Seahawks Sign K.J. Wright to One-Day Contract, Veteran LB Set to Retire From NFL
After stating earlier this offseason he would only play for the Seahawks in 2022 or announce his retirement, linebacker K.J. Wright will be stepping away from the game after 11 NFL seasons.
As confirmed through Seattle's team social media accounts, with training camp set to kick off on Wednesday, Wright signed a one-day ceremonial contract to retire with the organization that originally drafted him in the fourth round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
A critical cog in the Seahawks' dominant defenses in the early 2010s, Wright served as a beacon of reliability and consistency in the middle alongside Bobby Wagner at the weakside linebacker position. Stuffing the stat sheet as a well rounded defender who excelled against the run and the pass, he surpassed the 100 tackle mark five times and amassed six interceptions, 54 pass breakups and 13.5 sacks over the course of 10 seasons with the franchise.
Somehow, Wright only made one Pro Bowl and never received All-Pro recognition during that span despite his impressive productivity, often overshadowed by other stars such as Wagner, cornerback Richard Sherman, and safeties Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor.
But those who played with Wright and coached him understood how important his contributions were to Seattle's immense defensive success. A long, rangy linebacker with an outstanding football acumen, he had a sixth sense diagnosing and blowing up screen plays. In coverage, he always seemed to be in the right place at the right time, delivering knockout blows at the catch point and frequently getting his hands into passing lanes for deflections.
Off the field, Wright garnered respect from all of his peers as one of Seattle's unsung leaders, helping mentor players such as Jordyn Brooks towards the tail end of his career.
Displaying great selflessness, while he wasn't necessarily a fan of the move, Wright willingly transitioned to strongside linebacker in his final season with the Seahawks to allow Brooks to enter the lineup as a rookie. Excelling playing a new position, teams struggled to run off tackle with him setting the edge and he wrapped up the 2020 season as the only defender in the NFL with double-digit tackles for loss and pass breakups.
Handing the keys to Brooks and Darrell Taylor, the Seahawks chose not to re-sign Wright, who remained a free agent into training camp last August before joining the Las Vegas Raiders. While he had success with 51 tackles and two tackles for loss as a reserve in 17 games, he didn't enjoy being away from his family for an extended period of time and ruled out the possibility of playing anywhere but Seattle in 2022.
Now set to hang up his cleats, general manager John Schneider and coach Pete Carroll haven't ruled out Wright returning to the organization in another capacity. Bringing his illustrious career to a close, he will retire ranked third all-time in franchise history for tackles, tackles for loss, and forced fumbles as well as seventh in pass breakups and should be a candidate to join the Ring of Honor in the near future.
