Seattle, WA
Ted’s Talk: Predicting AJ Barner’s rookie season
The Seattle Seahawks were expected to utilize their new coaching staff’s college connections at some point during the NFL Draft. They made good on those expectations at pick No. 118 in the fourth round, selecting tight end AJ Barner from the University of Michigan. Barner – who played for new special teams coach Jay Harbaugh for the Wolverines – was primarily used as a blocking TE but could bring untapped potential in the passing game.
Athletic Profile/Comps
Relative Athletic Score (RAS)
Mockdraftable
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Finally, a Seahawks draft pick that isn’t undersized! Well, except for starting the run on small hands…
Barner’s RAS is a little strange because outside of his height and 3-cone, nothing else is in the green. He also isn’t particularly fast with a 4.84 second 40. Yet, every composite category is “good” which results in a very good overall RAS.
Tyler Eifert is the best name on the RAS comp list but his score is quite a bit higher, so I don’t think that’s the best one to look at.
Mockdraftable only uses combine values and Barner did the testing at his pro day…making the Mockdraftable somewhat less instructive since they’re based off of less values.
However, the Mockdraftable comp with Drew Sample isn’t a bad one if we look at RAS.
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Sample is stronger and faster, but Barner has a better 3-cone, vertical/broad jumps, and is taller. Sample is also similar to Barner in that he’s really only elite in one area (bench) yet is essentially “good” at everything to give him a high overall RAS.
Just for fun, let’s look at some of the more recent Seahawks tight ends and see how Barner stacks up.
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As you can see, Barner is actually more athletic than their past draft picks at around the same size. He was also taken in basically the same range as both Dissly and Parkinson were fellow fourth-round picks while Vannett was a third-rounder.
I still wasn’t really satisfied with these comps so I spent way more time than I’d like to admit flipping through my mental Rolodex of tight ends to try and find one that was closer, at least athletically. Finally, I found one with Anthony Fasano.
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Again, it’s not perfect but at least gives us the level of athlete we’re looking at with Barner. Fasano played 12 years in the NFL and had 36 career TDs. He only eclipsed 350 receiving yards in a season 3 times, maxing out at 528 yards. Fasano was a reliable safety blanket, though, and I’d definitely take that for Barner’s career.
Gut reaction to the pick
As soon as I saw the pick, I thought “makes sense.”
Like Seattle’s other fourth-round pick, Tyrice Knight, some thought this was a round too early for Barner. There was a little run on TEs in the fourth round with Ja’Tavion Sanders (No. 101), Theo Johnson (No. 107), and Erick All (No. 115) getting drafted prior to Seattle making a pick – remember that they originally had pick No. 102 but traded down.
Maybe the Seahawks liked those other TEs as well and felt that they had to pick Barner to avoid a shelf at the position. As was the case with Knight, however, it may be that this was a player Seattle was targeting with other TEs available at the time that were higher on consensus boards such as Cade Stover and Jared Wiley who both went later in the fourth round. That’s a cluster of six total TEs drafted in the fourth round, if you’re counting…so maybe Seattle didn’t reach after all?
The Seahawks had an opening at the TE position after losing Will Dissly (Los Angeles Chargers) and Colby Parkinson (Los Angeles Rams) to free agency in the offseason and adding Pharaoh Brown on a one-year deal. Barner provides depth and will probably assume the blocking TE role that Dissly held by the 2025 season at the latest.
Barner’s calling card will be his ability to block, but that can also make him a sneaky addition to the pass game.
The simple stuff done right in the redzone from AJ Barner. He gets a good release and slips right behind the backers. Notice how well he is keeping pace with JJ McCarthy on the roll out and presents a big target. pic.twitter.com/crXTUaLrQq
— Thomas Martinez (@BoltsDraftTalk) January 20, 2024
Plays like these could make him a QB’s best friend if the primary reads are covered. All in all, he’s likely the Dissly replacement on a rookie contract. That’s a fine use of a fourth-round pick.
Rookie season prediction
I’m not expecting Barner to have a significant role in the offense as a rookie unless Noah Fant or Pharaoh Brown are injured. Fant is the best pass-catching TE and Brown the best (for now) run-blocking option. Even UDFA Jack Westover – if he makes the team – is potentially a better option to catch passes.
Since Brown is only on a one-year contract, however, it will be important to get Barner meaningful snaps in run-heavy sets to groom him to take over that role next season. Barner was never a big producer in college with 610 yards and 5 TDs total in his 4-year college career. He’ll have few opportunities in his rookie season and will reel in 12 catches for 125 yards and 1 sneaky TD. More importantly, Barner will be a mainstay on special teams units and become a trusted part of Jay Harbaugh’s units.
CHICAGO (AP) — The struggling New York Mets placed former Seattle Mariners second baseman/designated hitter Jorge Polanco on the 10-day injured list on Saturday with a right wrist contusion.
Mariners Injury Update: Latest on Robles, Vargas and more
The move was made retroactive to Wednesday, a day after Polanco went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in a 2-1 loss at the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 32-year-old Polanco is batting .179 (10 for 56) with a homer and two RBIs in his first season with New York, which has lost nine straight.
“When doctors first took a look at him, it looked like he got hit by a pitch when he didn’t,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “In talking to him, it was just a couple of swings that he took that night. … He didn’t think much of it, but just got worse the following day.
“So you just got to let it calm down a little bit and then we’ll go from there. But we don’t have a timetable for how long this is going to last.”
Polanco, who signed a two-year, $40 million contract with the Mets in December, also has been dealing with an ankle issue.
“He was trending in the right direction,” Mendoza said of the ankle injury. “It’s definitely going to help, obviously now with him being shut down. But the biggest thing now is that we’ve got to take care of that wrist.”
Polanco spent the previous two seasons with the Mariners, who acquired him in a February 2024 trade with the Minnesota Twins.
Polanco struggled during his first season with Seattle in 2024, hitting just .213 with 16 homers in 118 games while playing through a knee injury that didn’t become public knowledge until after the season.
But after the Mariners somewhat surprisingly brought him back for a one-year contract in 2025, Polanco rebounded to hit .265 with 26 homers and an .821 OPS in 138 games last season. He then added three homers during Seattle’s playoff run, along with a 15th-inning walkoff single in Game 5 of the American League Division Series that sent the Mariners to their first ALCS in 24 years.
Seattle Sports staff made additions to this post.
Mariners RHP Bryce Miller to begin rehab assignment
Seattle, WA
Brandon Nimmo hits leadoff homer, Jacob deGrom works 4 scoreless as Rangers beat Seattle Mariners 5-0
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON – APRIL 17: Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers tags out Dominic Canzone #8 of the Seattle Mariners during the fourth inning at T-Mobile Park on April 17, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
SEATTLE – Brandon Nimmo hit a leadoff home run, Jacob deGrom threw four shutout innings and Gavin Collyer earned his first career win as the Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners 5-0 on Friday night.
Seattle lost its fourth straight game, and was shut out for the fourth time in 21 games, falling to 8-13. The Mariners were shut out six times during the 2025 season. Texas won its third straight game.
Nimmo led off the game with a 372-foot shot to right field off Mariners starter Logan Gilbert (1-3). It was Nimmo’s 16th career leadoff homer and second of the season. He also hit a leadoff home run on April 11 in a 6-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
DeGrom effectively maneuvered through Seattle’s lineup, and worked out of a one out, bases-loaded jam in the first inning. The two-time Cy Young Award winner recorded two of his three strikeouts after walking Josh Naylor to load the bases. Randy Arozarena fanned on a curveball, and Luke Raley swung through a fastball.
Texas added to its lead after Nimmo’s homer. Wyatt Langford’s single to left scored Corey Seager, who led off the third inning with a double. The Rangers stretched the lead to 3-0 on an RBI single from Jake Burger in the seventh.
The Mariners’ best scoring chance came in the sixth after Collyer (1-0), who worked 1 1/3 scoreless innings, left the game.
J.P. Crawford singled to left off Tyler Alexander with two out, and Mariners third base coach Carlos Cardoza sent Naylor from second base, but he was thrown out by Langford.
Texas added two more runs in the ninth on a sacrifice fly by Andrew McCutchen and an RBI double by Josh Jung.
Seattle third baseman Brendan Donovan left the game early due to a left hip issue.
Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller, who started the year on the injured list with a left oblique injury, was at T-Mobile Park for the first time this season. He will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Tacoma on Saturday.
Up next
Mariners RHP George Kirby (2-2, 3.25) will face Rangers righty Nathan Eovaldi (2-2, 5.40) on Saturday afternoon.
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FIFE, Wash. – A portion of southbound I-5 will be closed overnight in Fife Friday and Saturday night, according to WSDOT.
The Washington State Department of Transportation says the purpose of the closure is to install a new electronic sign and will need two nights to do it.
Crews will close southbound I-5 from 54th Avenue to Port of Tacoma Road starting at 11 p.m. Friday night until 7:30 a.m. Saturday morning. Closures will resume Saturday night starting at 11 p.m. as well, and lanes will reopen Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m.
WSDOT says the closure will include the 54th Avenue ramps to southbound I-5.
Detours for weekend I-5 closure in Fife, WA
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The Source: Information in this story comes from the Washington State Department of Transportation.
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