Jenkins could just as easily be a salary cap casualty if he isn’t traded.
Rayshawn Jenkins’ time with the Seattle Seahawks could soon be coming to an end.
NFL reporter Jordan Schultz wrote on Thursday that the veteran safety has been granted permission to seek a trade. Jenkins has a year remaining on his two-year, $12 million deal.
It’s just as possible that Jenkins could get released if the Seahawks don’t find a suitable trade partner. According to OverTheCap.com, cutting Jenkins would free up over $5 million in salary cap space, with $2.5 million in dead money taken on. Jenkins’ salary is not guaranteed for 2025, but the dead money is the other half of his prorated $5 million signing bonus.
Jenkins was brought over from the Jacksonville Jaguars after he was let go as a salary cap casualty. At the start of the season, Jenkins played alongside Julian Love as the starting safety pair, notably recording one of the longest fumble return touchdowns in NFL history against the New York Giants. However, Jenkins suffered an injury the following week against the San Francisco 49ers and was placed on injured reserve. Upon his return to the active roster, Jenkins was reduced to a “big nickel” role after Coby Bryant’s ascension and impressive performances in the starting lineup.
In 13 games played, Jenkins recorded 53 tackles, two tackles, no passes defensed, and the aforementioned 102-yard fumble return TD.
At 31 years old and having lost his starting job midseason, there’s not exactly going to be much of a trade market for Jenkins. Any draft capital Seattle receives in return would almost certainly be a late Day 3 pick, so this is just a matter of whether Jenkins actually does net some extra draft capital or if the team releases him outright. If he gets dealt and Seattle gets a pick back, then cool. Otherwise, we’ll probably have a pre-write ready for his release.