Marshawn Lynch

Latest On Marshawn Lynch

March 17th, 2017 at 1:54pm CST by Zachary Links

Here we go again. Marshawn Lynch, reportedly, is pondering a comeback and the Raiders are thinking about acquiring him. At the moment, however, the Seahawks are still in control of his rights.

A few things have to go down before the long-rumored Lynch-to-Oakland rumors can come to fruition, but it all starts with the running back himself. Lynch is in a bit of a holding pattern and is still deciding whether he wants to come back, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Lynch does in fact have the itch to play though and is already in shape. Interestingly, Garafolo hears (Twitter link) that Lynch stopped by the Seahawks’ facility, but it “was more of a personal visit than anything.”

Lynch’s contract called for him to earn $9MM in 2016 and that would be his default salary for this season if he were to return. The Seahawks won’t have room for him with Eddie Lacy, C.J. Prosise, and Thomas Rawls already on the roster and it’s not clear if the Raiders will be willing to pay that salary. Oakland is looking to extend Derek Carr and Khalil Mack in the near future and that kind of addition could limit them financially.

Photo via Pro Football Rumors on Instagram.

Raiders To Pursue Marshawn Lynch?

March 17th, 2017 at 10:11am CST by Zachary Links

Remember those flirtations between the Raiders and Marshawn Lynch from last year? Sounds like things could be picking up again. The Raiders are giving serious thought to acquiring Lynch, either through trade or by his release, league sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter and Josina Anderson.

“It could really happen,” one source familiar with the situation said. One source with knowledge of the situation told Mike Florio of PFT there is a “very good chance” that Lynch will return to football.

The Raiders would have to work out a trade with the Seahawks in order to get Lynch, since they still own his rights. In theory, the Seahawks could also cut Lynch as a courtesy to the tailback. The Seahawks don’t really need Lynch anyway now that they have Eddie Lacy, C.J. Prosise, and Thomas Rawls.

There’s also the matter of convincing Lynch to continue playing football. He was adamant about staying retired last year, but it’s an idea he has considered, sources say. Last September, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported Lynch would consider playing during the 2016 campaign, and while that never happened, any lingering interest in returning to the league could manifest itself in 2017.

Oakland did indeed attempt to wrangle Lynch from the Seahawks via trade in 2016, and a deal nearly came together, tweets Ian Rapoport of NFL.com. However, Lynch ultimately decided to stay retired. Now that he’s taken a full year off, Lynch could potentially consider to re-enter the NFL for one more go-round with the Raiders, but those same talks — including the enticement of Lynch himself — will have to take place again.

One issue in negotiations might be the Raiders’ reluctance to send draft compensation to Seattle, as Oakland may only want to sacrifice something like a conditional seventh-rounder, per Rapoport (Twitter link). Additionally, the Raiders are trying to conserve cash and cap space in order to facilitate extensions for Derek Carr and Khalil Mack, so paying Lynch $9MM — the figure he was set to earn under his Seahawks contract — would be problematic.

Lynch wasn’t himself in 2015, as nagging injuries forced him to miss nine games. The year prior, however, Lynch was as productive as ever, as he rushed for 4.7 yards per carry and managed a career-high 13 touchdowns on the ground. Lynch is still only 30 years old.

In other Raiders running back news, Schefter and Anderson hear that Adrian Peterson also remains a possibility for Oakland. That interest still appears to be coming from the Peterson camp, however, as the ESPN scribes report Peterson would like the chance to join a talented Raiders squad.

Latest On Marshawn Lynch

September 9th, 2016 at 1:10pm CST by Zachary Links

Marshawn Lynch is not coming out of retirement. At least, that’s what he told former teammate Michael Robinson (Twitter link).

“I called Beast Mode. Record this, everybody. Marshawn Lynch is retired, he told me from his own mouth,” Robinson said on Periscope.

During the Super Bowl, Lynch announced his retirement on Instagram with a photo showing his neon green cleats hung up on a phone wire. Later on in the offseason, however, reports indicated that Lynch was possibly waffling on his decision to call it quits. Lynch also backed that up in an interview with 60 Minutes Sports in June. Then, this week, a source told Mike Florio of PFT that Beast Mode could come back.

“I‘m done. I’m done. I enjoyed my time playing. Now it’s time to watch my cousins do their thing,” Lynch said this summer. “I’m retired. Is that good enough? Which camera do you want me to look into? This one? I’m done. I’m not playing football anymore.”

In 2015, Lynch battled hamstring and abdominal injuries that limited him to seven games and career worsts in rushing attempts (111), yards (417) and touchdowns (three). If Lynch did decide to return to the NFL, the Seahawks would hold his rights.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Marshawn Lynch To Return?

September 8th, 2016 at 7:28pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

7:28pm: Lynch visited his former Seahawks teammates at their Oakland hotel when they closed the preseason against the Raiders, per Ed Werder of ESPN.com. The Oakland native didn’t reveal his future plans, though. “I would think he would tell us, and he hasn’t,” a Seahawk informed Werder (Twitter links).

7:08pm: Running back Marshawn Lynch insisted in June that his retirement would last, but that no longer looks like a sure thing. The five-time Pro Bowler is currently “up in the air” about whether to return to the NFL, a source told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Lynch could come back as early as the fourth or fifth week of the season, Florio hears.

Notably, the 30-year-old Lynch is under Seahawks control at $9MM this season, though that money will only kick in if he leaves retirement. Should “Beast Mode” decide to come back, then, Seattle would have to decide whether to add him to its roster or move on either by way of a release or trade. In the event Lynch returns before the Week 8 trade deadline and the Seahawks elect to cut him, he’d become a free agent who could sign with any team. Otherwise, a post-deadline comeback would subject Lynch to waivers if released.

With Lynch at least temporarily out of the picture, the Seahawks are expected to rely on two of his former backups, Christine Michael and Thomas Rawls, as their go-to options at running back. Michael, 25, has averaged an outstanding 4.7 yards per carry in his career, though he has only amassed 106 attempts in three years. Rawls had a great rookie campaign in 2015, but he suffered a season-ending broken ankle in December and still hasn’t fully recovered since undergoing surgery.

On a per-carry basis, Lynch was less successful than both Michael and Rawls last year as he battled hamstring and abdominal injuries. Those ailments limited Lynch to seven games and career worsts in rushing attempts (111), yards (417) and touchdowns (three). However, Lynch – whom the Seahawks acquired from Buffalo in 2010 for pennies on the dollar (two late-round draft picks) – was the driving force behind Seattle’s offense for most of his five-plus-year career there. In each of his four 16-game seasons as a Seahawk, Lynch finished with at least 280 carries, 1,200 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns. He also made a pair of Super Bowl trips, one of which ended in victory.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

The Beat: Bob Condotta On The Seahawks

August 10th, 2016 at 11:02am CST by Zachary Links

With the season fast approaching, we’re chatting with beat writers from around the league to gain insight on each team’s offseason and how those moves will impact the season ahead.

Now, we continue the series by discussing the Seahawks with Bob Condotta of the The Seattle Times. You can follow Bob on Twitter @bcondotta and check out his stories here.

Zach Links: Marshawn Lynch dominated headlines this offseason after he announced his retirement in February and reportedly may have waffled a bit on the decision in May. Was Marshawn giving real thought to playing in 2016? If so, did he want to play somewhere other than Seattle?

Bob Condotta: My understanding is no, that he was never thinking of playing this season in Seattle or anywhere else.

Zach Links: Recently, the Seahawks extended coach Pete Carroll through 2019 and GM John Schneider through 2021. Did the Seahawks attempt to get Carroll to sign through 2021 to match up with Schneider?

Bob Condotta: I haven’t been able to determine that. But years on contracts has not seemed to matter much to Carroll since his initial deal. He also signed a three-year extension following the Super Bowl win in 2013, so the one he just got matches that one. Despite whatever chatter is out there, there’s no real thought that Carroll would ever leave Seattle for another job. But with Schneider being 20 years younger than Carroll, there was a thought it was important to sew him up for as long as possible. So I think that accounts for the difference in contracts.

Zach Links: In 2014, Michael Bennett signed a team-friendly deal to stay in Seattle. In 2015, he began complaining about his under-market contract and he continues to be unhappy with the pact. Do you think the Seahawks will cave and give him a significant pay bump this summer?

Bob Condotta: Hard to tell. I do know Bennett would like them to. His agent and the team have continued to have negotiations. But the Seahawks have worries about setting a precedent of giving new deals to players with more than a year remaining on their contracts. That’s the only reason they have hesitation about giving Bennett a new contract.

Continue reading about the Seahawks..

Zach Links: Doug Baldwin‘s new four-year, $46MM extension ($24.25MM in guarantees) makes him one of the highest-paid wide receivers in the NFL. Were you at all surprised by the size of the deal?

Bob Condotta: No. Baldwin is one of those players whose value to the Seahawks may be hard for people outside of Seattle to really ascertain. Baldwin in a lot of ways embodies everything that the Seahawks preach — an undrafted free agent who initially forged his way on to the roster via special teams and has embraced every role the team has given him on the way to becoming one of the most productive receivers in the NFL. Given the way the Seahawks play, merely judging him by his stats is to miss the point of all that Baldwin does for the Seahawks. But the Seahawks understand that, and also know that the other Seahawks understand what Baldwin’s value is to the team. Seattle has been aggressive about rewarding its own core players, those who grew up in the organization. Baldwin was simply the latest to get his reward.

Zach Links: The Seahawks signed former Pro Bowl guard Jahri Evans late last week. What, in your opinion, does he have left in the tank at this point?

Bob Condotta: Really hard to tell at this point, with Evans just one practice in to being a Seahawk. Ask me in a week or so and I can give a better answer. It may be especially hard to tell in the first week since the Seahawks are initially working Evans at left guard while he played right guard during his New Orleans career. Seattle is doing that cause it wants to see if Evans can be a swing guard — it’s unlikely he would beat out Germain Ifedi to be the right guard at this point. But if he can play left guard or show some versatility, that’s what the Seahawks want to see.

Zach Links: Do you think the Seahawks will wrestle the NFC West crown away from the Cardinals this year?

Bob Condotta: I certainly think they can. Seattle had a lot of issues last season that they don’t have entering this season — a hold out, injuries to every key player in the secondary, to name two — and also have a quarterback and receiving group entering the prime of its career. Seattle and Arizona may be the two best teams in the NFC by the time the season is done. But while the Seahawks certainly respect Arizona they don’t fear the Cardinals. The Seahawks feel if they are healthy and playing right they can beat anybody.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Marshawn Lynch Says He Is Staying Retired

June 6th, 2016 at 11:25am CST by Zachary Links

Despite some speculation to the contrary, Marshawn Lynch is not returning to the NFL in 2016. The former Seahawks running back told 60 Minutes Sports on Showtime that he is finished with football (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times).

“I‘m done. I’m done. I enjoyed my time playing. Now it’s time to watch my cousins do their thing,” Lynch said. “I’m retired. Is that good enough? Which camera do you want me to look into? This one? I’m done. I’m not playing football anymore.”

The Seahawks removed Marshawn Lynch from their 90-man roster last month when they placed the running back on the reserve/retired list, but the 30-year-old didn’t complete all of his paperwork, leaving the door open for speculation on his future. Lynch reportedly told a pair of ex-teammates that he intends to play this year and Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman‘s recently demurred when asked to classify Lynch as retired.

In 2015, Lynch battled hamstring and abdominal injuries that limited him to seven games and career worsts in rushing attempts (111), yards (417) and touchdowns (three). Meanwhile, Thomas Rawls burst on the scene as an undrafted rookie and averaged 5.6 yards per carry on 147 tries. The Seahawks have planned to move ahead with Rawls and they now have limited cap room at this stage of the offseason. If Lynch had decided to return to the NFL, it’s not a guarantee that he would have been able to make that comeback in Seattle.

Originally acquired from Buffalo in 2010 for pennies on the dollar (two late-round draft picks), Lynch was the driving force behind Seattle’s offense for most of his five-plus-year career there. In each of his four 16-game seasons as a Seahawk, Lynch finished with at least 280 carries, 1,200 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns. He also made a pair of Super Bowl trips, one of which ended in victory.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Sunday Roundup: Lynch, Fitzpatrick, Leary

May 29th, 2016 at 12:54pm CST by Rory Parks

Whether Marshawn Lynch opts to continue his football career in 2016 and whether he will play for the Seahawks if he does suit up this season are two very different questions, as Sheil Kapadia of ESPN.com writes. Lynch, 30, may well be having second thoughts about his decision to retire, but while Kapadia would not be surprised if Lynch chooses to return to the league, the ESPN scribe would be stunned if the Seahawks are the team to welcome him back.

Although Seattle controls Lynch’s rights through 2017, he is due $9MM in 2016, is coming off an injury-plagued season, and is at the point in his career when most running backs begin to wear down anyway. Plus, the club’s running game looked perfectly capable without Beast Mode in 2015. Theoretically, the team could trade him or negotiate a pay cut, but it is more likely that the Seahawks would simply release Lynch if he ultimately decides he is not done playing.

Now let’s take a look at some more notes from around the league:

Rich Cimini of ESPN.com and Brian Costello of The New York Post echo the common sense point that Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk made several days ago: we now know that the Jets have offered Ryan Fitzpatrick a three-year deal that includes $12MM in the first year, but until we know what the second and third years of the offer look like, we cannot say which side is being overly obstinate. Cimini “gets the sense” that it is a three-year, $24MM contract, which would mean that if Fitzpatrick plays well this season and retains his starting job, he would be significantly underpaid in 2017. Similarly, Costello believes that it is not a three-year, $36MM deal unless Fitzpatrick hits incentives, some of which are surely unrealistic.
Cowboys left guard Ronald Leary has made it abundantly clear that he wants to be traded, but as Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk writes, Leary lost almost all of his leverage when he chose to sign his restricted free agent tender last month. Now that he has signed the $2.55MM tender, Leary can be fined if he misses mandatory minicamp or training camp, so Dallas will be perfectly content to either wait for a good return from another club seeking an interior lineman, or for Leary to give in and report to the team.
Former Baylor wideout Jay Lee, overshadowed by teammate Corey Coleman–the Browns’ first-round selection in this year’s draft–in the Baylor offense, had a productive collegiate career in his own right, and he turned down offers from five other clubs to join the Lions as a UDFA, as Justin Rogers of MLive.com writes. Lee said, “[Detroit] is a better fit for me. I had a relationship with the coaches. I got to do a private workout with them, got to come up here and visit and I just felt at home.”
Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com looks at five of the Lions‘ biggest roster competitions this summer. The competition at defensive tackle, the club’s deepest unit, could be particularly fierce.
Instead of hitting the open market this offseason, Steelers guard Ramon Foster and cornerback William Gay turned down the chance at a bigger payday elsewhere to remain in Pittsburgh, as Ray Fittipaldo of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes. Gay, who signed a two-year, $3.2MM contract with the Cardinals in 2012 after spending the first five years of his career with the Steelers, never saw the second year of that deal after Arizona’s coaching staff told him he no longer fit in their plans, and he had no interest in seeing the dark side of free agency again. Foster, meanwhile, said, “[Pittsburgh] is where it’s at. We’re chasing that ring. The chance for the Super Bowl ring is more important than those extra [millions].”
Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta has looked good in the team’s offseason workouts, Don Markus of The Baltimore Sun writes. Pitta, looking to make his way back from a second major hip fracture, is not showing any lingering effects of his injuries, although training camp will present an entirely different test. Pitta could face an uphill battle to make the roster, as the team recently signed veteran free agent Ben Watson and also has intriguing young talents in Crockett Gillmore and Maxx Williams on the tight end depth chart.
In an Insider-only piece, Field Yates of ESPN.com lists the biggest roster decisions that each of the league’s 32 clubs will have to make over the coming months.

NFC Notes: Lions, Lynch, Saints, Cowboys

May 27th, 2016 at 6:58pm CST by Zachary Links

As Lions OTAs continue, the shadow of Calvin Johnson looms large. How long did it take quarterback Matthew Stafford to get used to life without Megatron?

“Apparently, a lot quicker than you guys,” he said to reporters (link via The Associated Press).

The Lions signed Marvin Jones in free agency and he’ll likely be their No. 2 option at wide receiver behind Golden Tate. They Lions also picked up Jeremy Kerley in the offseason to add some depth to the position and possibly take the role of punt returner off Tate’s plate. The Lions still have plenty of passing options – including tight ends Eric Ebron and Brandon Pettigrew – but it remains to be seen whether they can collectively fill the void left by Johnson’s retirement.

Marshawn Lynch Rethinking Retirement?

May 25th, 2016 at 5:14pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

The Seahawks removed Marshawn Lynch from their 90-man roster three weeks ago when they placed the running back on the reserve/retired list, but the 30-year-old still hasn’t officially walked away from football. Now, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link), some close to Lynch have conflicting beliefs as to whether he actually is planning to retire.

Lynch told a pair of ex-teammates that he intends to play this year, per Cole, which comes on the heels of Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman‘s recent reluctance to put the rusher’s NFL tenure in the rear-view mirror.

On the notion of Lynch returning in 2016, Sherman said, “I don’t put anything past him. He’s about as predictable as a pair of dice. So I don’t try to call his plays.”

Meanwhile, Doug Hendrickson – Lynch’s agent – doesn’t expect his client to take the field this season, but Cole reports “there’s a guessing game going on” and adds that the four-time Pro Bowler is far from a sure bet to remain a Seahawk if he elects against retirement. The Seahawks may be ready to move on from Lynch because of his 2016 cap charge and the injury issues he dealt with last season, relays Cole.

Seattle would rack up significant savings if it were to move on from a non-retired Lynch this summer, recouping $9MM in breathing room, and the club’s ground game was elite even without him last season.

While Lynch battled hamstring and abdominal injuries that limited him to seven games and career worsts in rushing attempts (111), yards (417) and touchdowns (three), Thomas Rawls burst on the scene as an undrafted rookie and averaged 5.6 yards per carry on 147 tries. Rawls also wasn’t the picture of health last year, however, as he suffered a season-ending ankle injury in December that required surgery. The 22-year-old should be good to go for the upcoming season, though, and the Seahawks invested heavily behind him when they selected fellow backs C.J. Prosise (third round), Alex Collins (fifth round) and Zac Brooks (seventh round) in the draft. The club also has veteran Christine Michael on its depth chart, so even if Lynch does go back on his initial instinct to retire, it does appear that his days in a Seahawks uniform are over.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Marshawn Lynch Hasn’t Filed For Retirement

May 12th, 2016 at 11:26am CST by Zachary Links

The Seahawks placed Marshawn Lynch on the reserve/retired list, but the running back has yet to file the corresponding paperwork on his end, a source tells Mike Florio of PFT. The source adds that Lynch has had no direct communication with the Seahawks about his plans either, which leaves the door open to speculation about his future.

On Super Bowl Sunday, Lynch posted an image of green cleats hung up over a wire, ostensibly signifying the end of his football career. Lynch reportedly also told people close to him that he intends to retire, but he seems to have left things open ended with the Seahawks and the league office.

The simplest explanation here is that Lynch has not signed a stack of forms sitting next to his mail pile in the kitchen. Alternatively, Lynch could be plotting a 2016 return, though it might not be in Seattle. If Lynch decides to play football in 2016, the Seahawks would then have to decide whether they want to reabsorb his ~$9MM base salary for the upcoming season. With roughly $9.5MM in cap space (per Over The Cap), the Seahawks could have a tough time fitting the veteran running back into their budget. Hypothetically, if Lynch comes back and the Seahawks feel they don’t have space, they could trade him or cut him.

As it stands, the Seahawks are set to go into the season with a backfield headlined by Thomas Rawls and Christine Michael. Beyond that, the team has a group of rookie running backs including third-round selection C.J. Prosise.

A five-time Pro Bowler, Lynch was named a First-Team All-Pro in 2012, and has a Super Bowl ring. For his career, the former first-round pick racked up a total of 9,112 rushing yards for the Seahawks and Bills, averaging 4.3 yards per carry and totaling 83 touchdowns. While his final season was cut short by injuries, he had earned four consecutive Pro Bowl nods prior to 2015.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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