The Seahawks have a number of players who look set to break out, but one offensive weapon looks primed to be the top candidate.
When it comes to predicting which player will have a "breakout" season in July, it is a big guessing game, and for the Seattle Seahawks, there were a couple of candidates.
Of course, with how Mike Macdonald has constructed the roster, the Seahawks are relatively even across the board, making them one of the most well-rounded rosters in football.
But as we know, the league changes year on year, and you have to be improving constantly to stay ahead of the chasing pack, and the Seahawks are the team everyone is trying to catch up to.
With both sides of the ball settled on the field and a new offensive coordinator in Brian Fleury taking over from Klint Kubiak, a fresh voice could see some players take their game to a new level.
We have seen special teams ace Rashid Shaheed be mentioned as a possible "X-Factor" for the offense, but it is AJ Barner, who ESPN's Ben Solak thinks could have a breakout campaign in 2026.
"Barner really is a discount George Kittle, an easy comparison now that Kittle's old tight ends coach, Brian Fleury, is Barner's offensive coordinator," Solak wrote. "If Fleury runs the passing game a little more through Barner this season, he'll start to get his name mentioned in the upper tier of tight ends ... where it belongs."
AJ is coming off perhaps an underrated season, which was just the second of his career.
A total of 519 yards and 6 TDs from 52 receptions, along with 67 yards and a touchdown from six receptions in the postseason, Barner was a safety blanket for Sam Darnold.
As Solak mentioned, Barner now gets a coordinator who was a tight ends coach and worked with All-Pro George Kittle in San Francisco.
Barner averaged 10 yards per reception in 2025, and with Fleury looking at getting the tight ends involved more frequently, AJ could see a big uptick in production.
He's proved he can be a dependable target, boasting a 76.5 percent catch rate in 2025, and there is every reason to suggest that he could see another good, productive season.
Is a breakout year incoming? Barner has all the tools to make it a reality.
