Seattle is parting with a Seahawks stalwart.
The Seahawk released wide receiver Tyler Lockett, the team announced Wednesday.
Lockett's release ends a successful decade-long partnership, during which Lockett racked up 661 receptions for 8,594 yards and 61 touchdowns. He departs Seattle second in the franchise record books in all three categories.
By moving on ahead of Lockett's final year under contract, the Seahawks are set to save $17 million, with $13.9 million in dead money from his prorated signing bonus. Taking that much money off the cap for 2025 was pivotal for Seattle, which was temporarily in the negative in cap space prior to the release of Lockett and a few other players the last few days.
A stellar returner early in his career, Lockett also has three return TDs (two punt returns, one kick return). Those end zone visits came during his first three seasons, part of a stretch that included his lone Pro Bowl, as well as a first-team All-Pro selection and two second-team All-Pro campaigns as a returner.
The 2015 third-rounder out of Kansas State still contributed offensively during those years, as he averaged 46 receptions, 605 yards and three TD catches.
It was not until his fourth season, though, when he reduced his return duty and became a full-time starter at WR, that he fully came into his own.
During the 2018 campaign, he posted 965 yards and 10 TDs on just 57 catches. He catapulted from there to compile four straight 1,000-yard receiving seasons, all of which included eight or more scores.
Lockett took a step back in 2023, Pete Carroll's final year as head coach, but still finished with respectable numbers: 79 catches for 894 yards and five TDs.
The downturn carried over into last season, as Lockett's 49 catches, 600 yards and two touchdowns all marked seven-year lows.
Some of that can be attributed to transitioning out of his prime, but Seattle also moved beyond Lockett as a featured piece of its offense. Second-year wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba broke out to lead the team across the board with 137 targets, 100 catches, 1,130 yards and six touchdowns. DK Metcalf eclipsed 100 targets, as well, relegating the 32-year-old vet (74 targets) to third fiddle.
For as much as he's meant to the franchise, that wasn't going to change moving forward.
The pecking order, coupled with a hefty price tag, made Lockett too expendable.
He'll now look to catch on with another team in the twilight of his career, while the Seahawks move on with their reconstruction under head coach Mike Macdonald.