TJ Harden’s stay in Seattle ended almost before it had a chance to start. The Seattle Seahawks terminated the 22-year-old running back’s contract this week, just 12 days after signing him, trimming another name from a backfield competition that is starting to tighten in a hurry.
That makes the move notable not because Harden was expected to be a centerpiece, but because Seattle had been using August to sort through its running-back options while Zach Charbonnet was sidelined after ACL surgery. In that kind of camp environment, every snap matters, and the margin for players fighting for a role gets thin fast.
A brief look at what Harden did in camp
Harden’s lone preseason appearance came on Aug. 15 against the Dallas Cowboys, where he played 12 snaps, including nine on offense and three on special teams. He had two carries for one yard and appeared mostly as part of the larger evaluation process rather than as a player who had clearly separated himself.
That is the reality for a young back trying to force his way into a roster picture late in the summer. A preseason opener can sometimes create momentum, but it can also expose how crowded a room really is. For Seattle, the transaction says the staff wanted to keep moving through options as it worked toward 53-man roster decisions.
What his college production said
Harden arrived with a productive college résumé across UCLA and SMU. Over four college seasons, he totaled 2,445 rushing yards, 622 receiving yards and 24 total touchdowns, including 21 rushing scores and three receiving touchdowns. His best statistical stretch came in 2023, when he ran for 827 yards and eight scores, before following that with 787 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns in 2025.
That background helps explain why Seattle took a look in the first place. At 6-foot and 218 pounds, Harden had the frame teams often want in a back who can handle contact and contribute in multiple phases. But college production only buys so much once a team begins narrowing the field in camp.
For Harden, the bigger question now is not what he did in college, but where the next opportunity comes from. For the Seahawks, the move is another sign that the running-back room is being sorted with urgency, not sentiment. That is how August works in the NFL: a short audition can still matter, but only if it changes the roster conversation. In Seattle, Harden never quite got that far.
