Tyler Lockett has spent his entire 10-year career with the Seahawks, and his tenure with the team will include at least one more game. The veteran wideout is aware he could be on the move this offseason, but he has given no thought to retirement at this point.

Lockett and the Seahawks agreed to a restructure last March which upped his earnings for 2024 but left him on track to carry a cap hit of nearly $31MM next season. Without any guaranteed salary on the books for 2024, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic notes the strong possibility remains Lockett will be let go in a cost-cutting move this offseason (subscription required). D.K. Metcalf and Jaxon Smith-Njigba are on track to remain in Seattle for years to come, but Lockett recently acknowledged Week 18 could mark his Seahawks finale.

The 32-year-old has been a staple in the passing game since his arrival and early seasons as a complement to Doug Baldwin. Lockett has since gone on to form a strong tandem with Metcalf, but the decision to add Smith-Njigba in the first round of the 2023 draft signaled Seattle’s trio at the WR spot would soon become a tandem. Indeed, Lockett has failed to see triple-digit targets for the first time since 2018 this season, and his 572 yards and two touchdowns fall well short of his previous production. The former third-rounder knows his role has been reduced in 2024 (something which could impact his free agent market), but he is content with that as his Seattle tenure likely draws to a close.

“If there’s any way that I want to win as a person, I want to win as a team,” Lockett said (via Dugar). “When it comes to me getting the ball, I want it to be something that’s natural and not forced or not me having to say, ‘Hey, man, give me the ball.’”

Metcalf drew trade interest leading up to November’s deadline, but to no surprise the Seahawks did not consider moving him. The Ole Miss product is only under contract for 2025 as things stand, and with no locked in salary and a similarly high cap hit on tap an extension could be in store relatively soon. Smith-Njigba’s rookie contract runs for another two seasons, meanwhile, and the fifth-year option could keep him under team control through at least 2027.

Lockett could have value to any number of suitors eyeing a receiver addition in the offseason, although his declining production will limit his earning potential on his next contract. It will be interesting to see if he and the Seahawks attempt to work out a new arrangement after the campaign, but in the event he is released he will soon need to turn his attention to his first trip to free agency.

DECEMBER 30: Lockett has been listed as questionable for Sunday but is expected to play, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network tweets. While that would fall in line with the expected timeline for his post-op recovery, it would still represent an impressive return only 13 days removed from surgery. The veteran had a plate and 10 screws inserted into his hand, as noted (on Twitter) by Condotta.

Lockett’s participation will likely come down to game time, after he practiced in a limited capacity on Thursday and in full today. His return could take on added significance for Seattle’s offense if Goodwin – who is listed as doubtful with shoulder and wrist injuries – is unable to suit up.

DECEMBER 26: The Seahawks’ playoff chances took a hit this weekend with their loss to the Chiefs, but they could receive a significant boost on offense in the coming days. Wideout Tyler Lockett has undergone hand surgery and now has a chance to return before the end of the regular season.

Head coach Pete Carroll provided an encouraging update on the situation, adding that the veteran could be recovered in time to suit up for Week 17 (Twitter link via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times). That comes as little surprise given the fact that Lockett’s choice with respect to the procedure he underwent was made with the intention of coming back in time to close out the campaign.

His return would be a welcomed sight, of course, considering his importance to Seattle’s offense. The 30-year-old sits second on the team in receiving yards, and was well on his way to eclipsing the 1,000-yard plateau for the fourth consecutive season prior to suffering the injury. Lockett has been instrumental in the Seahawks enjoying a surprising level of efficiency in the passing game (they rank ninth in the league with an average of 259 yards per game) as they move into the post-Russell Wilson era.

The four-year extension he signed last offseason also makes Lockett a significant member of the team from a financial perspective. His cap hit is scheduled to jump to $16.75MM next season, then 23.95MM for each of the following two years. One of the team’s – and league’s – most consistent producers, the former third-rounder was a logical candidate for that deal in no small part due to his durability. Saturday marked only the second game in his career which he missed due to injury.

If he is able to play on New Year’s Day, the Seahawks would once again have their 1-2 tandem of Lockett and D.K. Metcalf available. That would be ideal given the drop-off in production between those two and fellow wideout Marquise Goodwin, who was held without a catch in the game against Kansas City. Seattle now sits at 7-8 having lost three straight, but they still have a realistic chance at a postseason berth with games against the Jets and Rams remaining, particularly if Lockett can play in those contests.

12:06pm: The longtime Seahawk will opt for a surgery that could have him back after just one missed game, Rapoport tweets. This would obviously be a major boon to Seattle’s playoff hopes, but a firm timetable will not be established until after the procedure.

8:34am: Tyler Lockett has never faced an extended injury-related absence as a pro, missing only two games throughout an eight-year career. But the Seahawks will need to get by without him during a crucial stretch.

After Pete Carroll confirmed Lockett suffered a broken index finger during the Seahawks’ loss to the 49ers on Thursday night, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport notes the injury will sideline the longtime starter for at least two games. Lockett is not a lock to return this season, representing a blow the team has not had to navigate previously.

Attached to his third Seahawks contract — a four-year, $69MM deal — Lockett has missed one game due to injury. That came back in 2016. His other absence, last season, came due to COVID-19. Lockett has been a constant for Russell Wilson and now Geno Smith, but the sliding Seahawks (7-7) will need to turn to other options alongside D.K. Metcalf going forward.

Carroll said Lockett likely suffered the spiral metacarpal crack while trying to make a catch during Seattle’s final drive. Lockett will undergo surgery, and while the notoriously optimistic Carroll said there were multiple options regarding an operation — including one that could allow Lockett to play again this season — the 30-year-old target had not determined which route he would go here.

If Lockett is shut down, he will fall just short of a fourth 1,000-yard receiving season. The second-generation NFL wideout is sitting on a team-leading 964 yards and eight touchdowns, seeing his six-game TD streak come to an end against San Francisco. After leading the way as the Seahawks transitioned following Doug Baldwin‘s retirement, Lockett has been a considerable aid to Smith’s surprising season.

The Seahawks have Marquise Goodwin positioned to see his role expand because of Lockett’s injury. Given a one-year deal worth the league minimum, Goodwin sits third among Seahawks wideout production this season. The former Olympic long jumper has 27 catches for 387 yards and three touchdowns. Former second-round pick Dee Eskridge is on IR and has just seven catches for 58 yards 10 games into his second season.

Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett just signed a lucrative contract extension that will take him through the 2025 season, but he already knows how he would like his playing career to end. The 28-year-old wideout told reporters during a meeting with media yesterday that he wants to finish his career with the ‘Hawks (via Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times).

“I would love to finish my career as a Seattle Seahawk,” Lockett said. “That’s why I said it was an amazing feeling that they even wanted to keep me on the team even longer. … To just to be able to see how they feel about me, understand how they feel about me, it brings that type of feeling to me that, you know, they want me here just as much as I want to be here.”

The latest extension represents Lockett’s third contract with the team, and as Condotta points out, he is now the only player on Seattle’s roster signed past the 2023 season. He would have been eligible for free agency at the end of the 2021 campaign, but the new deal gave him $37MM in fully-guaranteed cash while lowering his cap hit for this year, so it was a beneficial transaction for both player and team.

Lockett’s warm and fuzzy feelings towards Seattle are perhaps not shared by his quarterback at the moment, and it could be that Lockett’s tenure in the Emerald City will outlast Russell Wilson‘s. But Wilson will be throwing passes to Lockett for at least one more year, and both players will operate within new OC Shane Waldron‘s scheme.

Lockett, who has operated more out of the slot in the past several seasons, hopes to get a little more burn outside the numbers in Waldron’s offense. But wherever he lines up, he is excited about what the future holds after seeing Waldron’s work with the Rams’ passing game in recent years.

“I mean even when we watched the Rams and how they did a lot of things, they did a lot of great things,” Lockett said. “They utilize people in a lot of great ways. And just with the opportunity to be able to have Shane come in, I think there’s a lot of things that we can learn. There’s a lot of things he brings to the table…”