Seahawks TE A.J. Barner is recovering from a pair of late-February surgeries. The exact procedures remain unknown, but John Boyle of the team’s official site points out that Barner dealt with calf, ankle, knee, shoulder, elbow, and hip injuries last season.
Barner said he's "feeling good" at offseason workouts. However, he's yet to participate in on-field activities.
"Y'all saw what it was during the season," Barner said. "It's stuff that I've been dealing with, honestly for my whole pro career. I'm somebody that, no matter how I'm feeling, I'm going to play, just like a lot of other guys in our locker room. So I'm definitely feeling better, it's definitely still a process to get back out there, but by the time training camp rolls around, I'm going to be ready to go."
The injuries didn’t cost Barner any 2025 games. He responded with a breakout season, catching 52 passes for 519 yards and 6 TDs, while Round 2 rookie Elijah Arroyo played a minor role. Arroyo managed only 15 catches, 179 yards, and 1 TD, then missed four late-season games with a knee injury.
But that shouldn't take away from Barner's Year 2 growth. Among 28 TEs with 50+ targets, Barner ranked fifth in missed tackles forced per reception, eighth in fantasy points per route, eighth in drop rate, and 10th in yards after catch per reception.
He enters the summer as the favorite for Seattle's lead TE job. Our projections have Barner leading the unit in route rate (65%) and target share (13.2%), ahead of Arroyo's marks of 50% (routes) and 9.5% (targets). There's room for more playing time if Arroyo's injury history adds another entry.
For now, Barner projects as a low-end TE2 worth tracking as a potential streamer.
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