TE AJ Barner 'Brings A Whole Lot Of Energy' & Touchdowns To Seahawks

Tight end AJ Barner scored two more touchdowns, giving him four this season, in Sunday’s loss to the Buccaneers.

Oct 05, 2025 at 08:49 PM

John Boyle

Seahawks.com Senior Reporter

The book on AJ Barner coming out of college was that he was a blocking tight end with special teams value, but not someone who was going to make a lot of noise in the passing game.

"In-line tight end who continues to improve as a run blocker but is unlikely to offer much as a pass catcher," his profile on NFL.com read prior to the 2024 draft.

And to be fair, the numbers supported that evaluation, with Barner catching 64 passes for 610 yards and five touchdowns over four seasons of college ball, three of them spent at Indiana before he transferred to Michigan, where he won a national championship as a senior.

But as Barner has shown throughout his first two seasons with the Seahawks is that he is much more than a blocking tight end. He is also a legitimate threat in the passing game, particularly in the red zone. That was the case again on Sunday when Barner had a season-high seven catches for 53 yards, including a pair of second-half touchdown in the Seahawks' Week 5 loss to the Buccaneers.

"They're right in the thick of all the things on offense," Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said. "Just they're instrumental in the run game and in the pass game, them coming to life, we knew we would need them in this game, and they continue to come up and make plays for us. AJ is the leader of the pack there. He's doing a great job."

Those two touchdowns bring Barner's season total up to four, matching his total last season, and giving him eight touchdowns on 44 receptions over the span of 22 games. In other words, Barner has two more touchdowns in 22 games against NFL competition than he did in 45 games in the Big Ten.

"He brings a whole lot of energy," said rookie receiver Tory Horton, who is tied with Barner for the team lead in touchdowns with four. "You can tell he loves the game, just the way he's blocking, the way he's maneuvering, getting open on routes, even his special teams play, that goes unseen sometimes. He has that dog in him. That's what they be saying, he's got that dog in him."

For Barner, his production in the passing game is a product of the fit he found in Seattle that he never fully had at either of his stops in college.

"I think I'm just able to get open and get an opportunity, I feel like Seattle's a great fit for me," he said. "In the past, I always characterized my college career as, I was a misfit. I went to Indiana, I went to Michigan, didn't really have all the things really work out for me, and when I came to Seattle, I was like, 'All right, this is home, this is where I'm meant to be.'"

And while it would be easy for a player off to the start Barner is this season to want to call out his doubters, he admits it's hard to do that since, at times, he put himself in that box as well.

"I honestly kind of chuckle at myself too," Barner said when asked if he chuckles at those pre-draft evaluations. "You kind of put yourself in that box as well, you put limitations on yourself, and once you get out of your own way, like, I can be whoever I want to be in the league, that's the biggest thing. It doesn't matter what the outside noise says."