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Safety Tyvis Powell of the Seattle Seahawks intercepts a pass against wide receiver Da’Ron Brown of the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half on August 13, 2016 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
Safety Tyvis Powell of the Seattle Seahawks intercepts a pass against wide receiver Da’Ron Brown of the Kansas City Chiefs during the second half on August 13, 2016 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City,
Seattle Seahawks’ Tyvis Powell walks on the field during the team’s NFL football training camp Saturday, July 30, 2016, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Seattle Seahawks’ Tyvis Powell walks on the field during the team’s NFL football training camp Saturday, July 30, 2016, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Seattle Seahawks’ Trovon Reed, left, and Tyvis Powell run through a drill at an NFL football practice Wednesday, June 1, 2016, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Seattle Seahawks’ Trovon Reed, left, and Tyvis Powell run through a drill at an NFL football practice Wednesday, June 1, 2016, in Renton, Wash. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
The Seattle Seahawks’ postseason addition of kick returner Devin Hester cost them promising young secondary prospect Tyvis Powell after the Cleveland Browns announced Monday they had claimed Powell off waivers.
Powell, 22, appeared in eight games for Seattle during his rookie season after signing as an undrafted free agent in May. He was listed at safety, but also earned some practice reps at cornerback as the team attempted to find a place for him on the roster throughout the season.
The former Ohio State standout was one of the team’s surprise stars of the preseason after making a couple of big plays in the exhibition opener versus Kansas City, but he failed to break into the rotation in the defensive backfield in the regular season, seeing action only on special teams.
Still, it was a mild surprise when the 6-foot-2, 211-pounder was placed on waivers in early January so the Seahawks could sign Hester for what ended up being a two-game playoff rental following the season-ending injury suffered by wide receiver/returner Tyler Lockett.
Hester nearly proved worth the addition, however, totaling 194 return yards in Seattle’s divisional-round loss to the Atlanta Falcons despite having a second-quarter 80-yard punt return called back due to penalty.
Teams are not allowed to claim players off waivers after the start of the postseason, so Powell’s status was up in the air ahead of Monday’s announcement by the Browns. After the news broke, Powell, an Ohio native, tweeted his appreciation for his former teammates.
THERE'S A GOD!!! #BlessedByTheBest #ClevelandMadeClevelandPaid
Hey @RSherman_25 @Kam_Chancellor @Earl_Thomas @dshead24 & @StayingInMyLane I appreciate everything y'all taught me. Bros 4 life! Ba-Lee Dat!
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