Seahawks' Byron Murphy II snubbed by NFL on ESPN's top-10 DT poll

The Seattle Seahawks won Super Bowl 60 over the New England Patriots for a few reasons. Why Kenneth Walker III won the game MVP, the defense was the real reason the Seahawks beat New England.

Devon Witherspoon was great, and there were plenty of other great individual efforts during the game and all season long, but what Byron Murphy II did was one of the more impressive things all year for the sophomore DT.

However, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN conducted a poll of NFL scouts, coaches, and executives, and the league snubbed Murphy from a spot inside the top-10 defensive tackle rankings despite his incredible 2025 season.

Seahawks' Byron Murphy not ranked inside top-10 by NFL in ESPN poll

"Honorable mention: Byron Murphy II, Seattle Seahawks: 'He's so explosive. Teams double him, and he can break through it.' - veteran NFL defensive coach," Fowler shared.

This ranking of Murphy, outside of the top-10, isn't from ESPN, but rather from a poll conducted by ESPN of various NFL scouts, coaches, and executives.

So, the blame for this snub of Murphy lies with the league, and not ESPN. That's what makes this snub all the more baffling.

Leonard Williams was ranked the best DT in the NFL, with Jeffery Simmons 2nd, Jalen Carter 3rd, Chris Jones 4th, Derrick Brown 5th, Quinnen Williams 6th, Dexter Lawrence II 7th, Zach Allen 8th, Milton Williams 9th, and Jordan Davis 10th.

MORE: Seattle Seahawks trail only Rams and Eagles in ESPN's 2026 roster rankings

As good as some of those defensive tackles are, it's a bit strange Murhpy, who had seven sacks this past season with 62 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 13 quarterback hits, and 21 pressures, didn't rank inside the top-10.

What Murphy did in 2025 allowed the Seahawks to win the Super Bowl, especially since he had two sacks in the game to go with two tackles for loss, two quarterback hits, and a fumble recovery.

He's the biggest snub from the NFL's top-10 defensive tackle rankings from this ESPN poll, as he really should be better than an honorable mention after such a fantastic season.

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