Marshawn Lynch had the nickname “Beast Mode” when he played with the Seattle Seahawks. From 2011 until 2014, Lynch averaged 1,339 yards and 12 touchdowns a season. However, he only played in seven games in 2015 due to injuries and then retired after that season. Now, Lynch has come out of retirement and convinced the Seahawks to release him so he can play for his hometown Oakland Raiders. When talking to ESPN, his new quarterback Derek Carr said that he is excited and he is “going to run through some people’s faces.”
Marshawn Lynch’s job in 2017
Marshawn Lynch was a workhorse with the Seattle Seahawks.
Russell Wilson is an All-Pro quarterback but he played in a run-first offense when Lynch was there and Marshawn played hard. From 2011 until 2014, Lynch had no less than 280 carries in a season and no less than 313 touches, including receiving, and that really put a beating on his body. Lynch is now 31-years-old and he is at the age where most running backs bodies have broken down. The good news is that the Oakland Raiders won’t put him through what the Seahawks did.
The Oakland Raiders will not need Marshawn Lynch to touch the ball 300 times in a game. They have two other complimentary backs in Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington. Lynch will get a lot of carries but the Raiders have a quarterback in Derek Carr who can really sling the ball.
In his three seasons as the Raiders starter, Carr has averaged 3,731 yards a season with 81 touchdowns and 31 interceptions. In 2016, he only threw six picks. With Carr throwing the ball, Lynch can complement Carr which is the opposite of Russell Wilson complimenting Marshawn in Seattle.
Derek Carr is still excited
Derek Carr said that he is a very different football player than Marshawn Lynch.
The Oakland Raiders quarterback said that he likes to slide or run around people but Lynch is the type of player that runs through people. Carr also said that Marshawn will help protect him as well and is very good at that. Carr’s season ended last year before the playoffs and that cost the Raiders a chance to actually challenge the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots.
If Marshawn Lynch is able to protect Derek Carr, he is worth his weight in money. If Lynch is still able to run through defenders and defenses have to focus on him, that will also help the Oakland Raiders passing game and will make them even more dangerous than the 12-win Raiders team from 2016.
