4 mistakes Seattle Seahawks cannot afford to make in 2024

Seattle should not keep Tyler Lockett out of loyalty

Tyler Lockett is an all-time great Seattle Seahawks receiver and an even better human being. Not having him on the team would be a tough decision. Lockett could even choose to make the decision easy for the Seahawks and retire. Maybe Lockett simply would not want to keep getting hit hard by tacklers and he decides he wants to make better use of his time by continuing his work to make humanity better.

Lockett had his worst season in 2017 this year and will probably be eclipsed in production in 2024 by Jaxon Smith-Njigba. JSN will be entering his second year in the league and he deserves more targets. Plus, he is nearly 10 years younger than Lockett. Smith-Njigba has a lot longer future in Seattle than does Lockett, but JSN's contract is a lot less expensive for at least the next two seasons.

Lockett is signed through 2025 but is an aging receiver who relies on quickness to get open. He is one of the least physical receivers in league simply because he is not big. Plus, he has been very successful in his career using excellent route running and speed. That last part diminishes as one gets older.

But Lockett is just far too expensive to keep in 2024, at least unless he is willing to restructure his deal and spread his cap hit out over a number of years. His cap hit in 2024 is $27,845,000. If the team were to release him with a post-June 1 cut date then Seattle would save $17 million. They couldn't spend that money until June, however. Releasing Lockett immediately would save the team $7,105,000.