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The Seattle Seahawks are still in the market for another receiver and one name that continues to be linked to the team is Antonio Brown. We know that Russell Wilson has pushed (publicly and privately) the Seahawks to add the star receiver, but the Buccaneers snagged him last season.
Brown is once again a free agent and ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported the door is still open for the Seahawks to sign the receiver. For Wilson to get his wish, it sounds like Brown’s free agency would need to extend until after the draft.
“So, they want to flesh out pass-catching options for Russell Wilson and look, we know Wilson loves Antonio Brown,” Fowler recently said on SportsCenter, per Bleacher Report. “He would like to have him on that team. They haven’t made any major moves there yet, but if this goes into the spring and summer and Brown is still unsigned with the Bucs, I could see Seattle swooping in there.”
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Brown and the Bucs Have Been Unable to Agree on the Financial Terms of a New Deal
While Brown publicly stated he wants to remain in Tampa, the franchise and receiver have been unable to agree on the financial details of a new deal. NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported the Buccaneers are looking for something closer to what Brown played on last season, but his desire is to earn a contract closer to what other receivers have signed this offseason.
“Let’s start with Antonio Brown, he and the Buccaneers I am told had discussions this week about a possible return,” Garafolo explained on Good Morning Football. “They talked money this week. …The fans want him back, and they want to bring him back, the Buccaneers do, just at a different number than what he has in mind right now. When you look at what the receivers are making on the market right now, the veteran guys, you’re looking at anywhere from one-year, $5 million guaranteed for Keelan Cole to one-year, $8 million for T.Y. Hilton. So, $5 to $8 million.”
The Seahawks Explored Signing A.B. in 2020
As for the Seahawks, Pete Carroll admitted last season the team was doing due diligence on Brown’s background. It is unclear how close the Seahawks came to signing Brown as the receiver joined the Bucs days after Carroll’s public comments.
“We have endeavored to be in on everything that is going on, and John [Schneider] has done a marvelous job of always being tuned into what’s happening and this is no exception, so we’ll see what happens,” Carroll noted in his Week 7 press conference last season. “We’re tuned in to what’s happening there [with Antonio Brown]. …We’re nowhere there [signing] right now, so let’s wait and see what happens, and all that. We do all of the homework we can think of doing. We will never think that we can leave a stone unturned, and so that’s how we approach everything. So, we’ll continue to do that here.”
Fowler reported the Seahawks also explored signing Sammy Watkins and Willie Snead before they found new teams in free agency. With David Moore now with the Panthers, the Seahawks are in the market for a third receiver. Garafolo noted that Brown has received interest from other teams, but so far nothing has been enticing enough for him to leave Tom Brady.
“He has had interest from other teams, when I say they’re not beating down his door, meaning they’re not throwing a ton of money at him,” Garafolo added. “And he would like to go back to Tampa is what I’m told. Just maybe at a different number, and how reachable are the incentives in the contract?”
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