The Seahawks finally signed cornerback Terrion Arnold, more than two weeks after agreeing to a deal with him. The league, as expected, promptly placed Arnold on paid leave.
The administrative move flows from eight felony charges against Arnold, arising from an alleged kidnapping and armed robbery that happened earlier this year in Florida.
On Sunday, Seahawks G.M. John Schneider was asked about the factors the team considered in signing the 2024 first-round pick.
“There is a ton of different factors that went into it,” Schneider told reporters. “Obviously, the legal stuff has to take care of itself, and we totally respect that. There are tons of different buckets to this situation. Just the advocates that we had, you know. We traded for Leon Washington the first year that we were here, and he’s basically like his father. Leon [Washington] will always be a legend here, and he has a great relationship with the organization.
“The character just didn’t really fit with the allegations and everybody we’ve talked to. But yes, there’s a long-term play. This isn’t a, ‘Let’s see how quickly we can get this done.’ Let’s get him in the building and see how it goes.”
Still, the allegations aren’t pretty. Schneider himself has called them “shocking.” He also has admitted that, if Arnold had been on the Seahawks roster when the allegations came to light, they “probably” would have had to release him.
With the allegations still unresolved, it’s hard to understand why, if the allegations would have compelled the Seahawks to cut Arnold, they were comfortable signing him.
This isn’t a second chance. The aftermath of first chance still lingers; Arnold hasn’t had his day in court.
If Arnold is convicted, he’ll likely never play for the Seahawks. If he agrees to a plea deal and satisfies its terms, then it will be time for a second chance.
Frankly, this seems to be a wager by the Seahawks. They’re willing to pay him not to play so that they’ll have a relationship in place with him if/when the case is resolved and he’s able to play.
For now, Arnold remains entitled to all constitutional protections. He gets his day in court. Still, until the allegations are resolved, they are (as Schneider said) “shocking.” It’s hard to imagine the league letting Arnold play until the criminal case is completely wrapped up with something other than a guilty verdict and a lengthy prison sentence.
The Seahawks cut cornerback Trevon Diggs on Sunday. It’s not a permanent farewell.
Via Greg Bell of the Tacoma News Tribune, G.M. John Schneider said Sunday that the team intends to add Diggs to the practice squad.
Because Diggs is a vested veteran, he won’t be required to pass through waivers. He could, in theory, sign with any other team’s 53-man roster or practice squad. Given his recent arrival to Seattle, however, it’s likely there won’t be a high demand for his services elsewhere.
Schneider said the players, coaches, and staff love Diggs, and that he needs more time to acclimate.
Diggs was a second-round pick of the Cowboys in 2020. He was a two-time Pro Bowler in Dallas.
Cornerback Trevon Diggs’ time with the Seahawks did not last long. He signed with the team on Aug. 19 but was part of the team’s move to reach 53 players on Sunday.
Diggs intercepted a pass and made a tackle in the team’s preseason finale, but it wasn’t enough for him to lock up a roster spot.
His career could be over, with three teams having cut him since Dec. 30.
Diggs has played only 22 games and undergone three procedures on his knee in the past three seasons.
The Seahawks’ other notable move was placing running back Zach Charbonnet on reserve/PUP as expected. He injured his knee on his fifth carry in the divisional round of the 2025 playoffs after running for 730 yards and 12 touchdowns on 184 carries in the regular season.
The Seahawks announced they terminated the contracts of vested veterans: S D’Anthony Bell, T Bobby Hart, CB Noah Igbinoghene, RB Velus Jones Jr., S Rodney Thomas II, TE Nick Vannett and WR Cody White.
They waived T Logan Brown, CB Michael Dansby, T Kellen Diesch, DT Deven Eastern, S AJ Finley, CB Andre Fuller, LB Jalan Gaines, WR Emmanuel Henderson Jr., WR Julian Hicks, S Maxen Hook, DE Aidan Hubbard, LB Jared Ivey, S Tysheem Johnson, RB Justin Jones, LB Marvin Jones Jr., C Federico Maranges, WR Rashad Rochelle, DT Uso Seumalo, LB Jamie Sheriff, DT J.R. Singleton, DT Bubba Thomas, CB Jordan Washington, WR Ricky White III and RB Jacardia Wright.
LB Power Echols, T Amari Kight, FB Brock Lampe and LB Aaron Smith were waived with injury designations.
WR Irv Charles was placed on injured reserve with a designation to return.
As all NFL franchises scramble to reduce their rosters to the maximum of 53 players as of 6:00 p.m. ET today, the possibility of paid leave lingers for several players and teams.
The Seahawks officially signed cornerback Terrion Arnold on Saturday, but he has yet to be officially placed on the Commissioner Exempt list. If that doesn’t happen before today’s deadline, they’ll have to devote to him a spot on the 53-man roster that could have been filled by another player.
Several other players are facing off-field issues that could result in paid leave, at some point. They include Rams receiver Puka Nacua, Rams offensive lineman Alaric Jackson, Packers running back Josh Jacobs, and Broncos linebacker Jonathon Cooper.
If they’re not placed on paid leave before 6:00 p.m. ET, they’ll occupy one of the 53-man roster spots. They’ll only move off the roster if/when the league exercises its prerogative to put them on the Commissioner Exempt list.
Under the Personal Conduct Policy, paid leave doesn’t happen until a player is formally charged with a felony or a crime of violence or the NFL concludes through its own investigation that a violation may have occurred or the NFL believes, as to an alleged crime of violence, that further investigation is warranted.
Will any players other than Arnold (who has been formally charged with eight felonies arising from an alleged armed robbery and kidnapping) be placed on paid leave? For now, it’s not known by the players or by the teams.
The growing trend of NFL teams keeping their quarterbacks out of the preseason has reached the point where more than one-third of starting quarterbacks did not take a single snap in this year’s preseason.
The reasons were different for different teams: Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Colts quarterback Daniel Jones are recovering from season-ending injuries. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson haven’t played in the preseason in years, across multiple coaching staffs. Rams coach Sean McVay is perhaps the most cautious coach in the league when it comes to avoiding preseason injuries, so of course reigning MVP quarterback Matthew Stafford didn’t play.
But the result is the same: If you’re tuning into a preseason game, you’re increasingly likely to see backup quarterbacks exclusively, and if you see a starter at all, it will typically only be for a series or two.
Here’s the full list of teams that didn’t play their starting quarterbacks at all this preseason, via Mike Reiss of ESPN:
Seahawks: Sam Darnold.
Patriots: Drake Maye.
Cowboys: Dak Prescott.
Ravens: Lamar Jackson.
Steelers: Aaron Rodgers.
Colts: Daniel Jones.
Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence.
Chiefs: Patrick Mahomes.
Eagles: Jalen Hurts.
Lions: Jared Goff.
Saints: Tyler Shough.
Rams: Matthew Stafford.
