SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES
Seahawks GM choked up over cutting ex-Green Beret
Aug 19, 2015, 12:20 PM | Updated: 2:06 pm
Nate Boyer, a long snapper for a short time with the Seattle Seahawks, was cut by the team this week. He told KIRO Radio's Dori Monson it was a "real sad moment" when he got the news. (AP)
(AP)
A short-lived dream for an ex-Green Beret is something he is not likely to forget any time soon.
Nate Boyer, a long snapper for a short time with the Seattle Seahawks, was cut from the team this week. He told KIRO Radio’s Dori Monson it was a “real sad moment” when he got the news.
“Obviously, I wanted to make it as a Seahawk,” Boyer, 34, said. “But it just didn’t happen to work out.”
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Boyer was cut to make room for quarterback Jake Waters. Waters will take over for Tarvaris Jackson for the time being. Jackson suffered an ankle injury during the first preseason game against the Denver Broncos on Friday.
During that same game, Boyer not only led the team out onto the field, waving the 12 flag, he also played the second half.
“It was just awesome to be a part of that,” Boyer said.
His departure from the Seahawks was as emotional as someone would expect, except that it was General Manager John Schneider who got choked up. FOX Sports reports Boyer consoled Schneider and the coaching staff, not the other way around.
“It wasn’t the saddest thing that’s ever happened to me,” Boyer said. “I’ve been through a lot worse.”
The coaching staff all shook Boyer’s hand and wished him well.
“(It) just showed that it wasn’t an easy thing for them to do.”
And since the news of the cut, Boyer has received an outpouring of support from people around the country.
“I didn’t even realize how much support I had from everyone across the nation until I got all those letters about people sad to hear the news,” he said.
He not only felt like people were rooting for him, but all United States soldiers, he added.
So he was cut from the Seahawks, but had a career as a Green Beret; so which is tougher? Dori wanted to know.
“Is that a serious question?” Boyer responded.
Though being an NFL player requires elite athleticism, being a Green Beret demands a mental toughness that is unmatched.
“They don’t compare,” he said.
We may not have heard the last of Nate Boyer. He told Dori he will be working with his agent to try and make it on another NFL team.
Who knows, maybe Boyer will make a special appearance like this former Seahawk.
