Seahawks Release WR Doug Baldwin & S Kam Chancellor

May 9, 2019

The Seahawks announced Thursday that they’ve released WR Doug Baldwin and S Kam Chancellor with failed physical designations.

“The Seahawks have made the difficult decision to terminate/failed physical Doug Baldwin and Kam Chancellor,” Seahawks GM John Schneider said. “These are two of the most iconic players in franchise history and both were instrumental in establishing our championship culture, great examples of competitiveness and leadership on the field and in the community. These legendary players will always be a part of our Seahawks family.”

A few weeks ago, Adam Schefter reported that Baldwin may not be able to continue his NFL career due to the “cumulative effect” of multiple injuries.

Schefter mentioned that there is a “real chance” that Baldwin never plays again after undergoing surgery on his groin and shoulder this offseason.

Mike Garafolo of NFL Media explained that Baldwin was unlikely to make a retirement announcement while under contract with the Seahawks, given that he would have to forfeit some of the signing bonus money paid out to him if he retired.

Chancellor sustained a serious neck injury in 2017 that led to him being placed on injured reserve and seeking multiple medical opinions. It’s clear that Chancellor’s NFL career is likely over at this point.

Baldwin, 30, wound up signing on with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent out of Stanford back in 2011. He was entering the fourth year of his five-year, $46,000,000 deal and set to make a base salary of $9.25 million next season.

In 2018, Baldwin appeared in 13 games for the Seahawks and caught 50 passes for 618 yards (12.4 YPC) and five touchdowns. Pro Football Focus had him rated as the No. 24 receiver out of 117 qualifying players.

Chancellor, 31, is a former fifth-round pick of the Seahawks back in 2010. He was in the second year of his four-year, $43.13 million contract that included $25 million when he sat out the entire 2018 season due to injury.

For his career, Chancellor recorded 434 tackles, two sacks, 12 interceptions, 50 pass defenses, nine forced fumbles, three recoveries and a safety over the course of eight seasons and 109 games played. He was a four-time Pro Bowler.