Seattle DL coach follows former Cowboys DT

Seattle DL coach follows former Cowboys DT

Following several seasons of play in Dallas, Jonathan Hankins will be moving once more. The Seahawks will get the defensive tackle, according to NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo. He has a lot of travel experience.

Hankins will consent to go west on a visit to Seattle on Tuesday after spending a season and a half with Dallas. Hankins was re-signed by the Cowboys in 2023 after being acquired at the trade deadline in 2022. He was crucial to Dallas’ efforts to stop the run, and the Seahawks will be looking for him to do the same on a defensive line that already includes Dre’Mont Jones and Leonard Williams, who was just signed back. Hankins, who was hired by Seattle as their defensive coordinator, will follow Aden Durde, the former defensive line coach for the Cowboys, to Seattle. Durde is an Englishman.

Over the past few years, Hankins—who will turn 32 next week—has signed one-year contracts in addition to Jadeveon Clowney. He consented to one with the Cowboys and four with the Raiders. It would be unexpected if this Seahawks contract was for numerous seasons, considering his age and past contract history.

Hankins was an important member of the Cowboys defense at nose tackle; in 2023, he started 14 games for the squad. Hankins’ absence was felt in the team’s late-season setbacks against the Bills and Dolphins, especially in the Buffalo game where James Cook went on a rampage. Last season, the Seahawks had trouble stopping the run, finishing 27th in yards per carry given up and 31st in yards allowed. A complete Williams season could be beneficial.

The front line of Mike Macdonald’s inaugural Seattle defense will be laden with veterans. The team will have Williams, Jones, Hankins, and Jarran Reed on its D-line, but Bobby Wagner and Jordyn Brooks’ exits will cost them a great deal of experience at linebacker. Last season, Reed agreed to a two-year deal. Though the Seahawks are currently deep at D-tackle, Hankins appears to be more of a base-set guy than one deployed in sub-packages.

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