Ex-Browns CB T.J. Carrie to Visit Seahawks This Week
Looking to add depth at the nickel cornerback, which has been a revolving door since the departure of Justin Coleman last March, the Seahawks are expected to visit with free agent defender T.J. Carrie.
According to NFL insider Adam Caplan, Carrie is expected to travel to Seattle for a visit this week. The Browns released the sixth-year defensive back last month, allowing him the opportunity to sign with a new team before the new league year starts on March 18.
Carrie, 29, started 14 games for the Browns over the last two seasons, primarily playing the nickel cornerback position. After starring at Ohio University, he originally entered the league as a seventh-round pick for the Raiders in 2014.
In 2018, after four seasons in Oakland, Carrie signed a four-year deal worth $31 million with the Browns. However, by releasing him last month, the Browns saved $6.35 million towards the salary cap heading into free agency.
During six NFL seasons, Carrie has appeared in 90 games with 52 starts, producing 331 combined tackles, five interceptions, 43 passes defensed, and six forced fumbles. His best season came in 2017 when he registered a career-best 84 tackles and nine passes defensed for the Raiders.
After a solid first season with the Browns, Carrie regressed in some aspects last year. According to Pro Football Reference, he allowed a 105.1 passer rating when targeted, allowing completions on 41 of 60 pass attempts for 524 yards and three touchdowns in 2019. In 2018, he allowed a passer rating of 76.3, giving up 52 completions on 93 attempts for 673 yards and a single touchdown.
Seattle's interest in Carrie shouldn't come as a surprise, as the team struggled to replace Coleman after he signed a four-year deal worth $36 million with the Lions. His departure led to the Seahawks keeping three linebackers on the field in base defensive looks more than any team in the NFL last season.
Last month at the NFL Scouting Combine, coach Pete Carroll shared that the starting nickel position is second-year defender Ugo Amadi's to lose, but as always, the Seahawks intend to bring in quality competition at the position.
“We’ll keep looking because nobody really owns the spot yet,” Carroll said. “Ugo did a nice job at that spot near the end of the year. He gave us a certain style of player there — a smaller guy, real quick and very smart, a very good zone player. He had some time working at the spot early on. We kind of did it in the middle of the year, later in the year when we gave him the go-ahead. But he did fine. We’ll continue to make that spot competitive with different styles of guys to see what they offer us.”
Even if Carrie signs with Seattle and doesn't beat out Amadi for the slot cornerback role, he would still provide valuable depth thanks to his prior experience at outside cornerback and safety. Adding in his special teams ability, he could be a viable replacement for pending free agents Akeem King and Neiko Thorpe.
