Seahawks give Russell Wilson a requested weapon, add WR Phillip Dorsett in 1-year deal
Russell Wilson wanted more weapons, more “superstars,” to be exact.
He’s got another weapon, if not a flat-out superstar.
The Seahawks reached an agreement Tuesday on a contract with former New England Patriots wide receiver Phillip Dorsett on a free-agent contract. It’s a one-year deal, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
That fits Seattle’s M.O.: shorter, lower-cost signings in the secondary waves of free agency. Every one of the five players the Seahawks have signed since the market opened last week (including offensive linemen B.J. Finney, Cedric Ogbuehi and Brandon Shell, plus edge rusher Bruce Irvin) have been for one or two years.
Dorsett’s deal also fits the Seahawks’ wide-receivers unit. Nicely.
The speedy Dorsett—he ran 40 yards in 4.33 seconds at the 2015 NFL combine—joins Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf in one of the stronger wide-receiver groups Seattle has had in a day or three. And he’s still young; Dorsett turned 27 in January.
He was a third receiving option for Tom Brady in New England the last three seasons, finishing with season totals of 12, 32 and 29 catches. He averaged 16.2 yards per catch in his first season with the Patriots, 2015. He averaged 13.7 yards per reception in 2019 with a career-high five touchdowns last season, when Brady no longer had huge tight end Rob Gronkowski to throw to in the red zone.
Dorsett’s career high in catches is 33, from his second season in the NFL with Indianapolis in 2016. That was the year Brian Schottenheimer was the Colts’ quarterbacks coach.
Schottenheimer is beginning his third year as the Seahawks’ offensive coordinator and play caller. So he knows Dorsett and his downfield speed better than anyone in Seattle.
This story was originally published March 24, 2020 at 12:50 PM.
