Analysis: How Seahawks created cap flexibility with biggest signings

SEATTLE – When a few details regarding the contract of Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold were revealed recently, much was made of the lack of guaranteed money beyond the first year.

That news should not have been a surprise since that falls in line with the typical structure of Seahawks contracts.

The full details of the three-year, $100.5 million deal were made public Wednesday morning and confirmed the lack of any guarantees beyond Year 1. It’s also revealing that it’s structured in a way the two sides will likely be back at the negotiating table following the second year.

The contracts of receiver Cooper Kupp and defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence were made public Wednesday via OvertheCap.com and Spotrac.com. Aside from Darnold, those were the two most expensive handed out by the Seahawks during the free-agent negotiating period.

Most relevant this season is that Darnold’s deal carries a cap hit of $13.4 million for 2025 while Kupp’s is $9.35 million and Lawrence’s $7.68 million.

That left the Seahawks with $36.3 million in cap space and effective space of $32.195 million (which accounts for space needed for draft picks), according to OvertheCap.com.

Some of the more recent contracts agreed to by the Seahawks were not included. None of those will carry cap hits anywhere close to those of the “big three” external free agent signings.

The upshot is that the Seahawks should have plenty of cap space to make moves the rest of the offseason and the regular season if they desire, while potentially re-signing some of their players to new deals.

That’s something general manager John Schneider has often stated is a goal coming out of the first wave of free agency.

“We want to be a team that is acquiring all throughout the year,” Schneider said earlier this month.

Here are more details on the contracts of Darnold, Kupp and Lawrence:

Sam Darnold

Darnold’s contract includes $37.5 million in guarantees this year, as earlier reported, and another $17.5 million in salary for 2026 that becomes guaranteed on Feb. 15. The guarantees consist of a $32 million signing bonus and $5.5 million in salary for 2025.

The Seahawks added void years in 2028 and 2029 to spread out the signing bonus at an average of $6.4 million over four years for cap purposes.

Darnold has another $25 million in roster bonuses over the 2026 ($15 million) and 2027 ($10 million) seasons.

Darnold’s cap hits are: $13.4 million in 2025, $33.9 million in 2026, $44.9 million in 2027 and $12.8 million in 2028.

The ballooning cap hit in 2027, the third year of the deal, seems to indicate an expectation that the contract will be redone at that point – assuming the relationship is going well. If not, Darnold could be easily released.

While much was made of Darnold’s contract not including guarantees beyond year one, his dead cap hit ($25.6 million) and cap savings ($8.3 million) in 2026 make it unlikely he’d be cut then. Those numbers change to a dead cap hit of $19.2 million and potential cap savings of $25.7 million in 2027.

Darnold, 27, can make $65 million through the first two years of the contract. In 2027, he is due a nonguaranteed base salary of $35.5 million and a roster bonus of $10 million, figures that could likely tie into a renegotiation after the 2026 season.

That the Seahawks have a strong commitment to Darnold for two years, but flexibility after that, reinforces the idea that they could take a quarterback in next month’s NFL draft.

From a 2025 salary cap perspective, the Seahawks did indeed save a lot in going from Geno Smith to Darnold.

Smith’s deal was set to feature a cap hit of $44.5 million for 2025. They planned to bring that down significantly with a new contract for Smith. But negotiations broke off, leading to Smith’s trade to the Raiders for a 2025 third-round pick.

The Seahawks took on a dead cap hit of $13.5 million with the deal but saved $31 million, creating a total savings of $17.6 million in the move from Smith to Darnold. Smith has yet to agree to an extension with the Raiders.

Darnold’s cap hit for this season ranks 21st among quarterbacks, according to Spotrac.com, sandwiched between those of Daniel Jones of the Colts ($13.65 million) and Bryce Young of Carolina ($10.35 million).

He ranks 17th in average per year at $33.5 million, just ahead of Tampa Bay’s Baker Mayfield at $33.3 million and just behind Derek Carr of New Orleans at $37.5 million – two contracts that appear to have been set as models.

Darnold’s cap hit for this year represents just 4.7% of the Seahawks’ total cap. That rises to 11.5% and 14.4% in the final two years.

Darnold’s contract includes annual incentives of $5 million, according to Spotrac.com. Details of the incentives were not listed.

Cooper Kupp

While Kupp’s deal was reported as three years and $45 million, it contains $17.5 million in fully guaranteed money and none after the first year, making this another contract the Seahawks can get out of after year one.

The guarantee consists of a $12 million signing bonus and $5.5 million in guaranteed salary for the 2025 season.

A key date is Feb. 9, when $9 million of Kupp’s $12.9 million salary for the 2026 season becomes guaranteed. Kupp, 31, also has a nonguaranteed salary of $12.49 million for the 2027 season.

His cap hits are: $9.35 million for 2025, $17.5 million for 2026 and $18 million for 2027.

The deal contains a dead cap hit in 2027 of just $4 million and cap savings of $14 million, making it easy for the Seahawks to move on after the second season.

Kupp’s cap hit for 2025 ranks 24th among all receivers, via Spotrac.com.

That contrasts to the $29.7 million dead cap hit the Rams are taking for this season for releasing Kupp on March 12. That number alone ranks as the most cap space devoted to a receiver in the NFL this season.

Kupp was signed to help replace DK Metcalf, who was traded to the Steelers for a 2025 second-round draft pick. Metcalf agreed to a four-year extension worth $132 million and $60 million guaranteed.

The $33 million average makes Metcalf the fourth-highest paid WR in the NFL on a per-year basis. Kupp’s $15 million is 25th.

DeMarcus Lawrence

Lawrence, 32, signed a three-year deal worth a base of $32.5 million.

Of that, $13 million is fully guaranteed, made up mostly of a $6.6 million signing bonus and $6 million in 2025 salary.

This is another contract the Seahawks can get out of after the first year if desired and easily after year two.

A key date for Lawrence is Feb. 10, when $5 million of his $8.15 million salary for 2026 becomes guaranteed.

Lawrence’s deal includes cap hits of $7.63 in 2025 and $11.333 million and $12.833 million.

The Seahawks could get out of the deal after two years and paying him $22 million, and the structure creates the high probability that a decision will be faced after the 2026 season one way or the other.

Lawrence’s deal carries no guaranteed money in 2027 with just $2.13 million in dead cap space and $10.7 million in potential cap savings.