Jermaine Kearse returns to Seahawks on 3 year deal
By Dan Viens
The Seattle Seahawks have reportedly reached a three year deal to bring back free agent wideout Jermaine Kearse.
He thought it was his time. He thought it was his big moment to break from his cocoon, fly the coup, and for the first time in his football career play for a team based outside of his home state.
Jermaine Kearse was so sure it was time to leave Washington state that he proclaimed it for all to hear just a week ago:
Seahawks WR Jermaine Kearse reiterated Thursday that he does not plan to return to Seattle and is looking forward to finding a new home.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 3, 2016
But late this afternoon, Schefter had a much different piece of news to report:
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Jermaine Kearse was ready to move on but Seattle came in with a 3-year deal, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 11, 2016
Ian Rappaport of NFL Network is reporting the deal to be worth $13.5 million. There’s no word yet as to how much of it is guaranteed.
Kearse has been a valuable contributor on special teams since signing with Seattle as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Washington, and over the last three seasons has developed more as a WR, hauling in 109 passes for 654 yards and 5 TD’s in that span. He’s most known for making his biggest plays in the biggest moments. There was the 4th down TD that turned the NFC Championship Game around against San Francisco in 2014 and propelled the Hawks to a Super Bowl XLVII win two weeks later. He hauled in the winning TD in overtime to cap a remarkable comeback victory against Green Bay in last year’s NFCCG, and then made a highlight reel reception on the final drive in Super Bowl XLIX that put the Seahawks in position to score late in the game before Russell Wilson was intercepted on the two yard line.
While Doug Baldwin and rookie Tyler Lockett have established themselves as the top two weapons in the Seattle passing game, Kearse was a valuable contributor. In the Seahawks final game of the 2015 season, a playoff loss to eventual NFL Champion Carolina, he caught 11 passes for 110 yards and 2 TD’s.
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Still, Kearse has been a polarizing player for Seahawks fans, with many feeling he’s overrated and agreeing it was time for him to move on. Clearly the team valued him, and were able to convince him to return despite his stated belief that he would be moving on.