The Seattle Seahawks and Tennessee Titans have confirmed a linebacker trade ahead of Event 8 of the 2024 NFL regular season. Seattle will send linebacker Jerome Baker and a fourth-round pick to Tennessee in exchange for linebacker Ernest Jones IV, according to NFL Average.
Jones, a four-year veteran, has 44 tackles in six games. He is coming off a 2023 season in which he reached career highs with 145 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss and six pass breakups. Jones heads to a Seahawks team that at 4-3 is currently in first place in the NFC West section standings.
Baker, who was in his first season with Seattle, spent his first six seasons in Miami. Baker, a former third-round pick, is a seven-year veteran who has amassed 23.5 career sacks, 617 tackles, five interceptions and 23 broken moves in 99 regular-season games. This season, Baker has recorded 30 tackles and one sack.
Baker will address a Titans group that has long been on offense with the Nov. 5 trade deadline approaching. Previous in an hour, the Titans traded former All-Pro receiver DeAndre Hopkins to two-time guards Kansas Town Chiefs. At 1-5, the Titans were one of several teams expected to be active before the league’s business deadline.
So who got the business? Here are our quick ratings for the transaction.
Seahawks: A-
As noted above, the Seahawks are looking poorly at the 49ers, Cardinals and Rams in the section standings, and it’s not clear they want to stay there and then send Baker and a fourth-round pick to Nashville in exchange for Jones, an ascending player who should strengthen Seattle’s defense.
The Seahawks offense started strong under first-year coach Mike Macdonald. But the defense hasn’t been as good, especially against the run. Seattle clearly wasn’t happy with its defense and decided to get competitive growth now before things start to escalate before the Nov. 5 deadline.
However, giving up a fourth-round pick is a slightly steep price, which is why the Seahawks didn’t get an “A” for this transaction. And the Seahawks obviously hope Jones provides them with more than he did this season for the Titans.
Titans: B
By buying and selling Jones and Hopkins, the Titans are sending a clear message that they are actively looking to improve their speed generation without completely squandering the potential to be an aggressive team for the remainder of this season. By trading Hopkins, the Titans freed up salary cap length and landed a speed pick in the mid-round of the draft. The Jones deal gave them another mid-round pace pick, as well as landing a fertile linebacker in Baker, who, like Jones, is still in his prime.
He may be the underdog player, but Baker is still a solid defender who will be a nice addition to the Titans’ defense. However, the tidbit here is that the Titans were willing to part ways with the 24-year-old Jones, who was their best during his first season with the team. But apparently the Titans agree with this generation of risk, calling Jones’ love sad.
It’s worth mentioning that, without the warring parties in the Seahawks section, everyone else in the league is happier with this transaction than the one that sent Hopkins to the two-time defending Super Bowl champions.
