Seahawks bring back former 2nd-round WR Paul Richardson

A few days after his tryout, the Seahawks have signed wide receiver Paul Richardson, who Seattle drafted in the second round in 2014. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo was the first with the report Saturday. The team confirmed the signing Sunday morning.

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The @Seahawks have signed WR @prichiejr. #GoHawks pic.twitter.com/NQUviXeAjD

— Seahawks PR (@seahawksPR) August 30, 2020

Richardson, a standout receiver in college at Colorado, was the 45th pick in the 2014 draft after piling up over 1,300 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior. He played 15 games as a rookie in 2014, and had 29 catches, 271 yards and a touchdown and he also had 376 return yards. He tore his ACL in the divisional round of the playoffs that year and missed all but one game in 2015. In 15 games in 2016, Richardson caught 21 passes for 288 yards.

Richardson had a career year in 2017, catching 44 passes for 703 yards and six touchdowns. He then signed with Washington in free agency on a five-year, $40 million deal, but injuries limited him to just 17 games in 2018 and 2019. Richardson was released after 2019 and finished his Washington tenure with 48 catches, 507 yards and four touchdowns.

The Seahawks have been tied to a few free-agent wide receivers this offseason, namely multi-time All-Pro Antonio Brown – who is suspended the first eight games of the season – and Josh Gordon, a member of Seattle’s roster last year before being suspended indefinitely for failing a drug test. Gordon had seven catches and 139 yards in five games for the Seahawks.

Richardson now joins a wide receiver room led by the one-two punch of Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf, and includes free-agent acquisition Phillip Dorsett, David Moore, 2019 seventh-round pick John Ursua and 2020 sixth-round pick Freddie Swain. The Seahawks also have undrafted rookies Seth Dawkins and Aaron Fuller on the roster, as well as 2019 undrafted rookie Cody Thompson, a member of Seattle’s practice squad last year.

According to ESPN’s Brady Henderson, Dorsett, Ursua and Thompson have all been battling injuries over the last week.

Richardson wasn’t the only former Seahawk to have a tryout, as longtime starting center Justin Britt was also in the building last week. There have been no reports that Britt, who the Seahawks cut earlier this offseason, has signed a contract or is close to signing back with Seattle.

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