during the first week and that injury held him out the rest of the preseason, opening the door for Michael Jackson to emerge as a starter on that side.
Jones was healthy for the start of the season and played 12 snaps in the opener against Denver.
But with Jackson playing well, he did not play again until Week 4 against Detroit when he got 22 snaps working in a rotation with Jackson. Coach Pete Carroll said the Seahawks were being careful with Jones in the wake of his concussion.
Jones played 11 snaps against Arizona on Oct. 16 in a rotation with Jackson with Carroll saying he deserved a chance to play. But he was not active for Sunday’s win over the Giants.
Also factoring into the decision to waive Jones is that 2021 fourth-round pick Tre Brown is expected to soon be healthy enough to play.
Brown started three games last season before suffering a knee injury in a November game against Arizona that required surgery. Brown returned to practice last week and made it through well with Carroll saying Monday he could be activated soon.
“I think the trainers are going to want to see him sustain more solid days in a row before they cut him loose, but he practiced with us last week,” Carroll said. “He practiced last week, he practiced with us, and he was going full speed, but in limited numbers. They will increase his numbers for sure, see how he handles it, and make an assessment at the end of the week. We are not going to rush to get him back after all of the time he has been out, but he looked good last week. I wouldn’t be surprised if he is pushing at the end of the week to say that he looks like he can play.”
That Jackson, whom the Seahawks signed before the 2021 season, has played well makes it easier to part ways with Jones, as well as the emergence of Woolen — a fifth-round pick — on the right side.
Jackson led the Seahawk with seven tackles on Sunday against the Giants.
“I thought he played a great game, I thought it was his best game,” Carroll said. “He tackled well, hit well, covered consistently, challenged for the most part. He had a few plays that he needs to fix, but all in all, he was really active. Obviously, he got targeted, so he got some shots. He came through in a big fashion.”
The waiving of Jones leaves Seattle with an open spot on its 53-man roster. And while Seattle may soon need a spot for Brown, it also will need a spot for linebacker/rush end Bruce Irvin, who can be elevated off the practice squad to play in any games only one more time. Irvin played 47 snaps in Sunday’s game and figures to be a key part of the team going forward.
The waiving of Jones leaves Seattle with five cornerbacks on its roster — Woolen, Jackson, Coby Bryant, Artie Burns and Justin Coleman — as well as Xavier Crawford on the practice squad. Safety Teez Tabor also began his career as a cornerback.