Marshawn Lynch Visits Raiders, May Come Out Of Retirement

Marshawn Lynch insisted last year that he was retiring from the NFL for good, but it seems like he might not be done yet.

Marshawn Lynch Visits Raiders Seeking Deal, May Exit Retirement

The former Seattle Seahawks running back, who will be 31 later this month and is nicknamed “Beast Mode,” reportedly visited his hometown Oakland Raiders on Wednesday in search of a new deal, said NFL Network Insider Ian Rapaport citing a source informed of the situation.

Lynch, whose contract is still held by the Seahawks, met with Raiders coach Jack Del Rio at their facility on Wednesday with permission from his former team in the hopes of making a comeback.

The running back recently appeared in a funny video that aired shortly before Super Bowl LI that featured him traveling around the Scottish countryside on a bicycle with a bag full of Skittles candies while asking locals, among other things, how much they knew about the NFL. Lynch was in a part of Scotland called Houston, which led him to ask locals if they knew or had been to Houston, Texas, the site of Super Bowl LI.

Former Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee first reported the meeting for Barstool Sports.

Seahawks general manager John Schneider confirmed in an interview with 710 ESPN Seattle on Wednesday that his team and the Raiders have had discussions about Lynch. Schneider said he has a “great relationship” with his counterpart at the Raiders.

“I have a great relationship with Reggie McKenzie, who is the general manager of the Raiders. I shared an office with him for probably eight years [with the Green Bay Packers]. 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’d be about it.”

The Raiders are in desperate need for a pass rusher following Latavius Murray’s signing with the Minnesota Vikings in free agency earlier this offseason. Oakland would surely benefit from Lynch, one of the top running backs in the NFL who rushed for 9,112 yards and 74 touchdowns in nine seasons, though injury held him to seven games in 2015, when he averaged just 3.8 yards per carry. He last played on Jan. 17, 2016 in a playoff loss to the Carolina Panthers.

Shortly afterward, during Super Bowl 50, Lynch tweeted a picture of his cleats hanging from a telephone wire, suggesting his retirement, which he confirmed a few months later.

Should Lynch come out of retirement, he is in line for a salary-cap hit of $9 million in 2017 and a base salary of $7 million in 2018. Oakland now has just over $27.6 million in cap space and wishes to extend quarterback Derek Carr, edge rusher Khalil Mack and right guard Gabe Jackson.

Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, meanwhile, stated last week at the team owners’ meetings that he met with Lynch recently and discussed the possibility of the running back returning to the NFL.

“I know that he is somewhat entertaining the thought of it,” Carroll said. “I can’t tell you how strong it is. You’ve got to talk to him.”

Carroll was asked whether Lynch could still be effective.

“I don’t know,” he said. “It depends on how he’s approached this offseason. He looked OK. The mentality that it takes to play this game the way he plays this game, he has to really be invested and ready because he goes deep when he plays. Whether or not that’s still in him, the burn is still there, I couldn’t tell that from talking to him. I know that he was playing with the idea.”

SANTA CLARA, CA – OCTOBER 22: Marshawn Lynch #24 of the Seattle Seahawks warms up prior to playing the San Francisco 49ers in their NFL game at Levi’s Stadium on October 22, 2015 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)