page_title: Marshawn Lynch
section_title: 2014 season
hierarchical_section_title: Marshawn Lynch / Professional career / Seattle Seahawks / 2014 season
caption_attribution_description: English: Marshawn Lynch in 2014 preseason
context_page_description: Marshawn Terrell Lynch is an American football running back who is a free agent. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft after playing college football at the University of California, Berkeley, where he became the school's second all-time career rusher.
  After three seasons with the Bills, Lynch was traded to the Seattle Seahawks mid-way through the 2010 season. With Seattle, he led the league in rushing touchdowns twice, made four Pro Bowls and won Super Bowl XLVIII against the Denver Broncos. After initially retiring after the 2015 season, Lynch applied for reinstatement and was traded to the Oakland Raiders in April 2017, with whom he played two seasons before effectively retiring again, despite not filing retirement paperwork with the league. In December 2019, Lynch came out of retirement a second time to join the Seattle Seahawks for a second stint with a contract only for the remaining week of the season and the postseason. Lynch earned the nickname "Beast Mode" for his powerful running style and consistent ability to run over defenders and break tackles.
  Lynch grew up in Oakland, California, with three older siblings.
context_section_description: On July 24, 2014, former Seahawks fullback and good friend Michael Robinson announced on NFL Network's Inside Training Camp, that Lynch would hold out of Training Camp while he waited for a restructured contract from the Seahawks. Lynch and the Seahawks quickly agreed to new terms for the season, and Lynch served as the starting running back for the team, ahead of backups Robert Turbin and Christine Michael.
  In the 2014 season opener, Lynch had 110 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns in a 36–16 victory over the Green Bay Packers. During Week 3 against the Denver Broncos, he completed the first overtime drive by rushing for a touchdown, giving the Seahawks a 26–20 victory over Denver in a Super Bowl rematch. On November 2, against the Oakland Raiders, he had 67 rushing yards, two rushing touchdowns, and 76 receiving yards. In the next game against the New York Giants, he had a stellar performance with 140 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in the 38–17 victory. He scored 24 total points in the game, which was tied with Jonas Gray for the most by any player in a single game in the 2014 season. He continued his successful string of games with 124 rushing yards against the Kansas City Chiefs in a loss the following week.
  Lynch had a career-long 79-yard touchdown run against the Arizona Cardinals in Week 16, similar to his "Beast Quake" 67-yard scoring run in the 2011 Wild Card Round against the New Orleans Saints. Four days later, Lynch was fined $11,050 by the NFL for his celebration of the score; falling back while extending the ball behind his head and grabbing his crotch. The league considered his celebration an "obscene gesture" to constitute unsportsmanlike conduct.
  The Seahawks finished with a 12–4 record and earned a first round bye. He was named to the Pro Bowl for the fifth time in his career. In the Divisional Round against the Carolina Panthers, he had 59 rushing yards in the 31–17 victory. He contributed heavily to a late comeback in the NFC Championship against the Green Bay Packers in a rematch of the season-opener, catching a 26-yard pass to set up one touchdown and later scoring a touchdown of his own on a 24-yard run. The Seahawks won 28–22 in overtime after trailing 19–7 with less than four minutes remaining in the game. His 157 rushing yards in the game were a career postseason high for Lynch, as were his 183 total yards from scrimmage.
  Lynch made headlines at Super Bowl XLIX Media Day on January 27, 2015, when he held a five-minute press conference, only answering "I'm just here so I won't get fined" to every question. He has a history of unwillingness to talk to the media.
  In Super Bowl XLIX, Lynch had 24 carries for 102 yards and a touchdown. He also had a catch for 31 yards, but the Seahawks lost 28–24 to the New England Patriots as they failed to repeat as champions. On Seattle's final offensive play of the game, they chose to pass the ball at the one-yard line instead of running it with Lynch, and Russell Wilson's pass was intercepted. Lynch was visibly upset by the decision and left the Seahawks locker room without addressing the media. He stated in a later interview with Conan O'Brien that he was "expecting the ball" prior to the play. He was ranked ninth by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2015.
caption: Lynch with the Seahawks in 2014
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon EOS 7D", "Image XResolution": "240", "Image YResolution": "240", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 4.4 (Windows)", "Image DateTime": "2014:08:24 16:39:38", "Image Artist": "Michael Morris", "Image ExifOffset": "234", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "850", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "18869", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/320", "EXIF FNumber": "8", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Shutter Priority", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "1600", "EXIF SensitivityType": "Recommended Exposure Index", "EXIF RecommendedExposureIndex": "1600", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0230", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2014:08:22 18:38:59", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2014:08:22 18:38:59", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "1040241/125000", "EXIF ApertureValue": "6", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "4", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "85", "EXIF SubSecTimeOriginal": "94", "EXIF SubSecTimeDigitized": "94", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "5184000/907", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "691200/119", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF BodySerialNumber": "3771505089", "EXIF LensSpecification": "[24, 105, 0/0, 0/0]", "EXIF LensModel": "EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM"}