Marshawn Lynch Traded to Seattle Seahawks: Welcome Back to the NFL

Marshawn Lynch has been traded to the Seattle Seahawks after the Buffalo Bills totally mismanaged their first-round pick from 2007.

In my mind, Buffalo is making a huge mistake. Although they do have two promising, young running backs in Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller, Lynch was probably the best all-around, every down back.

Don’t get me wrong—I was higher than anyone on Spiller’s upside this offseason, and Jackson led me to a fantasy league championship just a year ago, but they just aren’t your every down, pound the ball runner.

They both remind me of a Darren Sproles or Leon Washington. They’re a perfect complement to a back like Lynch, but they shouldn’t be the whole show. They’re playmakers and will have their exciting moments, but you don’t want to give them 25 carries every game. I don’t think it’s good for either of them. However, it is Buffalo, and nothing they seem to do these days makes sense.

Lynch should shine in Seattle, and remember that you heard it here first. It wasn’t long ago that people were picking Lynch in the first round of their fantasy drafts. He rushed for 2,151 total yards and 15 touchdowns in his first two seasons, while playing only 28 games. At this point, it looked like there was a bright future ahead of this young man.

Fast-forward two years: Lynch had to sit out the first three games of the season, and Buffalo never gave him another chance. When he came back, the Bills were already very high on Jackson. Lynch literally never really got another fair opportunity; this was very stupid of the Bills.

This year, despite being part of a trio of running backs, Lynch had taken back the starting spot. He is averaging more yards per carry so far this year than he did in either of his two 1,000-yard seasons. The Bills, who received a fourth-round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft and a conditional pick in the 2012 draft, decided they should sell while he had a little value.

Again, mark my words, this will come back to bite the Bills and will be great for Lynch. When Spiller or Jackson gets injured this year, and it is very likely to happen, they will really wish they still had Lynch.

Now, the running back situation in Seattle is a little flaky at the moment. Justin Forsett seems to have taken the starting job, but it hasn’t been something that everyone is completely sold on. They do have Leon Washington, but you heard my thoughts on how he should be used above. He is a perfect third down back.

Lynch will supplant Forsett as the starter, and he will rush for 1,000 yards again in his career. It could very likely happen this year, depending on how quickly he can become familiar with the playbook and his new team’s system.

I have a strong feeling Marshawn Lynch will be back in the first couple rounds of your fantasy draft next year. The Pete Carroll regime, which I personally had hoped and believed would fail rather quickly, seems to be off to a good start. Adding Lynch only improves Carroll’s chances to make it work in Seattle.