Did Seahawks close the door on Marshawn Lynch by drafting a running back?
Apr 29, 2020, 4:09 PM
Marshawn Lynch returned in late 2019 to play three games for the Seahawks. (Getty)
(Getty)
The Seahawks added some needed depth to their backfield in the fourth round of the NFL Draft last weekend, selecting Miami running back DeeJay Dallas.
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At 5 foot 10 and 217 pounds and with a penchant for blocking, Dallas seems to fit the mold of what the Seahawks like in their running backs, one pretty much set by team legend Marshawn Lynch.
Wait. Isn’t Lynch still a possible option for the Seahawks in 2020?
The man known as Beast Mode returned late in the 2019 season from retirement, giving Seattle some help after both Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny suffered season-ending injuries. And while Lynch isn’t under contract for 2020, he’s also still un-retired, and the door clearly had not been closed on the 34 year old returning to the Seahawks next season.
With the addition of Dallas, is the door closed now?
Former Seahawks quarterback Jake Heaps said Wednesday on 710 ESPN Seattle’s Tom, Jake and Stacy that he gets the sense that it is, though he thinks there is a role Lynch could still fit because Penny’s recovery from a serious knee injury is expected to last into the season.
“I do think that that absolutely puts Marshawn Lynch’s chances of coming back to this roster in jeopardy,” Heaps said during the daily Four-Down Territory segment. “Rashaad Penny is going to be on the PUP list to start this year. It’s not official, they haven’t come out and said that, but all signs point to that (with) him having that devastating injury happen so late in the year. So if you’re looking at their running back depth right now – Chris Carson, DeeJay Dallas, Travis Homer – there is room for another running back to be on the roster for at least half the season. Would they bring back Marshawn Lynch to play that mentor role for all three of those guys? Potentially.
“But at this point, I don’t see that they would go down that route, and so I think that Marshawn Lynch’s opportunity to come back in 2020 has closed with the drafting of DeeJay Dallas. But I think we all got that opportunity to live that moment of having Marshawn, having Beast Mode back in a Seahawks uniform in a very cool fashion, and I think it was a great way to end that (chapter).”
You can listen to Heaps’ full answer and more football talk in this podcast from Tom, Jake and Stacy.
Follow 710 ESPN Seattle’s Jake Heaps on Twitter.
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