The Seahawks have three regulars from their Super Bowl-winning secondary hitting free agency Monday. All three — Riq Woolen, Coby Bryant, Josh Jobe — landed in PFR’s top 50. Riq Woolen ranked highest, and the 6-foot-4 cornerback figures to draw extensive interest soon.
If/when Seattle lets Woolen hit the market, The Athletic’s Matt Barrows notes several execs around the NFL expect the 49ers to be in that mix. The 49ers used Day 2 picks at corner in 2024 (Renardo Green) and ’25 (Upton Stout). They also have Deommodore Lenoir signed long term.
Pro Football Focus graded Green 86th overall among qualified cornerbacks last season. The 49ers gave Green a 92% defensive snap share alongside Lenoir, who has anchored San Francisco’s corner corps for multiple seasons. The team gave Lenoir a five-year, $89.8MM extension in 2024. As Ely Allen’s 49ers Offseason Outlook pointed out, however, Lenoir is owed a $16.75MM guarantee for his 2026 compensation on April 1. That could give San Francisco a decision, but losing Lenoir would also create a major need.
Mike Macdonald used Jobe in front of Woolen during the season’s second half, when the 6-foot-4 CB only topped 70% usage in one of the team’s final eight regular-season games. He still allowed a passer rating of 78.5, ranking 25th among 200-plus-snap CBs in 2025, according to The Athletic. Woolen burst onto the NFL scene in 2022 by intercepting six passes. He was viewed as a better fit for Pete Carroll‘s defense than Macdonald’s, however, as he was mentioned in trade rumors before the deadline. Though, the former fifth-round pick still played extensively during Seattle’s Super Bowl slate.
Cornerback does appear on the 49ers’ wish list, as ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler indicates the NFC West team is interested in the Jaguars‘ Montaric Brown. The Jags are still interested in re-signing Brown, though they are barely under the cap as of Sunday afternoon.
A seventh-round success story, Brown started 22 games for the Jags from 2024-25. After regarding Brown modestly prior to 2025, PFF graded him as the No. 26 overall CB last season — as the Jags made dramatic defensive improvements under Anthony Campanile. Jacksonville traded Tyson Campbell for Greg Newsome in-season, and Newsome is now a free agent. Losing Brown would create a need for the reigning AFC South champs, though the team is expected to deploy Travis Hunter primarily as a cornerback next season.
Woolen is definitely just up and down. As big and fast as he is, he doesn’t tackle or play the run well. Any defense who wants him should keep his strengths featured by not asking him to tackle much. He takes bad angles and doesn’t wrap well.
His speed is amazing, though. He can compensate for mistakes with great catchup speed above most corners. He obviously can catch the ball. Woolen’s press coverage is fantastic. At times, his instincts are great, and at times they’re terrible. That’s his main flaw-it’s not just one specific thing, it’s just not consistent at all. One play he’ll read the receiver well and force him inside to coverage, and the next play he’ll get completely lost on a fade.
This was obvious against Nacua-he had a play where he read Nacua’s release from the snap, and covered him like the coat from A Christmas Story, and then within a few plays he got lost on a route and gave up a completion. And I’m not just talking about the infamous Championship game-this happened a few times against Nacua that I saw over the season. Speaking of Nacua, we should also mention the penalties as a downside. Woolen racks them up, and a lot of the time, they’re for stupid reasons (like taunting, or grabbing a covered player away from the play).
Overall, he’s got great ability-he plays with his pads lower in coverage sometimes, which lets a corner of his size change directions better, which normally is the issue with guys that big. So, Woolen can move. However, the big issue is his inconsistency. It’s more wild than most players-other than tackling, Woolen doesn’t have one specific area where he needs to stay reliable, it’s random reads in coverage that he either nails or gets lost on. He’s definitely worth a signing, but he probably does best in a defense that only asks him to do a few consistent things at a high level, and doesn’t expose him to tackling too much against the run.
Hopefully, he will get better with his tackling and find the right scheme for his skills. With better focus, he can be top flight again.