An undrafted linebacker who bounced from Dubuque to Illinois State, Jalan Gaines carved out a practice squad path onto Seattle's roster on pure production.
Jalan Gaines is a linebacker for the Seattle Seahawks who took the long road to the NFL, starting his college career at Division III Dubuque before transferring up to Illinois State. Signed as an undrafted free agent in 2025, he spent his rookie year fighting for a roster spot and now heads into 2026 on a futures deal with Seattle.
Path to the league
Gaines grew up in Chicago and starred at Oak Lawn Community High School before beginning his college career at Dubuque in 2021, where he racked up six tackles for loss and four sacks in his first season. He transferred to Illinois State in 2022 and developed into a full-time starter by 2024, finishing that season with 35 solo tackles and 12.5 tackles for loss. He went unselected in the 2025 NFL Draft and signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent.
Career highlights
Across his final two seasons at Illinois State, Gaines totaled 10.5 sacks and more than 22 tackles for loss, establishing himself as one of the program's top edge defenders. His college production, built on 37 games across two schools, earned him a three-year contract from Seattle after the 2025 draft.
2025 season recap
Gaines was waived by the Seahawks during final roster cuts in August 2025 but was quickly re-signed to the practice squad, spending his rookie season developing behind Seattle's linebacker room. He did not see regular-season game action, and in February 2026 he signed a one-year reserve/future contract to continue competing for a roster spot.
Sources
- Wikipedia: Jalan Gaines
- ESPN: Jalan Gaines
Player Profile
Background
- Position
- Linebacker
- Group
- defense
- College
- Illinois State
- Hometown
- Chicago, IL, USA
- Age
- 25
- Status
- active
