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Former Cincinnati Bengals running back Giovani Bernard signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday, but not without a push from the Seattle Seahawks.
ESPN’s Jenna Laine reported that both the Seahawks and San Francisco 49ers sought to bring Bernard on board before he ultimately signed with the Super Bowl champions.
Giovani Bernard was also recruited by the 49ers and Seahawks, per a source close to the situation. Not only did Tom Brady and Bruce Arians call him — he heard from Pete Carroll and Russell Wilson too.
— JennaLaineESPN (@JennaLaineESPN) April 12, 2021
Drafted out of North Carolina in 2013, Bernard is mostly known as a receiving back and has never been what one would call a true three-down back. He’s never exceeded 170 carries in a season and his pure rushing numbers have been very underwhelming over the past three years, but he’s had at least 30 receptions every year of his career, albeit with an average of just 8.4 yards per catch.
Bernard was released on April 1st so if you thought the Seahawks explored signing him while Chris Carson was still a free agent then you are wrong. If you’re so minded, the fact that Seattle even looked at a reputable back after the Carson signing suggests not a whole lot of confidence in the other RBs on the roster: Rashaad Penny, Deejay Dallas, Travis Homer, and Alex Collins. Or maybe he was just there to compete with the backs at the lower end of the depth chart to be that 3rd down option.
Whatever the case, Bernard is a Buccaneer. It’s probably worth monitoring what the Seahawks intend to do moving forward at running back over the next few weeks, though.