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Jared Cook rumors: 5 best fits in NFL free agency

By Mike Phillips

Oakland Raiders tight end Jared Cook (87) celebrates a first down catch and run against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first half on Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, Calif. (Hector Amezcua/Sacramento Bee/TNS via Getty Images)
Oakland Raiders tight end Jared Cook (87) celebrates a first down catch and run against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first half on Sunday, Dec. 9, 2018 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in Oakland, Calif. (Hector Amezcua/Sacramento Bee/TNS via Getty Images) /
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ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JANUARY 05: Russell Wilson #3 of the Seattle Seahawks scrambles in the pocket against the Dallas Cowboys in the first half during the Wild Card Round at AT&T Stadium on January 05, 2019 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS – JANUARY 05: Russell Wilson #3 of the Seattle Seahawks scrambles in the pocket against the Dallas Cowboys in the first half during the Wild Card Round at AT&T Stadium on January 05, 2019 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

1. Seattle Seahawks

Aside from the Cowboys, perhaps no team took a bigger step back at the tight end position year-to-year the Seattle Seahawks. Jimmy Graham was Seattle’s primary tight end in 2017, when he caught 57 passes for 520 yards and 10 touchdowns, but the Seahawks let him go to Green Bay in free agency.

The Seahawks signed veteran Ed Dickson to help fill Graham’s shoes, and he was a non-factor for most of the season. Youngster Nick Vannett got an opportunity to contribute and didn’t do much with it, catching 29 passes for 269 yards and 3 touchdowns.

The loss of Graham, along with wideout Paul Richardson, made life very difficult for quarterback Russell Wilson in the passing game. Wilson had his lowest passing yardage total since 2013, and while Seattle tried to make up for it by running the ball more they were exposed in the playoffs when Dallas shut them down.

Adding an impact tight end like Jared Cook would make a huge difference for Seattle, which needs to put more weapons around Wilson in order to catch up with the Los Angeles Rams in the NFC West. There have been rumblings that Wilson is unhappy and may want out of Seattle, so giving him a new weapon like Cook could help that situation as well.

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