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The Seattle Seahawks agreed to deals with Tarvaris Jackson and Matt Leinart following the news that free-agent quarterback Matt Hasselbeck will not return to Seattle this season, multiple sources told ESPN.
Hasselbeck will turn 36 in September. His prior contract was signed before the start of the 2005 season and was followed by him leading the Seahawks to their only Super Bowl appearance.
Terms of Jackson's deal were not available but, according to the sources, the former Minnesota Vikings quarterback will sign the contract Friday night. The Seahawks had no comment on the move.
Jackson and Leinart will now compete for the starting job alongside Charlie Whitehurst, but their arrival ends an era. Hasselbeck, a three-time Pro Bowl player, was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the sixth round of the 1998 draft and was traded to the Seahawks in 2001.
According to sources, Hasselbeck has talked to the Tennessee Titans and San Francisco 49ers, among other teams, since the lockout ended.
The Seahawks had offered Hasselbeck a one year, $7 million contract earlier in the offseason, the sources said, but it was not known if that offer was still on the table this week.
Jackson, a second-round pick by the Vikings in 2006, will be reunited with Darrell Bevell, the Seahawks' new offensive coordinator who coached him in Minnesota. He spent the majority of the last two seasons backing up Brett Favre.
Leinart, meanwhile, will reunite with Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, his college coach at USC. Leinart's career has hit a low point after the Arizona Cardinals drafted him in the first round in 2006. The Cardinals released Leinart during the preseason last August and he spent 2010 as a backup with the Houston Texans.
Sources told ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen that Leinart was gauging other options Tuesday that include the Washington Redskins. Redskins coach Mike Shanahan graded the left-handed Leinart highly before the 2006 draft when Shanahan was the Broncos' coach.
Hasselbeck's first season with Carroll was punctuated by a series of ups and downs, getting booed off the field in his last start of the regular season, countered by the highs of Seattle's 41-36 upset of New Orleans to open the NFC playoffs in one of Hasselbeck's finest performances.
Hasselbeck threw for 272 yards and a career playoff-high four touchdowns in engineering the Seahawks' upset victory over the defending Super Bowl champion Saints. He threw TD passes of 7 and 11 yards to tight end John Carlson, 45 yards to Brandon Stokley and 38 yards to Mike Williams.
It was a stark contrast to his previous start at home in Week 15 against Atlanta, when Hasselbeck was booed off the field and eventually replaced in the third quarter by who also started the season finale against St. Louis and led Seattle to a 16-6 victory that clinched the NFC West title and a playoff spot.
Source: AP
Hasselbeck will turn 36 in September. His prior contract was signed before the start of the 2005 season and was followed by him leading the Seahawks to their only Super Bowl appearance.
Terms of Jackson's deal were not available but, according to the sources, the former Minnesota Vikings quarterback will sign the contract Friday night. The Seahawks had no comment on the move.
Jackson and Leinart will now compete for the starting job alongside Charlie Whitehurst, but their arrival ends an era. Hasselbeck, a three-time Pro Bowl player, was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the sixth round of the 1998 draft and was traded to the Seahawks in 2001.
According to sources, Hasselbeck has talked to the Tennessee Titans and San Francisco 49ers, among other teams, since the lockout ended.
The Seahawks had offered Hasselbeck a one year, $7 million contract earlier in the offseason, the sources said, but it was not known if that offer was still on the table this week.
Jackson, a second-round pick by the Vikings in 2006, will be reunited with Darrell Bevell, the Seahawks' new offensive coordinator who coached him in Minnesota. He spent the majority of the last two seasons backing up Brett Favre.
Leinart, meanwhile, will reunite with Seahawks coach Pete Carroll, his college coach at USC. Leinart's career has hit a low point after the Arizona Cardinals drafted him in the first round in 2006. The Cardinals released Leinart during the preseason last August and he spent 2010 as a backup with the Houston Texans.
Sources told ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen that Leinart was gauging other options Tuesday that include the Washington Redskins. Redskins coach Mike Shanahan graded the left-handed Leinart highly before the 2006 draft when Shanahan was the Broncos' coach.
Hasselbeck's first season with Carroll was punctuated by a series of ups and downs, getting booed off the field in his last start of the regular season, countered by the highs of Seattle's 41-36 upset of New Orleans to open the NFC playoffs in one of Hasselbeck's finest performances.
Hasselbeck threw for 272 yards and a career playoff-high four touchdowns in engineering the Seahawks' upset victory over the defending Super Bowl champion Saints. He threw TD passes of 7 and 11 yards to tight end John Carlson, 45 yards to Brandon Stokley and 38 yards to Mike Williams.
It was a stark contrast to his previous start at home in Week 15 against Atlanta, when Hasselbeck was booed off the field and eventually replaced in the third quarter by who also started the season finale against St. Louis and led Seattle to a 16-6 victory that clinched the NFC West title and a playoff spot.
Source: AP