The Seattle Seahawks announced they were releasing Dee Eskridge fairly early in the day. If this surprised you, you haven't been paying attention to this past week or his career,
There will always be some surprises when it comes to cut day in the NFL. The Seahawks are no exception to that rule. Players who stand out in preseason will often feel that sting, even if they've led the team in their position. Jamie Sheriff knows all about that, although he's a good bet to clear waivers and return to Seattle on the practice squad.
Dee Eskridge fits that category, too; or at least he does at first glance. His spectacular 79-yard punt return versus the Browns was a great moment for him and his teammates as they carried him off the field. Quoted by John Boyle in the same article, head coach Mike Macdonald said, "He's capable of making plays like that. That's the type of player he is. Proud of Dee. He's worked his tail off to put himself in a good position here. He should be proud of himself."
Read between the lines, there, 12s. Coach Macdonald, said, "He's capable of making plays like that." There's a very big difference between seeing that capability and expecting it. The fact is, Dee Eskridge rarely delivered on that capability. In fact, he never did until Saturday night. You may think that's a harsh assessment, but it's a fact that in three seasons, he delivered exactly one touchdown for the Seattle Seahawks.
A lot has been made of his ability in the return game. To an extent, that's fair. With the new kick-off rules put into action this year, Eskridge became even more valuable to the Hawks. As Lee Vowell noted, Eskridge has dealt with more injuries than a crash-test dummy in his career, so part of the equation was if he'd be healthy enough to perform every week. The best ability is availability, after all.
While that 66-yard kick return last year was pretty electrifying, he never had another for longer than 30 yards. As a receiver, he was - oh, let's be charitable and say virtually non-existent. I'm not sure what else you'd call 17 catches in three seasons, do you? To reiterate for about the millionth time, I like the guy and expected big things from him when the Seahawks took him with their first pick in 2021.
Sadly, that never happened. One comment from Eskridge after the Browns game truly stood out for me. No, not the part about how great it felt to be embraced by his teammates, although I'm certain that's true. And good for him, too. That's how your team should react. No, I'm talking about this quote, per Gregg Bell of The News Tribune: "Just leaving it all on the field. So I just came out here with the mentality that if it’s my last time ever coming out here to play on this field, then so be it."
That's a problem. Now, this involves some projection on my part, but shouldn't Eskridge have been approaching every game like this, not just the final preseason game? The fact that in the same article, Gregg Bell wrote this line speaks volumes: "The biggest play, maybe of his career given the stakes, came with 4 minutes left in the second quarter Saturday." Let me just add that if the biggest play of your career came in a preseason game, you don't have much to show for three seasons in the NFL.
That, dear 12s, is exactly why Dee Eskridge was cut today. A 79-yard punt return is great, yes. It was terrific that his teammates were so happy to celebrate with him, absolutely. But if you're a second-round pick, and that's your biggest play heading into your fourth season, you better start leaving it all on the field in every game.
