Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling followed Klint Kubiak from New Orleans to Seattle as part of the Seahawks' offseason rebuild.
In eight games in Kubiak's offense, MVS was the deep threat, generating 385 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 22.6 yards per catch on 17 grabs. The 30-year-old wideout said the coordinator is the reason he moved to the Pacific Northwest.
"I'm very excited," Valdes-Scantling said, via the team's official website. "I was only [In New Orleans] for eight games and put up some pretty big numbers in a short amount of time with two head coaches and through three quarterbacks. I'm grateful for this opportunity. I'm super excited with what Klint has done and what his offense looks like."
The Saints were decimated by injuries before bringing in Valdes-Scantling, who was released in mid-October by the Buffalo Bills after six ineffective games. In two of his first three tilts in New Orleans, MVS put up 87-plus yards, most coming on big plays -- 196 of his 385 yards and three of his four TDs with the Saints came in those two games (Week 8 and 9).
Valdes-Scantling credited Kubiak for bringing him to Seattle.
"I think that was all Klint," he said. "We were together in New Orleans and when he took the job here, I think it was a great fit. Obviously, they lost some really good receivers, so it kind of opened the door for me to come in and kind of step in."
While not as prolific as during his Green Bay Packers days with Aaron Rodgers, Valdes-Scantling still has speed, something the Seahawks offense needs after the trade of DK Metcalf and release of Tyler Lockett.
"You don't try to fill those shoes," he said. "You can't do that. You go out and you be the best version of yourself and whatever that looks like is what it looks like… You can't really recreate something that's only created once. You just go out and be the best version of yourself and it's gotta be enough."
The veteran currently profiles as the field stretcher on the outside with slot maven Jaxon Smith-Njigba and newly inked Cooper Kupp. Adding another speed element during the draft makes sense for Seattle to buffer the offense.
