5 Players You Might Have Forgotten Were in Seattle Seahawks uniforms
It’s usually difficult to remember Jerry Rice as a player for any other team besides the 49ers in San Francisco. After spending 16 years with the Niners, the Hall of Fame wide receiver—possibly the greatest to ever play in the NFL—went on to play for three seasons with the Oakland Raiders.
Though memories of Rice in silver and black are hazy, most people forget about his time playing for the Seattle Seahawks. However, it did occur.
Although Rice played in 11 games for the Seahawks in 2004, there are likely other notable players who played for Seattle but you may have forgotten. Rice is not the only Seahawk who is forgotten—who else is there?
Franco Harris
With the Pittsburgh Steelers, Franco Harris is a legend; with the Seattle Seahawks, not so much.
Franco Harris, who played for the Pittsburgh Steelers for 12 years and had eight seasons with 1,000 yards rushing, has to rank among the team’s all-time great running backs.
After rushing for 1,055 yards and ten touchdowns on the ground in 1972—one of five seasons in which he scored double-digit touchdowns on the ground—Harris was named the NFL’s Rookie of the Year. With a career-high 14 touchdowns from rushing in the 1976 season, he led the league in that category.
Over his Pittsburgh career, Harris ran for 11,950 yards and finished with 91 rushing touchdowns—both records for the team. With the Steelers, he won four Super Bowls, winning MVP in the first one.
The New Jersey native started six of the eight games he participated in for the Seattle Seahawks in 1984. Harris gained 170 yards on 68 carries, but his season was largely unremarkable. In 1990, he was admitted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Jerry Rice
Jerry Rice played 11 games for the Seahawks before he was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Jerry Rice, like Harris, was unmatched at his position with just one team. Rice, who spent 16 years as a wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers, is arguably the greatest wide receiver to have ever worn an NFL uniform. From 1986 to 1996, he recorded 11 straight Pro Bowl seasons.
In addition, Rice had 11 straight seasons with 1,000 or more receiving yards.In six of those campaigns, including 1995, when he finished with 1,848 yards, he led the NFL in receiving yards. With 22,895 yards, the three-time Super Bowl winner is by far the NFL’s all-time top receiver. With 17,492, Larry Fitzgerald comes in second.
For six seasons, Rice also had the most touchdown catches in the NFL. With 197 touchdown receptions in all, he easily holds the record for most by an NFL player. The answer is Randy Moss.
For six seasons, Rice also had the most touchdown catches in the NFL. With 197 touchdown receptions in all, he easily holds the record for most by an NFL player. At 156, Randy Moss is ranked second.
In 2001, Rice left the 49ers after 16 years to play for the Oakland Raiders. After playing for the Raiders for three seasons, he was selected to the Pro Bowl in 2002 after hauling in 92 passes for 1,211 yards and seven touchdowns.
After being traded by the Raiders to Seattle six games into the 2004 season, Rice finished his career with 11 appearances for the Seahawks. Three touchdown passes and 362 yards were gained by him from 25 receptions. He signed with the Denver Broncos following the 2004 season, but he never made a game appearance.
Devin Hester
Devin Hester made a reputation for himself as a kick and punt returner for the Chicago Bears and is regarded as the greatest returner to have ever played in the NFL. His career with the Seahawks included two playoff games in 2017.
Hester was selected by the Bears from Miami in the second round of the 2006 draft. He was supposed to play cornerback at first, but he ended up being the team’s main returner and wide receiver as well. Hester finished his career with 14 punt returns for touchdowns and five more kickoff returns, all while using his speed and elusiveness to return kicks and punts.
Hester spent eight seasons as a Bear and was selected three times to the First Team All-Pro. The Atlanta Falcons were his next team to play for two seasons. With 1,128 kickoff return yards in his rookie campaign with his new team, he set a league record.
Hester signed with the Baltimore Ravens in 2016 following two seasons with the Falcons, and she played in 12 games before being cut in December.
In January 2017, he joined Seattle, where he made his playoff debut in the first round. He made two appearances in the Seahawks’ postseason, returning kickoffs for 214 yards and punts for five yards.
The only major return player to be inducted into the Hall of Fame is Hester, who is now receiving recognition that he deserves.
Randle John
After joining the Seahawks for the first of his three seasons, John Randle maintained his Pro Bowl status.
With 14 NFL seasons under his belt and seven Pro Bowl appearances, John Randle was among the greatest defensive tackles of his generation.
Randle, who played his first 11 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings after going undrafted out of Texas A&I in 1990, was selected to the First Team All-Pro six times in a row, from 1993 to 1998.
Due to the fact that many teams thought Randle was too small at 6-foot-1 and 245 pounds, his draft stock wasn’t very high. But in 1993, his fourth season in the league, he put on more than forty pounds and was selected for the first time to the Pro Bowl. He played in all 16 games as a rookie, but he recorded
Randle led the NFL in sacks (15.5) in 1997 and averaged at least 10 sacks per season from 1992 to 1999. He amassed 114 sacks in his 11 years with the Vikings.
Randle signed a three-year contract with the Seahawks following the 2000 season. After recording 11 sacks in his rookie season in Seattle, Randle not only made it back to the Pro Bowl but also scored his only career touchdown. Randle amassed 23.5 sacks during his three seasons as a member of the Seahawks.
With 137.5 career sacks, Randle is the defensive tackle with the second-most in NFL history. Alan Page, a former great Viking, had a career total of 148.5. 2010 saw Randle’s induction into the Hall of Fame.
Jimmy Graham
Even though Jimmy Graham played for the Seahawks for two seasons, most people don’t remember him as a Seahawk.
Jimmy Graham had the most touchdown catches (16) in the 2013 NFL season. With 86 receptions for 1,215 yards at the end of the season, the tight end for the New Orleans Saints was named to the First Team All-Pro. It was his second season with 1,000 yards in the NFL and he was in his fourth year of service.
Two years prior, Graham had been named to the Second Team All-Pro after hauling in a career-high 99 receptions for 1,310 yards and 11 touchdowns. Graham averaged 89 catches per season with the Saints in four of his final five seasons.
Graham’s output suffered greatly after the Saints traded him to the Seahawks in March 2015; he only had two touchdowns and caught 48 passes for 605 yards. His right patellar tendon was torn, causing him to miss the last five games of the season.
In his final two seasons in Seattle, the former Miami Hurricane made a slight recovery. He hauled in 65 passes for 923 yards and six touchdowns in 2016. He had 57 catches for 520 yards and 10 touchdowns the next season. Both years, he was selected for the Pro Bowl.
In 2018, Graham signed a three-year deal with the Green Bay Packers. He played two seasons there before he was released. After playing two years with the Chicago Bears, he was out of the NFL for the entire 2022 season. Graham returned to the Saints in 2023 and caught six passes, four of them going for touchdowns.
