Tight end Greg Olsen recently joined 710 ESPN Seattle to discuss why joining the Seattle Seahawks was the best choice for his NFL career at 35 years old.
“Obviously the football part was a no-brainer, we were looking for the perfect opportunity and we weren’t looking to force anything,” Olsen said. “Between the fan base and the city and obviously the sustained success they’ve had on the field and then you factor in the coach and the quarterback and there’s not a whole lot that they’re missing and that was really appealing to me.”
Olsen drew comparisons between Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and Panthers signal-caller Cam Newton, the latter of whom he played with for the past nine seasons. The idea of playing with Wilson excited the veteran tight end, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter backed this up.
Greg Olsen really liked Buffalo and Washington, and strongly considered both. But the lure of playing with Russell Wilson in Seattle was just too strong. Olsen takes a 1-year, $7 million deal with the Seahawks.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 18, 2020
“I’ve been real fortunate the last nine years to play with someone like Cam and now to be able to transition to somebody like Russ is a really unique opportunity,” Olsen said. “They share a lot of similar characteristics. Obviously Russ, his mobility and movement and his ability to keep plays alive, no play is ever dead. He’s a rare and special talent, as was Cam.”
Olsen stated that he wanted to be with a team that would provide him with the perfect situation, and the Seahawks were the best choice.
“All along, we set out and I said it’s going to take the perfect situation and what that was at the time is kind of hard to predict,” Olsen said. “I had a handful of boxes in my head I wanted to be checked and I didn’t know if that situation I had in my mind existed . . . I asked every question you could come up with and the Seattle situation from top to bottom just checked every box for me.”
The Seahawks offense has been prolific under Wilson in recent years. Olsen particularly emphasized that he wanted to be involved in this system.
“I’m excited to get into that offense and show them what I’ve done, but also, I’ve told them, I’m really open-minded to learning what they’ve done,” he said. “I don’t pretend to have all the answers. I’m eager to go in there and learn new things and learn the way they want to operate as an offense and kind of mold my game into what fits for them and I’m excited for that process to start.”
Seahawks fans will anticipate Olsen suiting up in the blue and green until the 2020 season starts in September.
[lawrence-related id=57417]