For a decade, wide receiver Tyler Lockett has been a stalwart with the Seattle Seahawks and in the city of Seattle as a whole. However, change is inevitable within the National Football League, and Wednesday marked Lockett’s last day with the only franchise he’s ever known as the Seahawks released their longtime wideout.
Ultimately, it turned out to be his final game in a Seahawks uniform as he had two catches for 28 yards in that Week 18 win over the Los Angeles Rams. After Wednesday’s release, Lockett issued a statement via social media.
He leaves as one of the greatest players in Seahawks history, ranking high up the statistical leaderboards in a number of categories for his work over 10 seasons. He racked up 661 receptions for 8,594 yards and 61 receiving touchdowns in Seattle, with all of those numbers ranking second in franchise history, trailing only Hall of Famer Steve Largent.
Speaking of Largent, Lockett was bestowed the Steve Largent Award three times in his career, and that honor annually goes to the Seahawk who best “exemplifies the spirit, dedication, and integrity of the Seahawks.”
A three-time All-Pro selection and one-time Pro Bowler, Lockett also holds the Seahawks franchise record for catches in a single season when he had 100 receptions in 2020. He was also an impactful returner in his first few NFL seasons who led the league in both kick return yards (949) and kick return touchdowns (one) in 2017. Lockett’s 13,125 all-purpose yards in his NFL career ranked third amongst active players at the conclusion of the 2024 season, trailing only Cordarrelle Patterson and Tyreek Hill.
Lockett was the longest tenured player with the Seahawks last season, having been drafted in the third round out of Kansas State in 2015. His numbers had dropped the last few seasons, with his 49 grabs for 600 yards and two touchdowns being his worst stats since 2017. The Seahawks’ passing attack had pivoted towards two-time Pro Bowler, D.K. Metcalf, and 2023 first-round pick, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, recently as Lockett logged 70 percent of offensive snaps in 2024 after averaging 85 percent over his prior six seasons. Last year was also the first in his pro career that Lockett didn’t play any special teams snaps.
You can tell the type of impact that Lockett made in the locker room by the words of his now-former head coach, Mike Macdonald. Though Macdonald coached Lockett for just one year, he spoke glowingly of Lockett as both a player and a person at the conclusion of the season.
“You think about Tyler and his career and the arc of his career, and to have that mentality, man, just the humility, putting the team first, what else can you ask for?” Macdonald said in January. “And he loves ball. That guy comes out here. He’s been doing it for such a long time, but the enthusiasm, the attitude, the productivity, man. The city knows Tyler, shoot, better than I do, but coming to know him this year has been a blessing for me personally too. I mean this guy, he’s just one of one. We absolutely love him.”
Turning 33 in September, Lockett now enters a very crowded free agent pool of wide receivers. Six-time Pro Bowler, Davante Adams, was just released by the New York Jets on Tuesday, while the Jacksonville Jaguars cut Christian Kirk on the same day Lockett got his walking papers. Other free agent wideouts include Stefon Diggs, Keenan Allen, Amari Cooper, and DeAndre Hopkins.
The Seahawks now have a need at the receiver position, even with the presence of Metcalf—who reportedly requested a trade on Wednesday—and Smith-Njigba. Outside of its top three wideouts, no other Seahawks receiver had more than 13 catches or 107 receiving yards a year ago. Just 11 teams have less salary cap space than Seattle next season, and the team is a bit depleted in terms of draft capital. While the team has its first, second, and third-round picks, it traded away its fourth and fifth-rounders.
