Tag: Tyrel Dodson

Tyrel Dodson reveals his jersey number for the Seahawks in 2024

We will likely get all the new jersey numbers at some point later this week.

We still haven’t gotten official confirmation of new uniform numbers for any of the players the Seahawks have signed in free agency. However, we do finally have our first leak.

Yesterday linebacker Tyrel Dodson shared a photo on Twitter, revealing that he will be wearing No. 0 for Seattle this year.

Zero was worn by inside linebacker Devin Bush last season. Bush performed well in relief of Jordyn Brooks late in the year but he was not re-signed and eventually landed in Cleveland. Brooks and Bobby Wagner were also allowed to walk, so the Seahawks are basically starting over at this position.

For now, the projected starters are Dodson and fellow free agent signee Jerome Baker. Apparently Dodson will be taking over Wagner’s former role as the middle linebacker and Baker will play weakside. We don’t have any word yet of who will be wearing the green dot on their helmet, though.

We will likely get all the new jersey numbers at some point later this week.

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Little by little, we’re beginning to know more about new Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald.

Little by little, we’re beginning to know more about new Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald. While we can only learn so much before watching his scheme in action, Macdonald has willingly shared some of his philosophy about the game. Another defense-first head coach like Pete Carroll, Macdonald’s first challenge will be turning around a unit that has finished in the bottom three each of the last two seasons.

Part of the equation requires a revamp of the linebacker position, where Seattle has exchanged Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks for Tyrel Dodson and Jerome Baker. We now know that Dodson will be taking over Wagner’s former role at middle linebacker and Baker will play WLB. This week Macdonald shared some thoughts about them as well as what he will expect from everyone at this position, per Mike Dugar at the Athletic.

“Two guys that can run. Two intelligent football players. Tough. I thought they were both good tacklers. They’re both good players in space. Those are things we’re asking of our inside ‘backers. Those guys gotta take up a lot of ground, man. They gotta play people out of the backfield, they gotta play all the choice routes on the weakside, which is hard to do… I think we got the right guys for the job. They’ve gotta blitz, play man-to-man. We ask a lot out of our inside ‘backers. It’ll be a great battle, and we’ll see how it comes to life, but I think there’s some opportunity there to have a little more position flexibility than I think maybe you saw in Baltimore.”

Flexibility is the key word and it doesn’t just apply to the off-ball linebackers. One common theme we have seen in the team’s free agent pickups this year has been positional versatility. New safeties Rayshawn Jenkins and K’Von Wallace can line up everywhere on the back end of that defense. We should assume the same will be true about any cornerbacks the team adds in the upcoming draft.

Overall it sounds like Macdonald is going to take a far more modern approach to defense than Carroll did. Even though the scheme changed from season to season and coordinator to coordinator it somehow ended up being predictable every year – from too much zone to too few post-snap shifts. There’s a whole lot more to being head coach than excelling in your one particular fief, but fans should rest assured that Macdonald will get this Seahawks defense finally up to date.

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Tyrel Dodson to replace Bobby Wagner as new Seahawks middle linebacker

It seems they’ve already figured out one of the key questions regarding their defense.

The Seahawks coaching staff passed on attending this year’s Scouting Combine, leaving that work to general manager John Schneider. Mike Macdonald’s staff had other things to take care of, namely installing a whole new scheme in all three phases in a matter of weeks before players arrive to begin the offseason program on April 8.

It seems they’ve already figured out one of the key questions regarding their defense. Schneider told Seattle Sports 710 that free agent pickup Tyrel Dodson will be replacing Bobby Wagner as the team’s new middle linebacker. Meanwhile, Jerome Baker will take over Jordyn Brooks’ former role on the weakside. However, we don’t know who will wear the green dot on defense as of yet. H/T Bob Condotta at the Seattle Times.

“But Schneider said that as of today Baker would be the weakside linebacker (Brooks’ position last year) and Dodson the middle linebacker (Wagner’s)… And whether that means Dodson now steps into the green dot role, or Baker handles it from the weakside spot, Schneider didn’t specifically say.”

Coming from Buffalo, Dodson signed a one-year deal with Seattle worth $4.25 million. He’s coming off a breakout 2023 season, earning 10 starts and posting 74 tackles (eight for a loss), 2.5 sacks, six quarterback hits and just one touchdown allowed in coverage. While his snap count was relatively low compared to other elite linebackers around the league, he earned the highest PFF grade at his position last season.

The x-factor for the success of Dodson and Baker will be how they perform in coverage compared to Wagner and Brooks. While it’s true that weakness in coverage is the norm for most NFL linebackers, the Seahawks clearly went out of their way to get two defenders who are far better than average at their position in this department. If they provide a real bump here it should raise the overall ceiling for how Seattle’s defense performs significantly.

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Thankfully, general manager John Schneider had other ideas.

Heading into the 2024 offseason, our blueprint called for the Seahawks keeping mostly the same core defensively and seeing what new head coach Mike Macdonald could get out of them calling the plays. Thankfully, general manager John Schneider had other ideas. Rather than running it back with the same personnel he chose to blow it up and shed all of the heavy contracts on the back end of that defense.

To begin, Seattle cut starting safeties Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs. The team ate a ton of dead money between them but also saved a massive amount of cap room both this year and in 2025. Next, the Seahawks allowed veteran linebackers Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks to leave in free agency – both at prices they easily could have afforded given their cap space. LB3 Devin Bush is also now gone, having signed with the Browns.

The most significant outside free agent signing the team has made so far is adding former Jaguars safety Rayshawn Jenkins on a two-year, $12 million deal that’s very similar to the one Julian Love signed last year. Those two will now be slated to start at safety.

At linebacker, the Seahawks have effectively replaced Wagner and Brooks with former Bills linebacker Tyrel Dodson and former Dolphins linebacker Jerome Baker. Financial details for Dodson’s one-year deal have not been disclosed as of yet, but we know Baker has a one-year, $7 million deal.

On the other side of the ball, Seattle allowed left guard Damien Lewis to walk – avoiding another huge investment at a non-premium position. Lewis signed a massive new deal with Carolina worth over $20 million per year. Needless to say, matching that number would have been an atrocious use of cap resources.

Fans should expect the front office to select another guard, as well as a linebacker and a safety at some point in the 2024 NFL draft, but it’s clear already what the team’s strategy is this offseason: clear the dead weight and reset with an eye on really making a jump in 2025. That means they will likely be taking a step back next season – but the important thing is they’ve set themselves up to compete much better in the future.

That’s the correct move, because in case you haven’t noticed this team got decimated by practically every contender they faced last season with the exception of the Lions, whose number they just seem to have. The one that matters most is the 49ers, who have won five straight matchups against Seattle in dominant fashion. No matter what the front office did this offseason they were unlikely to close that rather sizable gap in just one year. That means hitting the reset button and rebuilding the roster with a more modern approach is right.

It will take more time to get their course totally corrected, but the Seahawks have made significant progress in that department these last few weeks.

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Seahawks sign Bills free agent Tyrel Dodson

#Seahawks sign #Bills free agent Tyrel Dodson:

Tyrel Dodson is heading across the country.

Dodson, 25, has left the Buffalo Bills as a free agent. The Seattle Seahawks have announced that they have signed him to a contract. Full terms of the deal were not released:

Dodson started 10 games last season for the Bills after Matt Milano went down with an injury. The defender finished with 74 tackles, including eight for loss, with 2.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and two passes defended.

Pro Football Focus ranked Dodson among the top linebackers in the entire NFL last season, however, there is context. While filling in for Milano, Dodson mostly did so on early downs. On passing downs, he was replaced by safety Taylor Rapp in Buffalo’s defensive scheme.

Dodson entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of Texas A&M in 2019, signing in Buffalo.

The Seahawks went on to lose linebacker Bobby Wagner in free agency as he signed with the Washington Commanders. Dodson will look to push for a starting position in Seattle, which is likely why he opted to leave Buffalo as he would return as a backup again in 2024.

Follow Bills Wire’s free agency tracker for all updates throughout the coming days.

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5 LBs the Colts should target in free agency

Taking a look at LB depth options in free agency.

The Indianapolis Colts are set at linebacker with Zaire Franklin and E.J. Speed in 2024 but the position doesn’t have a lot of depth entering the offseason.

As of this writing, Segun Olubi and Grant Stuard are the only players under contract. While I like what Olubi showed in 2023 and Stuard as a core special teamer, competition for the third linebacker spot on the depth chart needs to be considered.

Plus, the future of the position has to be kept in mind this offseason with Franklin and Speed entering the final year of their contracts.

With the starting roles locked up, I don’t foresee Chris Ballard targeting the top linebackers that are set to hit the market so players who will likely command a payday and a starting role have been omitted.

Here are five linebackers that should be on Ballard’s radar if he chooses to find some depth via free agency:

5 pending free agents the Bills should consider re-signing in 2024

5 pending free agents the #Bills should consider re-signing in 2024:

The Buffalo Bills have plenty of free agents slated to hit the open market.

The Bills have time to still sign players to extensions, but it’s never so cut-and-dry. According to Over The Cap, Buffalo is estimated to be more than $40 million over the 2024 NFL salary cap.

Moves must be made to get there and general manager Brandon Beane will earn his salary with the decisions ahead.

But Beane’s work is not the type of operation that’s never been completed before. Teams and players can restructure contracts, move dollars and cents around, and create cap space.

Once that’s done, Beane will then consider who to bring in and who to re-sign. Here are five pending free agents the Bills should take a look into re-signing this offseason:

Bills’ Tyrel Dodson named to PFF’s 2023 ‘All-Breakout Team’

#Bills’ Tyrel Dodson named to PFF’s 2023 ‘All-Breakout Team’

Pro Football Focus was, and continues to be, high on the play of Buffalo Bills linebacker Tyrel Dodson in 2023.

Dodson was named Buffalo’s most-improved player from this past season according to the football analytics outlet. On top of that, the Bills defender has added another PFF honor to his plate as he made their “All-Breakout Team” for the entire NFL in 2023.

Here’s how PFF discusses Dodson:

The Bills’ linebacker room was in shambles after Tremaine Edmunds departed in free agency and Matt Milano went down with a broken leg in Week 5. It was up to Tyrel Dodson to fill the void, and he more than delivered. Dodson’s 89.5 overall grade trailed only Fred Warner and Demario Davis among linebackers this regular season, due in large part to being just as good in coverage (86.8 grade) as he was against the run (82.6). His best performance came in Week 11 against the Jets, when his 90.9 run-defense grade and 88.0 coverage grade culminated in a 92.9 game grade.

In the preseason, Dodson was fighting for playing time at middle linebacker. Terrel Bernard won that battle to replace Tremaine Edmunds.

However, a season-ending injury to Matt Milano forced Buffalo to start Dodson for 10 games and PFF thinks that turned out well.

However, analysis does have to be taken with a grain of salt.

Dodson had a positive season. Helping assist him is Buffalo’s decision to take him off the field on passing downs. That skews the statistics.

Even so, that still sheds a light on Dodson’s future. Milano and Bernard will be back to full health to start next season, meanwhile, Dodson is a free agent. Will he return?

Free agency will open in the NFL in March and Bills Wire will provide updates throughout.

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PFF: Bills’ most-improved player in 2023 was Tyrel Dodson

PFF: #Bills’ most-improved player in 2023 was Tyrel Dodson:

Tyrel Dodson ended up being thrust into a position of needing to play a lot of snaps for the Buffalo Bills in 2023.

Terrel Bernard won the battle for the starting middle linebacker position to replace Tremaine Edmunds. However, a season-ending injury to Matt Milano forced Buffalo to start Dodson for 10 games.

In the end, Pro Football Focus says that decision went well. PFF named Dodson the Bills’ most-improved player from the 2023 season:

2022 PFF grade: 48.4
2023 PFF grade: 89.5

Dodson joined the starting lineup following Matt Milano’s season-ending injury and did not look back. He logged 590 snaps, including the playoffs, which was more than he had in his first three seasons combined. He was also among the very best at his position, earning the second-highest PFF overall grade among linebackers and grading out above 86.0 both in run defense and coverage.

Now to the real question. What does Buffalo do with Dodson now?

Slated to be a free agent, should the Bills re-sign him? That’s an easy yes, right?

Here’s where context comes into the PFF picture. Dodson had a positive coverage grade, but helping assist him is Buffalo’s decision to take him off the field on passing downs. That skews the statistics.

Realistically, the team and Dodson will know that. Considering that, his price tag shouldn’t be outlandishly high.

Free agency will open in the NFL in March and Bills Wire will provide updates throughout.

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