Former Seattle Seahawks first-round pick Jordyn Brooks has reportedly secured the largest contract of his NFL career after turning himself into one of the leagueâs most productive linebackers with the Miami Dolphins.
Brooks agreed to a three-year, $51.3 million extension that includes $35 million guaranteed, according to ESPN reporting. The agreement comes after Brooks led the NFL with 183 total tackles and earned first-team Associated Press All-Pro honors for the first time in 2025.
For Seahawks fans, the deal is another reminder of how far Brooks has climbed since leaving Seattle in 2024. It also invites an inevitable question: Did the Seahawks make a mistake by allowing a former No. 27 overall pick to walk?
The answer is more complicated than Brooksâ new contract alone suggests.
Jordyn Brooks Reached Another Level After Leaving Seattle
Brooks was already a tackling machine during his four seasons with the Seahawks.
Seattle selected him out of Texas Tech in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft. He accumulated 512 tackles over four seasons and set a franchise record with 183 tackles in 2021, a mark Bobby Wagner later matched. Brooks also returned from a late-season ACL tear quickly enough to start Week 1 in 2023, finishing that campaign with 111 tackles and a career-high 4.5 sacks.
Miami signed Brooks as an unrestricted free agent in March 2024. He started all 34 games across his first two Dolphins seasons and recorded 326 tackles over that span.
His 2025 performance moved him into a different class. Along with his league-leading tackle total, Brooks registered 13 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, three passes defensed, one forced fumble and one recovery. He was the NFLâs only player to combine at least 150 tackles, 10 tackles for loss and three sacks.
Miami is now paying him accordingly. The reported extension carries an average value of $17.1 million per season and could keep Brooks with the Dolphins through 2029.
Seahawks Found a Different Answer in Ernest Jones IV
Brooksâ development reflects well on the player, but it does not necessarily indict Seattleâs plan.
The Seahawks changed coaches after Brooksâ final season and rebuilt their defense around Mike Macdonaldâs system. After beginning 2024 with a different linebacker combination, Seattle acquired Ernest Jones IV from the Tennessee Titans in October.
Jones quickly became the central communicator in Macdonaldâs defense. Seattle then retained him in March 2025 on a three-year agreement initially reported at $33 million.
That is substantially below the $51.3 million Brooks is reportedly receiving from Miami. Jones also earned second-team All-Pro recognition during Seattleâs championship 2025 season, while helping anchor a defense that carried the Seahawks to a Super Bowl LX victory.
The comparison makes this less of a clear winner-and-loser transaction than it may appear.
Miami retained an elite producer and respected defensive captain. Seattle replaced Brooks with a linebacker who fit its new scheme, became an All-Pro himself and helped direct a championship defense at a lower reported price.
Brooksâ Contract Still Carries a Lesson for Seattle
Brooksâ rise shows that his best football was still ahead when his Seahawks tenure ended.
His raw tackle totals in Seattle were occasionally dismissed as a product of a defense that spent too much time on the field. In Miami, however, Brooks added the recognition that had eluded him in Seattle, becoming a first-team All-Pro and one of the new regimeâs foundational players.
The Dolphins have also extended center Aaron Brewer and running back DeâVon Achane as general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley establish the core of their roster. Brooksâ agreement makes him one of the clearest defensive pillars of that project.
Seattle can be comfortable with how its linebacker transition worked out while acknowledging what Brooks became elsewhere.
The former Seahawks draft pick recovered from a serious knee injury, produced at a historic pace for two franchises and earned a reported $35 million guarantee. Seattle found the right linebacker for its new defense, but Brooks unquestionably proved he was worth another team building around.
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