In January, wide receiver and Lakewood, Washington native Jermaine Kearse said that he wouldn’t give a hometown discount to the Seahawks in free agency.
Kearse said he has “put in too much hard work” to do that in what will likely be his best opportunity to strike a big deal on the open market. The Seahawks have been the only team that Kearse can talk since that point and it appears that any conversations they might have had didn’t convince Kearse that they’d meet the price he could earn on the open market.
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Kearse is not planning on being back with the Seahawks for the 2016 season and that he’s “looking forward” to finding a new team. Kearse had 49 catches for 685 yards and five touchdowns for the Seahawks last season, which marked career highs for a player who signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent in 2012.
With Alshon Jeffery franchised, there’s not a lot of star power in this year’s free agent wide receiver class. Kearse ranks fifth among wideouts and 73rd overall on PFT’s list of the top 100 free agents.
The Seahawks have Doug Baldwin, Tyler Lockett, Kevin Smith, Kasen Williams and Paul Richardson under contract at receiver among players who caught a pass for the team last season.