K.J. Wright keeps preparing--for the unknown. ‘There’s a chance’ he’ll return to Seahawks
K.J. Wright turns 32 Friday.
This will be unlike any of his other previous 10 birthdays in the NFL.
Instead of readying to report to Seahawks headquarters in Renton for the start of training camp next week, Wright is preparing for more of the unknown.
Surprisingly — to himself, even to Seahawks general manager John Schneider — Seattle’s Super Bowl champion and former Pro Bowl outside linebacker remains unsigned on the eve of teams beginning their preseasons.
“Man, yeah, free agent for the first time in my NFL career,” Wright said Tuesday to hosts Kirk Morrison and Bill Lekas on Sirius XM NFL Radio.
“I’m staying ready for when that phone call comes, and ready to roll.”
Could he still return to his great friend Bobby Wagner and the Seahawks, the only NFL team he’s ever known? Wright’s said before, while he was the team’s longest-tenured player through last season, that he’d like to retire to live in Seattle beyond football.
“Yes, there is a chance. There is a chance,” Wright told Sirius XM NFL Radio. “I’m not closing the door on Seattle.
“Going into free agency, I thought it would be a no-brainer. But they are going to wait until training camp.”
Seattle’s plans
The Seahawks have Jordyn Brooks, their first-round draft choice in 2020, poised to be their new weakside linebacker. That’s the job Wright had for most of 10 years, until last season when he replaced the injured Bruce Irvin and excelled on the strongside.
The job of strongside linebacker for Seattle in 2021 may be less meaningful this year than last. That’s because Marquise Blair is returning from the season-ending knee surgery he had after just two games in 2020. Blair remains at the front of the Seahawks’ plans to play more nickel defense with five defensive backs and one fewer linebacker in the game — more nickel and less of three linebackers, that is, than Seattle has played the last two seasons after trusted nickel back Justin Coleman left in free agency.
Brooks has the speed to play with Wagner as the two linebackers roaming the field in nickel on passing downs.
“Until we get on the field and can see how things are starting to come together, there won’t be major changes in what’s going on because we’re pretty committed at this point,” Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said in late May.
“That doesn’t mean that we’re not tuned in to all of the options and opportunities that are out there because we are. K.J. is OK at the point. He’s doing fine.
“And if we get a chance to call on him, we’ll go after it and see if we can put something together.”
Wright has the smarts, experience and familiarity to play anywhere in Seattle’s defense.
But he doesn’t have a job.
“So, we’ll see,” he told Sirus XM Tuesday.
“No matter what happens, my career in Seattle was just unforgettable. Just 10 years, just had a lot of fun. Got a Super Bowl. Got a Pro Bowl. Seahawks Man of the Year. I did a lot of good stuff in that jersey.
“Hopefully one day, they put me up in the Ring of Honor. We’ll see. No matter what happens, just playing with Bobby, the ‘Legion of Boom,’ that’s going to be historical. I’m just thankful to be a part of it.
“So we’ll see. If I go back to Seattle that would be nice.
“If not, I’ll be forever thankful.”
NFL connections elsewhere
Wright would appear to have options based on his many links with former Seahawks coordinators and defensive coaches who are now elsewhere. Robert Saleh as the new head man for the New York Jets. Gus Bradley with the Las Vegas Raiders’ defense. Dan Quinn as the new defensive coordinator with the Dallas Cowboys. Kris Richard with the New Orleans Saints.
“Quite frankly, there are so many coaches that were on our staff that are at different places, we thought he’d be signed (by another team) by now,” Schneider, Seattle’s GM, said this spring.
But none of those teams have given Wright what he’s seeking.
At least not yet.
“I know what I provide to a team. I know that I (am) coming off my two best seasons, after suffering that knee injury (which required surgery in the summer of 2018). I had my two best years,” he told Sirus XM. “Played phenomenal. Switched positions. ...
“For a guy that’s played ‘Sam’ (strongside), ‘Mike’ (middle) and ‘Will,’ (weakside) playing under a bunch of defensive coordinators, I know I can go into a training camp, pick up the playbook nice and easy, nice and fast, go out there and perform at any position they want me at.
“So, I’m excited, man. Whatever opportunity does present itself, I’m going to attack it and have fun in year 11.”
So what’s Wright doing in this most unusual summer of his NFL life?
“Spending time with my family. Working my tail off. Making sure I am preparing myself to have another incredible season,” he to Sirius XM NFL Radio, making it clear (again) he intends to play in 2021.
Wright said he’s still preparing as he has for each of the last 11 summers in the NFL. He’s still training his mind, watching game film to see trends in offenses around the league attacking certain players and positions, particularly linebackers on defense.
“To stay two steps ahead of the game,” he said. “You have to make sure you are ahead of the offense.”
He’s still training his body, regularly at the Ford Sports Performance center in Bellevue to work on his mobility, flexibility and speed. That’s where his great friend Wagner and other Seahawks train away from the team facility and in offseasons.
Wright is running with weights on and lifting a lot, with the aim to maintain his speed to keep up with players now almost a decade younger, vying for roster spots he is still seeking.
In seasons, he’s still getting three massages each week. He’s doing acupuncture. He sits in an ice-cold tub every week.
“I’m still strong. I’ve got that old-man strength. I will forever have that,” he said. “But you’ve got to make sure that your feet are moving quickly, because this is a speed game. Teams are running no-huddle, up-tempo. So you’ve got to make sure that you are on it. ...
“I approached this offseason to have the best season I possibly can,” he said.
“It’s just a matter of which team I will be performing for.”
In his heart, Seattle is his preferred destination.
He says his first NFL linebackers coach Ken Norton Jr., now the Seahawks’ defensive coordinator, made Wright what he’s become over a decade in the league.
The admiration is mutual. Last season, Norton called Wright “a coach’s dream ... a special, special player.”
Just as Wright hasn’t given up on re-signing with Seattle, Carroll has said multiple times this spring into summer he hasn’t closed the door to Wright returning, either.
At this point, Wright is waiting for any team to have an injury at linebacker. That would create a need and an urgency to sign the veteran that hasn’t existed since free agency began in mid-March.
Injuries happen and veteran free agents get signed in August and September every year in the NFL.
In the end, that’s fine with Wright. At about to be 32, he doesn’t need offseason workouts or much acclimation time in the preseason to contribute when the games get real beginning the second week of September.
“I’m still available,” Wright told Sirius XM.
“Let’s make that phone call.”
This story was originally published July 20, 2021 at 5:09 PM with the headline "K.J. Wright keeps preparing--for the unknown. ‘There’s a chance’ he’ll return to Seahawks."
