Seahawks Cut Former Fifth-Round Pick

Set to open training camp at the VMAC on Wednesday, the Seattle Seahawks reportedly orchestrated multiple roster moves on the eve of the festivities, including releasing edge rusher Alton Robinson.

Robinson, a 2020 fifth-round pick out of Syracuse, missed the entire 2022 season after suffering a knee injury during the preseason finale against the Cowboys. Nearly a year later, he did not participate at all in the team's offseason program.

At the conclusion of the Seahawks' mandatory minicamp last month, when asked about Robinson and defensive tackle Bryan Mone's respective recoveries, coach Pete Carroll provided a grim update.

“Both those guys aren't right yet. They're not right yet. It's going to be a while. I don't have a timeline for you, but they're not able to do any running yet.”

Six weeks following Carroll's comments, Robinson's time in Seattle appears to be finished, though his release wasn't with an injury designation on the NFL's transactions wire.

As a rookie in 2020, Robinson flashed in a reserve rotational role behind starters Carlos Dunlap and L.J. Collier, finishing with four sacks and five tackles for loss in 14 games. His play regressed to an extent in 2021, as he only contributed one sack in 16 games while playing through a nagging knee injury for most of the second half.

Playing well during the preseason last August, Robinson looked primed for a bounce-back third season, only to go down in the exhibition finale. Initially, the Seahawks didn't seem overly concerned about what Carroll called an MCL injury, but it became apparent as the year progressed that he wasn't making progress as hoped and wound up staying on injured reserve for the whole season.

Even with Robinson's release, Seattle still has plenty of talent at the outside linebacker position, including recently re-signed Uchenna Nwosu, Darrell Taylor, Boye Mafe, and incoming second-round pick Derick Hall. The team will also bring back Tyreke Smith, a 2022 fifth-round pick who missed last season with his own injury, as well as second-year rusher Joshua Onujiogu.

Though Robinson provided some valuable snaps in his first two seasons, the present logjam of young edge defenders may have contributed as much to his departure as his lingering injury situation. Scheme-related issues may also have contributed to the decision to part ways, as he projects as a 4-3 defensive end rather than a 3-4 outside linebacker.

In additional moves, the Seahawks released veteran cornerback Isaiah Dunn and undrafted rookie cornerback James Campbell. Dunn joined the team off waivers from the Jets last September and registered two tackles in five games on special teams, while Campbell dealt with an injury throughout the team's offseason program after starring at Montana State.

Bringing the roster back to 90 players, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, the Seahawks signed former Browns defensive tackle Roderick Perry, USFL standout edge rusher Levi Bell, and cornerback Andrew Whitaker, who participated in the team's rookie minicamp in May.

From that group, the 6-2, 300-pound Perry may offer the most intrigue considering Seattle's current depth along the defensive line. After playing collegiately at South Carolina State and Illinois, he signed with Cleveland as an undrafted free agent and played in two games in 2022, recording a pair of tackles.