The roster moves continue for the Seattle Seahawks who revamped the team’s defensive depth. Seattle announced the team signed a familiar face to some local Washington Huskies fans.
Former Washington captain Alphonzo Tuputala is now a member of the Seahawks. To make room for the linebacker, Seattle released undrafted cornerback Kam Alexander, who was signed by the team just weeks before the latest moves.
Tuputala was also an All-State standout player at Federal Way High School. The linebacker was listed at 6-foot-2, 230 pounds during college. Seahawks.com’s John Boyle provided an overview of the newest Seahawks linebacker’s resume.
“Tuputala, who took part in Seattle’s rookie minicamp as a tryout player, was a three-year starter for the Huskies, and was voted a team captain in 2024,” Boyle wrote on August 11, 2025. “Before joining the Huskies, Tuputala was an All-State linebacker at Federal Way High School.
“In his three years as a starter, Tuputala totaled 221 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 8.0 sacks and one interception. In 2023, he started 14 games for the Washington squad that reached the CFP Championship Game.”
Here’s what you need to know about the latest Seahawks roster moves.
New Seahawks LB Alphonzo Tuputala Posted a Career-High 81 Tackles at Washington in 2024
Tuputala played six years at Washington and is coming off his best statistical season with the Huskies. The linebacker posted 81 tackles, four tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks in 2024.
Linebacker continues to remain one of the Seahawks biggest question marks heading into the season. Head coach Mike Macdonald sounds confident about the position despite the lack of experience on the roster.
“We have this ‘in the defense’ competition of stats and hustle plays and tackles, basically tracking production and Patty-O (Patrick O’Connell) leads that over camp,” Macdonald said of the team’s linebackers, per Seahawks.com. “Drake’s (Thomas) right there. They haven’t started yet in their career, but we believe in the development guys, guys are allowed to get better. You see the improvement of those guys. Josh Ross, I thought he got started with a good camp, but it’s unfortunate with his hand.
“We saw Jamie (Sheriff) back today in a walk through capacity and you know how we feel about Jamie. Great opportunity in front of him, but just like T-Knight (Tyrice Knight), he didn’t start until he did, and then he’s a starter. These guys, they haven’t started yet until they get a chance to start and hopefully they keep taking advantage of those opportunities.”
Mike Macdonald Aims to Lean on the Team’s Defense in Year 2 of His Seahawks Tenure
Overall, there are reasons to be bullish about the Seahawks defense in 2025. Namely, it marks Macdonald’s second season in the Pacific Northwest giving players a full season plus offseason to digest his defensive philosophy.
One defender to watch is defensive lineman Mike Morris after a strong showing in recent practices. The Athletic’s Michael-Shawn Dugar labeled Morris as one of the top five standouts during training camp.
“The 6-foot-6, 306-pound Morris is a unique player in that he is built like a defensive tackle (Leonard) (Williams is 6-5 and 310 pounds, for example) but spends a lot of time as a stand-up edge defender, which was the case in the preseason game,” Dugar explained in an August 12, story titled, “Seahawks stock report: ‘Baller’ rookie WR Tory Horton leads 5 training camp standouts.”
“With his length and strength, Morris is ideal for that backup ‘big end’ role that is essential for defending the run on early downs.”
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