NFL Rumors: Seahawks Hosting Ex-Broncos LB Shane Ray After Ziggy Ansah Visit

Former Denver Broncos linebacker Shane Ray will visit the Seattle Seahawks on Friday, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo.

Garafolo noted Seattle hosted 2015 Pro Bowl defensive end Ziggy Ansah earlier this week. The Seahawks are in the market for a pass-rusher after trading star defensive end Frank Clark, who had 13 sacks in 2018, earlier this month.

A first-round pick out of Mizzou in 2015, Ray was expected to be a centerpiece of the Broncos defense for years to come. Unfortunately for him, injuries kept him from fulfilling his potential in Denver.

Ray showed plenty of potential early on in his career, piling up 12 sacks through his first two seasons. He was also part of a smothering defense that led the Broncos to a Super Bowl 50 victory in February 2016.

However, he was unable to build on his eight-sack performance in 2016.

The 6'3", 245-pound linebacker underwent three wrist surgeries during the 2017 campaign, and the injury continued to ail him in 2018. As a result, he has missed a total of 13 games over the last two seasons and recorded just 26 tackles and two sacks during that span.

According to Pro Football Focus' Ben Cooper, Ray managed just 10 pressures on 138 pass-rushing snaps last season.

His wrist issues led to Denver declining the fifth-year option on his rookie contract in May 2018.

When asked about his impending free agency in December, the 25-year-old remained optimistic about his future, per the Denver Post's Kyle Fredrickson:

"I will be a starter the next place that I go. That's the kind of player that I am and that’s the type of player that I’ve been. Wherever I go next, they'll want me and it will be time for me to do what I could have been doing. And I'll be healthy. That will be a difference, too.

"You get to go and see which teams want you. You get to go somewhere when the team doesn't have a preconceived notion about you and get to be your own person. You get to just live and play football."

Even with his injury history, Ray has generated interested on the free-agent market. He visited with the Indianapolis Colts and Oakland Raiders earlier this offseason.