RENTON — Tyler Lockett spent seven years catching passes from Russell Wilson.
Last March, once Wilson was traded to Denver, Lockett briefly wondered if he could have been fielding pitches for Wilson instead — specifically, for his 11,104-square-foot house in Bellevue.
Lockett spent the offseason getting his real estate license. According to Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, when Wilson was dealt to the Broncos on March 8, Lockett wanted to help him sell the house.
“He was really excited when Russ left, because he was trying to sell his house,” Carroll said Friday with a smile. “I haven’t made any jokes about that at all, and I shouldn’t have done that now. But he was [wanting to sell Wilson’s house].”
When asked Friday about hoping to be Wilson’s real estate agent, Lockett laughed and asked who’d said that.
When told it was Carroll, Lockett smiled and said, “Oh, man. Yeah, I asked him, but he already had someone else.
“When did he leave? In March? That would have been the first or second house I was going to have on the market. But I don’t like selling my teammates’ houses and stuff, just because they’ve got to pay me, so I’d rather work with them as buyers, because then they don’t pay me to sell it for the most part.”
Wilson’s house in Bellevue went on the market in April for $28 million. As of Friday afternoon it was still listed for sale, but at $26 million.
On a more serious note, Carroll said Lockett is working on another career is indicative of the on- and off-field legacy he has created since being drafted by Seattle in 2015. Lockett was recently named the team’s Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year nominee for a second consecutive season.
“I think he’s a tremendous example for other guys,” Carroll said. “Tyler has many examples, too, of guys that have played before him that we know in this area. He’s got friends around the league and all that, but he’s really connected guys in our community here that have found a way to find success and to go for it and learn new stuff and enter into areas that you don’t know anything about.
“With the help of people around you and a good work ethic, they can make progress and make positive things happen. He’s a gold mine to me. Anybody that can get him to represent and help him and help yourselves, you gain from being around Tyler. He’s handling it well.”
During training camp, Lockett explained how his interest in real estate came about.
“Oh yeah. That’s something that I’ve always wanted to do ever since I started to buy my first house once I signed my second contract [in 2018],” he said. “I watched a lot of HGTV growing up. At first I didn’t like it, and as I started looking for a house that’s all I started to watch.
“Just being able to take the test and take the class, that was the hardest part. Once you get out of college you don’t really want to study anymore. And so I had to study for 90 hours, and I ended up studying for 90 hours. I ended up taking the test and passing, got my first house and listing it.
“It ended up being pending in seven days. Because of the market and how things were going at that moment, we were able to have it pending, easy close. It was really cool.”
Lockett said he also plans to be licensed in Texas.
“Just studied the whole 180 hours in Texas right after I ended up doing that,” he said. “So I finished that class. Just got to be able to take the test, and I’ll be an agent in Texas as well.”