The Seahawks released defensive end Carlos Dunlap on Monday, ending his tenure in Seattle after eight games.
Dunlap, a two-time Pro-Bowler, was traded to the Seahawks by the Cincinnati Bengals in the middle of the 2020 season. The pass-rusher had been with Cincinnati for the first 10-plus seasons of his career.
Dunlap recorded five sacks in eight games (six starts) for Seattle in 2020. He has 87.5 career sacks in 11 seasons.
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Seahawks gamble with pass rush in releasing Carlos Dunlap
Why Seattle is releasing Dunlap
Michael-Shawn Dugar, Seahawks beat writer: Seattle cut Dunlap because he was going to be very expensive in 2021. The move will save $14 million in salary cap space, according to Over The Cap. The Seahawks enter free agency with less than $5 million in salary cap space and are scheduled to have just four 2021 draft picks, in part because they gave up a seventh-round pick for Dunlap in October. Releasing Dunlap drops Seattle's number of players with eight-figure cap hits from six to five.
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What's next for the Seahawks?
Dugar: Finding a new stud pass rusher. The Seahawks learned the hard way in 2019 that not having a legit star talent means your pass rush is going to be bad — very bad. Even with Jadeveon Clowney on the roster in 2019, Seattle's pass-rush group was among the worst in the league.
In the first half of 2020, they actually did have the worst pass rush in the league, thus the trade for Dunlap. Without Dunlap, Seattle is back in position to be a "pass rush by committee" in 2021, but anyone who has watched this team since the Frank Clark trade knows that's not an ideal situation.
What this means for Dunlap
Mike Sando, senior writer: This is a tough time for non-star players to command the value they've commanded in the past. Teams know there will be a glut of talent available this offseason with a shrinking salary cap.
Dunlap, though still productive, is not the type of player teams will be paying near the top of the market. He's 32 years old and carried a higher salary. Even last season, his value was such that Seattle was able to acquire him from Cincinnati for almost nothing: a seventh-round pick and backup offensive lineman B.J. Finney. We'll see more players such as Dunlap reaching the market.
(Photo: Eric Hartline / USA Today)
Dunlap thanks Seattle:
Still Grateful. Thank You Seahawks and to the #12 ‘s 🙌🏾!
House in Cincy is officially listed now lol, and about to lower the price.
— Carlos Dunlap (@Carlos_Dunlap) March 8, 2021