Seahawks cut veteran TE Fant after 3 seasons

SEATTLE — The Seahawks released starting tight end Noah Fant on Sunday, the team announced.

Fant’s future with the Seahawks had been uncertain because of his outsized contract and underwhelming production over three seasons in Seattle, and it became an even bigger question after the team spent a second-round pick in April on tight end Elijah Arroyo.

Fant’s release, which comes two days before veterans are due to report to training camp, saves the team $9 million in cash and $8.91 million in cap space. Seattle will take on $4.5 million in dead money.

The Seahawks already had roughly $27 million in cap space before Fant’s release, according to OverTheCap.com, though some of their available funds could be earmarked for upcoming extensions.

Fant, 27, was set to make a non-guaranteed $9 million in the final year of a two-year, $21 million deal. The $10.5 million average ranked 12th among tight ends, according to OverTheCap.com.

Over his three seasons with Seattle, Fant ranked 20th among tight ends in receptions (130), 21st in receiving yards (1,400) and tied for 38th in touchdowns (5). His score in last season’s finale marked his first time finding the end zone since late in 2022 — when he was acquired from the Denver Broncos in the Russell Wilson trade.

Arroyo, whom Seattle drafted with the 50th pick, has drawn comparisons to Fant. The Seahawks’ depth chart at tight end also includes AJ Barner, who led Seattle’s tight ends with four TDs last season as a rookie fourth-round pick, and veteran Eric Saubert.

The only other tight ends on Seattle’s roster are undrafted rookies, though the team also has Brady Russell, a former tight end who is competing for the fullback job after switching positions this offseason.

Fant spent his first three seasons with the Broncos, who drafted him 20th out of Iowa in 2019. In 47 games with Denver, he caught 170 passes for 1,905 yards and 10 touchdowns.