WR Tyler Lockett To Sign With Titans

On the eve of the draft, the Titans have signed a new, veteran weapon for expected No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward. According to a post on X from Tyler Lockett himself, the 10-year veteran will be joining the Titans for the 2025 campaign. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Lockett will play on a one-year, $4MM deal that could be worth up to $6MM with incentives.

Despite playing in the NFL since 2015, this will be only the second team Lockett has played for during his professional tenure. The 32-year-old entered the league as a third-round pick out of Kansas State for the Seahawks and has been in Seattle ever since. In his early years, Lockett was an effective receiver, usually active as a third receiving option behind Doug Baldwin combined with either Jermaine Kearse, Jimmy Graham, or Paul Richardson, but he made his name (as well as his Pro Bowl and three All-Pro selections) as a top return man.

As a rookie, Lockett recorded an impressive 664 yards and six touchdowns receiving, but his return abilities, which resulted in touchdowns both on punt and kickoff returns, were what earned him Pro Bowl and first-team All-Pro selections. Similarly, over the next two years, his receiving contributions came second to his return abilities, which garnered second-team All-Pro selections in both seasons. His 2017 campaign saw him lead the NFL with 949 kickoff return yards, as well as another touchdown.

In 2018, Baldwin’s chokehold on the WR1 role finally began to falter, along with his effectiveness, and in the veteran receiver’s final season, Lockett took over the top role as the No. 1 wide receiver for Russell Wilson with 965 yards and 10 touchdowns. This would be the last time Lockett would finish under 1,000 yards receiving until five years later when he would turn 31 years old. It also kicked off a streak of five straight seasons in which he would catch between 8-10 touchdowns. As his receiving role increased, though, his return roles decreased, and by 2020 the veteran was rarely, if ever, returning punts or kickoffs.

In 2023, two years after the departure of Wilson, Lockett’s effectiveness finally began to fall as he recorded a still impressive 894 yards and five touchdowns. Last year, a breakout season by second-year wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba saw Lockett return to WR3 on the depth chart and record his lowest receiving total (600 yards, two touchdowns) since 2017.

One would think that if Lockett was going to leave Seattle after 10 years and play for a new team, it would be to rejoin his former quarterback in New York or his former head coach in Las Vegas. Instead, he makes his way to Nashville, where he doesn’t appear to have any notable connections (except maybe Dre’Mont Jones?). Instead, it appears that he will join a receiving corps currently manned at the top by Calvin Ridley, Van Jefferson, and Treylon Burks. He’ll add experience, durability, and maturity to a group that will likely be receiving passes from a rookie starter in 2025.