ClutchPoints
Despite coming off their best season in four years, the Seattle Seahawks are currently wrapping up a crucial offseason. The team is in store for wholesale changes with just five offensive starters returning. However, coming off a promising rookie showing, the Seahawks are high on tight end AJ Barner, whom they expect to be a big part of the offense in 2025.
Barner’s numbers did not jump off the page, with just 30 catches for 245 yards and four touchdowns on the year. But despite most expecting him to be a long-term project, he recorded a 45 percent snap share that closely rivaled veteran Noah Fant’s 51 percent rate. Fant was unsurprisingly the much more productive pass-catcher, ending the year with 500 receiving yards, but Barner slowly caught up to him in that department as the season progressed.
By the end of the year, Fant and Barner were practically on even ground. Fant was supposed to be the receiving tight end, with Barner contributing as a blocker, but the latter slowly started to carve out a larger role in the passing game. As the Seahawks reconstructed their entire offense in the offseason, they added athletic rookie Elijah Arroyo in the 2025 NFL Draft before subsequently releasing Fant before the start of training camp.
The series of moves leaves Barner as the de facto starter, though Arroyo will undoubtedly factor in. Yet, everything can change before the start of the regular season with new quarterback Sam Darnold now running the show. The Seahawks clearly believe in Barner becoming a significant part of the offense, but he will need to continue growing in 2025 if they are to achieve success.
Without Fant in the picture, Barner is the Seahawks’ top returning tight end in 2025. Veteran journeyman Eric Saubert and undrafted rookie Nick Kallerup complete the offseason position group, but Barner and Arroyo are the clear leaders.
The biggest change in the Seahawks’ offense comes under center, with Darnold replacing Geno Smith. The move is somewhat of a gamble, with Darnold having just one successful season in his seven-year career. Regardless, with Klint Kubiak replacing Ryan Grubb as offensive coordinator, head coach Mike Macdonald clearly seems to want to open up the passing game.
Kubiak worked for the New Orleans Saints in 2024, where he achieved considerable success with their tight ends. Two of the team’s top three receivers at the end of the year were tight ends, including Juwan Johnson’s team-leading 548 receiving yards. The season was not a full evaluation of Kubiak’s skills due to Derek Carr’s constant injuries, but the renowned coach has also had success with tight ends in previous roles with the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos.
The Saints threw the ball at a mid-level rate in 2024, but were much more aggressive with Carr in the lineup. Before injuries slowed him down, Carr averaged 25.6 pass attempts through the first five weeks, ranking in the...
