The Seattle Seahawks were one of the most surprising teams in the NFL in the 2022 season. After trading quarterback Russell Wilson during the offseason to the Denver Broncos, many assumed they would be heading into a rebuild. That was not the case, as Pete Carroll and his staff did a wonderful job with the roster.

Seattle went 9-8 in the regular season, earning a Wild Card spot in the NFC. They were trounced in the postseason by the San Francisco 49ers, but just qualifying made the season a smashing success.

The offense played at a high level throughout the season behind a career renaissance from quarterback Geno Smith, who made the most of his first starting job since 2014. Retaining him in free agency is important, but if the Seahawks want to take that next step, they need to improve defensively.

For how good the offense was, the defense was poor in 2022. There were a few bright spots on that side of the ball, such as rookie cornerback Tariq Woolen and safety Quandre Diggs as the passing offense was decent. In the trenches, however, was a different story.

Seattle was regularly steamrolled by opponents on the ground as they were 30th in rushing attempts faced and rushing yardage allowed. Shoring up the front seven is a must this offseason, which is what makes defensive tackle Javon Hargrave such a great target in free agency.

Hargrave is coming off of a career season with the Philadelphia Eagles in which he turned into a dominant force in the middle. He racked up 11 sacks and 16 quarterback hits on the season with 60 total tackles, 10 of which were for a loss.

That kind of disruption on the defensive line is exactly what the Seahawks need to turn things around. His pass-rushing skills would be a nice upgrade in addition to his ability to help stop the run.

Adding a player of Hargrave’s caliber along with another front-seven player with the No. 5 overall pick from the Broncos will have this defense turned around in no time.