Seahawks, Leonard Williams reach agreement on contract extension

SEATTLE — The Big Cat will continue to make his home in Seattle for at least three more years.

The Seahawks have reached agreement on a three-year extension with defensive lineman Leonard Williams, a source confirmed to The Seattle Times.

ESPN and The NFL Network first reported the news Thursday morning, stating that the deal for Williams — affectionately nicknamed “The Big Cat” — will be worth up to $90 million with $56 million guaranteed.

A $30 million per-year average would make Williams tied for fifth among interior defensive linemen with former UW standout Vita Vea, now with Tampa Bay, according to OvertheCap.com. Vea signed his new deal, a one-year, $30 million extension, last week.

The only interior DLs now making more than Williams on an average per-year basis are Philadelphia’s Jalen Carter ($38 million), Quinnen Williams of Dallas ($35.3 million), Jeffery Simmons of Tennessee ($35.276 million) and Chris Jones of Kansas City ($31.75 million).

Williams appeared to be next in line for an extension after the Seahawks signed cornerback Devon Witherspoon to a new deal almost two weeks ago making him the highest-paid player at his position in the NFL.

Williams is entering the final season of three-year deal he signed in the spring of 2024 that was set to pay him $64.5 million overall.

That deal includes a $29.6 million cap hit for the 2026 season that will likely be reworked and come down to create some additional space for the Seahawks.

Williams, entering his 12th season at the age of 32, was a second-team All-Pro pick last season when he tied for the team lead with seven sacks and anchored a line that helped pave the way for the Seahawks to allow the fewest points in the NFL and get the second Super Bowl title in franchise history.

Williams said in July he’d had “a few conversations” with the Seahawks about a new contract but that nothing was “set in stone.”

“I try not to think about it, honestly,” he said then. “I’ve always been that type of guy. I’ve had a lot of contracts at this point in my career, and I’ve always noticed players that focus on their contract end up not playing well. They end up having their head in the wrong place. I’ve noticed that when I focus on being where I’m at, focusing on my team and how I can get better individually, things always tend to work themselves out.”

Now Williams can put it completely out of his mind as he has agreed to a deal that will keep him in Seattle through the 2029 season, when he’d be 35 years old.

The Seahawks acquired Williams in a deal with the New York Giants at the trade deadline in 2023. He re-signed with the Seahawks that March and has become not only a key player on the field but also off it, emerging as one of the team’s most influential leaders in the locker room.

He is the fourth player the Seahawks have re-signed this offseason to at least a three-year extension as they have tried to keep the core of their Super Bowl-title winning team intact.

Others to sign are Witherspoon, now under contract through the 2031 season at a new money average of $33 million a year; receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, also under contract through 2031 at a new money average of $42.15 million a year that made him the highest-paid player at his position in NFL history; and outside linebacker/rush end Derick Hall, under contract through 2029 at a new money average of 14 million a year.

They also re-signed receiver Rashid Shaheed, who became a free agent in the spring, to a three-year deal worth up to $51 million.

All of those deals were made after the team was put up for sale by the Paul G. Allen Estate and then sold to a group led by the Khosla family. But all involved insisted all long that things would be “business as usual” during the transition, and the business the team has completed in the seven months since the team was first placed for sale indicates that has indeed been the case.

The Seahawks entered the day with $20.4 million in cap space left for the 2026 season. Williams’ cap number was second on the team behind only the $37.9 million of quarterback Sam Darnold but will surely be structured in a way to bring down that number for 2026.

Williams, who according to OvertheCap.com has already earned $157.282 million in his NFL career, was set to be the Seahawks’ highest-salaried player who could have become a free agent after the season.

Other notable players who can be unrestricted free agents following the 2026 season are rush end Uchenna Nwosu, kicker Jason Myers, running back Zach Charbonnet, right guard Anthony Bradford and backup quarterback Drew Lock.

The Seahawks will face some significant questions after the season in terms of others players they may want to give extensions to, notably Darnold, who is under contract through the 2027 season on a deal paying him $33.5 million per season.

There’s also defensive tackle Byron Murphy II, who the team can extend for the first time next spring; safety Julian Love, under contract through the 2027 season on a deal paying him $11 million a season; linebacker Ernest Jones IV, also under contract through 2027 on a deal paying him $9.5 million a year; and tight end AJ Barner, under contract on his four-year rookie deal through 2027 at $1.197 million per year and like Murphy, eligible for the first time for an extension next spring.