HawkShack.com

Ian RapoportVerified account
‏@RapSheet
#Seahawks WR Ricardo Lockette will announce his retirement tomorrow at a press conference, source said. He suffered a serious neck injury

Thanks for everything E! Have a great LAF (life after football)

Bring the guy back as a ST coach and let him teach the rooks how to play special teams like a boss.

Good luck, my man. You were a joy to watch.

Sorry to hear this - was rooting for Lockette to recover and make the team but I can understand why he is not coming back.

I sure hope that he is given a hefty amount of money from the NFL for compensation for having to give up the game. If any NFL player deserved some type of permanent injury compensation, Lockette is as deserving as anyone.

I agree he was a great gunner on special teams.

a later report said he couldn't turn his neck. I hope they meant 'in order to play football at a high-level'.. .and not that he really can't even turn his head.

I prayed for him that day, and I'll do it again tonight and I hope the insurance covers this as a 'total disability' for him. This is not concussion related ( i assume) so he won't be part of the settlement in those terms.

He had ligament damage in his neck, so it's understandable that he doesn't have full movement.
He never got medical clearance to continue his career.

Good luck, Ricardo. Thanks for all your work on Special Teams and at WR.

I got frustratingly mad at him for his bonehead PF's and his failure to fight for that ill advised RW throw in SB49, but all that's beside the point. He was a Hawk that gave his all, and paid a huge price for it, and I'll be forever grateful for his contributions.

From Seahawks.com, here's a little insight into why his teammates like him so much:

http://www.seahawks.com/news/2016/05/12 ... t%E2%80%9D

jshawaii22 wrote:a later report said he couldn't turn his neck. I hope they meant 'in order to play football at a high-level'.. .and not that he really can't even turn his head.

I prayed for him that day, and I'll do it again tonight and I hope the insurance covers this as a 'total disability' for him. This is not concussion related ( i assume) so he won't be part of the settlement in those terms.

That's good info JS22, I just "assumed" the would heal and then come back. Not that simple. What a class retirement speech!

Anytime you have ligament damage in your neck, football goes by the wayside. Class guy, always have everything he had, made the most of his skills, worked hard, and avoided throwing this at the feet of another player attempting to scratch out a living doing the same.

Ultimately, I would venture a guess he "knew" his career was over the second they came back with "ligament damage" ( as opposed to a herniated disc, even though those are damn hard to continue playing with, and what ultimately ended my playing career) despite his refusal to quit and accept it ( still personally hard to accept 20 years after the fact for me. You sometimes feel " robbed") I am happy he's finally accepted it...

RiverDog wrote:I got frustratingly mad at him for his bonehead PF's and his failure to fight for that ill advised RW throw in SB49, but all that's beside the point. He was a Hawk that gave his all, and paid a huge price for it, and I'll be forever grateful for his contributions.

Lock was the best gunner we ever had IMO.

Low blow on the SB int. I blame Lockette less than anyone else on the play. #1 Bevell,#2 Wilson.#3 Kearse,#4 Lock.

I hope he is able to enjoy his retirement in relatively good health. I'm glad hes alive.

Hopefully he makes a full recovery over time.
Well done, Ricardo.

He has lost 50% of head movement. I too pray that as time passes he heals beyond that. It is a dangerous sport and considering he almost became the first on field death in the NFL he was very very lucky to have survived. Ricardo seems to be the kind of person who will succeed at what ever he puts his mind to.

Good Luck Ricardo, you will be missed.