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Woolen has shown spells of great play, but there are areas of his game that he needs to improve in order to be elite... and possibly stay in Seattle.
After an impressive rookie season in 2022 and a regression in 2023 marked by injuries and fluctuations, Riq Woolen entered 2024 with the mission to prove he could be more than an athletic cornerback with occasional production. In his third year, the Seattle Seahawks corner had a solid season, but marked by technical ups and downs.
This reignited the debate: Is Woolen an elite player in the making or a still-raw athlete trying to catch up with the position’s mental game?
Riq Woolen’s 2024 season in numbers
Via
PFF for cornerbacks with 100+ snaps played (155 qualified):
15 games (889 snaps, 28th-best);
Interceptions: 3 (8th);
Pass Breakups: 8 (16th);
TDs Given Up: 6 (6th-worst);
Pass Completions Against: 55.2% (22nd-best);
QB Rating against: 83.7 (43rd best);
Missed Tackles in Pass Play: 7 (28th worst);
Penalties: 7 (23rd worst);
Coverage Grade (PFF): 65.7 (59th);
Positives
Athletic ability
Woolen allowed only 46.7% of his passes completed on routes over 20 yards deep, using his recovery speed and range to contest high-flying balls.
He’s playing zone defense and plays with a low pad level. This allows a guy of his height to change direction quickly. Then, he uses his hand on the receiver to feel where the route will go.
Closing Speed: When out of position, Woolen showed explosiveness to recover space with closing speed, especially in zone coverage with cross-field routes.
Press coverage
His work in press coverage and man-to-man is still the greatest strength of his game. He senses the WR’s movement and is in a good position to change direction without wasting almost any steps and preventing the reception.
It’s a third-and-three, and the WR runs a quick route. However, Woolen’s work at the line of scrimmage disrupts the timing with the QB and forces the cut to happen a little earlier, resulting in a fourth-and-one.
He forces the WR inside, intending to receive help from the safety. Puka Nacua “declares” his release, and Woolen realizes where the route is going and essentially becomes a receiver attacking the ball at the high point.
Specific technical flaws
Tackling and run defense
Lacks solid foundation, hip use, and willingness to make physical contact – issues that PFF highlighted repeatedly.
I don’t know if the start of the play is due to the fact that Rayshawn Jenkins and Woolen were in the same zone. The play develops late, going to the RB. Woolen doesn’t show much effort, and the RB gets 24 of the 26 yards he needed for the conversion. Love shows his leadership and clearly asks Woolen for more action. This became a fourth-and-2, which the Jets converted by passing the ball to Adams with Woolen in coverage. The game was 26-21, and it was the Jets’ final drive (which ended in a turnover on downs).
First of all, I love the double-cat blitz. The two cornerbacks blitz, and Mike Macdonald’s design works, with Woolen getting to the QB. Unfortunately, he misses the sack and allows the QB to escape.
Besides technical errors in tackling, he has processing issues against the run. The idea is always to force the run inside, but he loses the integrity of his gap, allowing for additional yards.
It seems there is hope. He gets a good tackle on this run.
Penalties
He bites on the receiver’s cut and is caught flat-footed. Woolen puts his hands on the receiver to slow him down, which prevents the pass, but he should have been penalized for it.
He mistimes the jam right at the line of scrimmage and goes after the receiver. “Desperately,” he holds the opponent to prevent the TD.
Constantly inconsistent
Physical on the line and attacks the ball at the right time to prevent the TD.
Two snaps later, he fails to sense the right time to attack the ball.
He drops with his eye on the two vertical routes on the right side. However, he maintains a good understanding of the rest of the field, paying attention to the route that is crossing the field. A perfect snap? Almost. He is in position to make the interception (which would be crucial at that point in the game), but he simply doesn’t attack the ball and allows the reception.
One of his strengths is how well he attacks the ball. Even if he doesn’t convert the play into an interception, he prevents the reception. Here, he unexpectedly loses track of the ball and gives up the reception.
Processing
The Seahawks are in man-to-man coverage. The Jets attack with a slot fade. Woolen doesn’t make contact at the line of scrimmage and allows separation, trusting he’ll have the speed to arrive and deflect the pass at the right time. This doesn’t happen, and the Jets only fail to convert this crucial down because of a drop by Davante Adams.
Woolen doesn’t lose this play because of a technical issue, an athletic issue, or a bad play. It’s a problem with understanding the play/situation. We were in overtime (of what was probably Woolen’s worst game of the year), and the Seahawks are apparently in Cover 0. In short, the team is defending one-on-one, and the rest of the defense is chasing the QB.
The cornerback looks to the backfield, incorrectly, since this type of coverage doesn’t allow for mistakes. The time he loses, even if it’s short, is enough for the WR to gain an advantage that Woolen can no longer recover.
He appears to be in sail tech. However, he’s keeping his eyes on the flat, allowing the deepest route. Typically, defenders are asked to protect the deepest routes for the shortest ones, not the other way around.
Using a technique very similar to the previous play, he drops the ball keeping his eyes on the route crossing the field.
Once again, a set of routes on his side. Woolen makes the correct read, expecting the crosser. However, he left the flat zone completely open when he “ruled out” Trey McBride on a route.
Comparative contracts and expected renewals
These are the elite contracts at the position:
- Patrick Surtain II: 4 years for $96M ($24M/year), with $77.5M guaranteed;
- Derek Stingley Jr.: 3 years for $90M ($30M/year), a new record for cornerbacks;
- Jaycee Horn: 4 years for $100M ($25M/year), with $72M guaranteed;
The Seahawks will likely require proof of technical consistency before paying him as a full-fledged top cornerback, so he’s likely far from the elite standard. With his rookie contract expiring in 2025, Woolen could’ve been in contract discussions as early as 2024.
Given his production history, but also his technical inconsistency, a realistic contract for Woolen today would be somewhere between $13 and $16 million annually. He could try to push higher based on his interceptions and exceptional physical size. The big question is Lenoir’s contract (JSN’s son), which could be used as an argument to raise his value.
- Deommodore Lenoir (SF): 5 years, $92M ($18.4M/year);
- Kyler Gordon (CHI): 3 years, $40M ($13.3M/year);
- DJ Reed (DET): 3 years, $48M ($16M/year);
Conclusion
Riq Woolen in 2024 was a defender with flashes of stardom, but still in the making. His season showed he’s capable of making plays few cornerbacks in the league can—but it also exposed that a technical gap still separates him from the elite. With more discipline, footwork, and consistent tackling, he can reach that level.
The dilemma for the Seahawks is clear: pay upfront by betting on his physical potential or wait for another year of consistency before investing heavily. Whatever the decision, Riq Woolen remains an intriguing and valuable piece in Seattle’s defensive rebuild.
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