The Seahawks made it official Wednesday, agreeing to terms with wide receiver Ricardo Lockette on a one-year deal. An exclusive-rights free agent, Lockette tweeted March 10 that he would be back with Seattle — “proud to be a Seahawk for another year” — but his signing wasn’t confirmed until the release of Tuesday’s NFL transaction report.
Lockette, 28, enters his fifth year in 2015, and fourth overall with the Seahawks. He has 18 catches for 382 yards and three touchdowns, but it’s the catch Lockette didn’t make that is the most prominent part of his portfolio.
Proud to be a Seahawk another year #GodDidIt #GoHawks #rockette
— Ricardo Lockette (@RicardoLockette) March 10, 2015
With the Seahawks in position to win Super Bowl XLIX, Lockette ran a slant at the goal line and was targeted by QB Russell Wilson. But New England’s Malcolm Butler jumped the route and picked off the pass, denying Seattle its chance of becoming the first team in 10 years to win consecutive Super Bowls.
Before that play, Lockette had three receptions for 59 yards against the Patriots.
Lockette made his most significant contribution to the Seahawks the past two seasons as s gunner on special teams, recording seven tackles and two forced fumbles.
The Seahawks originally signed Lockette as an undrafted free agent out of Fort Valley State in 2011. He bounced on and off the team’s practice squad before securing a spot on the 53-man roster in 2013.
SEAHAWKS FREE AGENT TRACKER
Unrestricted Free Agents
| Date | Player | Action | Skinny | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/8 | TE Anthony McCoy | Re-signed | One year; injured last 2 seasons | ||
| 3/10 | CB Byron Maxwell | Signed-Phil | 6 years, $63 million: ($10.3 avg) | ||
| 3/10 | LG James Carpenter | Signed-NYJ | 4 years, $20 million | ||
| 3/10 | LB Malcolm Smith | Signed-Oak | 2 years, $7 million | ||
| 3/12 | DE O. Schofield | Signed-Atl | $745,000 | ||
| 3/13 | PR Bryan Walters | Signed-Jax | Primary punt returner in ’14 | ||
| 3/16 | S Jeron Johnson | Signed-Was | $3.5 million over 2 years | ||
| 3/19 | TE Tony Moeaki | Signed-Atl | $745,000 | ||
| 3/19 | DT D. Smith | Re-signed | $585,000 | ||
| 3/27 | LS Clint Gresham | Re-signed | $745,000 | ||
| 4/2 | FB Will Tukuafu | Re-signed | $745,000 | ||
| 4/2 | DE D. Dobbs | Re-signed | $475,000 |
Restricted Free Agents
| Date | Player | Action | Skinny |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/6 | DE Greg Scruggs | Re-signed | Injured reserve last 2 years (knee) |
| 3/9 | LB Mike Morgan | Re-signed | Played in 53 games since 2011 |
| 3/9 | CB DeShawn Shead | Re-signed | Played in 16 games with 1 start in ’14 |
| 4/15 | WR Ricardo Lockette | Re-signed | 11 catches, 2 TDs in ’14 |
Extensions / Restructures / Cuts
| Date | Player | Action | Skinny |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/6 | RB Marshawn Lynch | Extend. | 3 years, $31 million; $12 million in 2015 |
| 3/6 | TE Zach Miller | Cut | Played 3 games in ’14; had severe ankle injury |
| 3/6 | OT Garrett Scott | Cut | Waived due to a non-football heart condition |
Remaining Unrestricted Free Agents
| Player | Pos. | Age | Current Avg. | Skinny |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Williams | DT | 34 | $2,100,000 | Considering retirement |
| Tarvaris Jackson | QB | 31 | $1,250,000 | Played in one game in 2014 |
| Heath Farwell | ILB | 33 | $1,125,000 | Retiring to coach |
| Landon Cohen | DT | 28 | $730,000 | Played in one playoff game |
| Lemuel Jeanpierre | C | 27 | $645,000 | Played in 15 games in ’14 |
Remaining Restricted Free Agents
| Player | Pos. | Age | Current Avg. | Skinny |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stephen Shilling | G | 26 | $645,000 | Retired |
| David Gilreath | WR | 26 | $495,000 | Didn’t play in 2014 |
| Jermaine Kearse | WR | 25 | $480,000 | Winning TD in NFC Champ. |
Free Agents Signed
| Date | Player | Pos. | From | Skinny |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/9 | Will Blackmon | CB | Jacksonville | 12 starts for the Jaguars last 2 years |
| 3/9 | Cary Williams | CB | Philadelphia | Deal is 3 years, $18 million |
| 3/16 | Jesse Williams | DT | Seattle | Cut March 6, re-signed |
| 3/19 | Ahtyba Rubin | DT | Cleveland | Better suited to Seattle’s 4-3 |
Trades
| Date | Player | Pos. | From | Skinny |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/10 | Jimmy Graham | TE | New Orleans | Cost: C Max Unger, No. 1 pick |
9 Comments
Didn’t see this, as he is the pivotal player involved in the most infamous play in franchise history.
He’s great on special teams, they just shouldn’t use him on any more slant passes:-)
The Defensive back covering him on that play said he recognized that play from film study and thus knew exactly where the ball was going.This is where agony lies. It could not have been more gratuitous for the Patriot defense that his brain held that knowledge with a split second decision made to jump the ill fated pass.
While that play will always sting in the minds of fans and our athletes alike It seems the Rocket was doomed given the incredible luck that transpired in making that interception possible. A rare event that will never set right in our memory banks and its human nature to want to place the complete onus on our speedsters responsibilities in the play but the unfortunate reality in this is the DB jumping that play due to recognition(of said play )is akin to playing Russian Roulette and being tipped off the bullet is in chamber #3.
The Patriots completely dodged a bullet and it may never happen again in Super Bowl History. That hurts immensely and it is to the Hawks coaches credit that they refuse to burn Lockette at the stake for it. As fans we can only hope the fire in Ricardo’s belly and the rest of the squad is now that of redemption to get back to the SB for this third year in a row.
Very diplomatic, but have fans forgotten many of his “slap your forehead” type of roughing penalties that killed momentum, and him being caught in that motel-room situation under questionable circumstances? i have not been able to.
Its funny you would mention that as that thought occurred to me after I had finished writing that post…pretty moronic to be caught in a situation like that much less with our arch rival QB. I cant disagree. Bringing shame to himself and the team is a pub relations nightmare that pretty much got glossed over. You can only hope there will never be a repeat of any such shenanigans since Seattle sees something in the man.
Flopping on a ghost hit in front of the cameras during a game last year was embarrassing.
Hanging out with a former teammate during the off season when a woman who was clearly nuts and claimed to police to be Jesus Christ made crazy accusations against that former teammate all of which he had nothing to do with cannot be held against him when he had nothing to do with any of it.
It’s my understanding the Patriots believe; Proper Preparation Prevents Poor Performance.
And to make your statement even more ironic?That is something the Hawks QB and most of the athletes on this squad take pride in.Outworking your opponent be it in the film room or on the field. The Pats get to enjoy their trophy…I guess that is all that matters for an end statement on that one.
blaming lockette for the superblow play instead of pc/bevell is like blaming lynddie england for abu ghraib instead of cheney/rumsfeld.