After a standout college career at Penn State and a solid five-year start to his NFL career with the Bears, Bobby Engram headed west in 2001, signing with the Seahawks as a free agent to join an offense that was still finding its footing in the early stages of Mike Holmgren’s tenure, and that had just added a young quarterback by the name of Matt Hasselbeck in an offseason trade.  

And over the next eight seasons, Engram would prove to be one of Hasselbeck’s most trusted targets, catching at least 50 passes and eclipsing 600 yards four times. Engram led the 2005 NFC champions with 67 receptions and 778 receiving yards, and in 2007 he had career highs in both receptions (94) and receiving yards (1,147), and he matched a career high with six touchdowns. That reception total set a franchise record that was later matched by Doug Baldwin in 2016, then broken by Tyler Lockett, who had 100 receptions in 2020, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who had 100 in 2024.  

Engram, who stood out most as a reliable target on third down, finished his Seahawks career with 399 receptions for 4,859 yards, both of which rank seventh in franchise history, as well as 18 receiving touchdowns. He also found success as a punt returner, becoming one of only four players in team history with multiple punt return touchdowns. Engram, the team’s Steve Largent Award winner and Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year nominee in 2007, became a coach after his playing days ended, and is currently the receivers coach for the Washington Commanders.

“He was so consistent and he was so dependable on third down,” Seahawks broadcaster and former receiver Steve Raible said. “If you needed a quick reception over the middle, if you needed a six route, a corner route, if you needed a quick comeback route, he was the guy to get it for you. He had great hands, he could take a hit when he made the catch, and he always seemed to be in the right place. That’s one of the things that as a wide receiver that you had to have, dependability, and he was dependable for his quarterbacks, always where he was supposed to be.”