SEATTLE — Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider said Wednesday the team has listened to trade offers regarding cornerback Richard Sherman, but downplayed that a deal may actually happen.
Schneider also said the Seahawks have discussed a deal to send Marshawn Lynch to the Oakland Raiders if the running back does come out of retirement.
Schneider made his comments in an interview with KIRO-AM. Schneider said, “What you’ve seen lately in the news is real. That’s on both sides,” in regard to recent rumblings that teams have inquired about Sherman.
Schneider’s comments back those made by Seattle coach Pete Carroll during the NFL owners’ meetings last week in Arizona. Carroll said the team always entertains calls about players, but didn’t anticipate anything happening with Sherman.
Schneider also gave the impression that a deal was unlikely to happen on Wednesday, but Seattle is sending a message that it is clearly listening when it comes to its former All-Pro cornerback.
“It’s just open communication. He knows what’s going on. We know what’s going on,” Schneider said. “I don’t know if anything would ever happen, but like I tell people all the time, 98 percent of the deals that we’re involved with, we don’t follow through with. But at least we’ve opened that door, gone down the road and seen what’s behind Door A or Door B.”
Sherman has spent his entire career with the Seahawks. He’s coming off his most volatile season that included two sideline blowups during games when he clashed with coaches and had to be pulled aside by teammates. He’s also part of a defense that is getting older — Sherman just turned 29 — and the upcoming draft is loaded with talent in the secondary.
Schneider said there has been clear communication with Sherman about what is going on, saying the trade rumors haven’t been a secret and they’re not going to lie about what is happening.
“It’s going to be all laid out, and like I said, that doesn’t happen everywhere,” Schneider said. “We have open lines of communication between our coaching staff and our player personnel staff. It goes through player development, it goes through our sports science group. There’s a lot going on there.”
Lynch, 31, reportedly visited the Raiders on Wednesday as he decides whether to come back to the NFL and the team decides whether it wants to acquire the hometown favorite.
The visit was first reported by recently retired Indianapolis punter Pat McAfee, who now writes for Barstool Sports.
Schneider said in his radio interview that he has discussed a deal to send Lynch to Oakland with Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie in case Lynch does come out of retirement.
“We’ve had dialogue about it,” Schneider said. “Marshawn is trying to figure things out, the Raiders are trying to figure things out. My understanding is that if he would want to come back and play that it would be for the Raiders and that would be it.”
Lynch retired following the 2015 season. The Seahawks still hold his rights but would be unlikely to want to pay his $9 million for this year if he decides to comeback. Schneider says he doesn’t anticipate any difficulties trading Lynch to Oakland because of his long history with McKenzie, who worked with him for years in Green Bay.
“I think it’s one that will go in a smooth manner because of our relationship,” Schneider told the station.
