The Seattle Seahawks may look at a Marshawn Lynch trade or his release after the season and teams like the Oakland Raiders, Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns and New England Patriots could be interested in picking him up for the 2015 season if Pete Carroll and company decide to move on.
Lynch has been a very productive back for the Seahawks in his career, but his age and his contract could lead him to another team next year. Lynch has been over 300 carries in two of the last three seasons and was one of the biggest reasons why the Seahawks won the Super Bowl, but the team also plays in realities. The team knows that Lynch will be 29 when the season starts next year and his cap number is decently high and they may need it to sign Russell Wilson.
Lynch is over 1000 yards again this season, but after a contract holdout and some other issues, it could be time for the two sides to split up. According to ESPN.com, Chris Mortensen reported at the end of October that the Seahawks have "grown tired" of his ways and that they would look at a trade or his release following the 2014 season. Carroll and the organization said all the right things after the report came out, but it's likely the two sides will be splitting eventually. The Seahawks have options behind Lynch with Christine Michael and Robert Turbin on the team and while they are solid players, they are not comparable to the talent of Lynch.
Last season and the season before that Lynch had 300 carries and was over 1200 yards and in 2011 he had 1204 yards and 12 touchdowns. Over the past three seasons Lynch has been in double digits with touchdowns and he has 12, 11, and 12 touchdowns in that span and if he is let go or moved, a number of teams will be interested. Carroll and Russell Wilson both publically backed Lynch and while he has been a strong part of the offense this season, all signs point to him being gone in 2015.
Lynch counts for over $5 million on the cap next season and will be a free agent in 2016 and with more contracts coming for young players on the Seahawks, the money will have to come from somewhere. The Seahawks have prepared for this, as they have drafted Robert Turbin and Christine Michael over the past few years to backup Lynch.
If Lynch is released after the season there will be a number of teams interested in picking him up, including the Browns, Vikings, Patriots, Oakland Raiders, 49ers and Baltimore Ravens. The Raiders are going to have wholesale changes and with Darren McFadden a free agent they will need another starter. The Patriots always give veteran RBs a look and he could also be an option for the Browns after they got rid of Ben Tate this season.
