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On the air, The roster, Trades

It’s speculation month: Wilson to NYC a whopper

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Ciara and RussFebruary is speculation month in the NFL, and Colin Cowherd just topped Reggie Wayne.

A day after the former NFL star suggested the Seahawks tag-and-trade Frank Clark for Antonio Brown, the funniest name in sports radio dropped this rumor: Russell Wilson might want to play for the New York Giants.

Cowherd said sources from the entertainment world are talking about Ciara’s desire to move to New York, where she would have better exposure in her music career. And then Cowherd connected the dots, suggesting Wilson would want to accommodate his wife and might push to play for the Giants.

So, fans everywhere want to know: How much credence should we put into this rumor?

Continue reading It’s speculation month: Wilson to NYC a whopper →

Contracts, Free agency

Projected market for Hawks’ free agents

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Salary cap logoRussell Wilson could be guaranteed $100 million and Frank Clark $50 million in new deals, according to contract expert Joel Corry, who also laid out the possible markets for several other Seahawks in a conversation with John Clayton on 710 ESPN.

Per Corry, Wilson figures to hit $35 million APY (as we projected) if he signs an extension this year, Clark will aim for $20 million (if not franchised at around $17 million), K.J. Wright could get more than $7 million, and D.J. Fluker, J.R. Sweezy and Justin Coleman all could merit around $5 million on the open market.

All of those amounts, except Wilson’s, would be more than the Seahawks are expected to be willing to pay. But the markets for Wright, the guards and Coleman might not hit those figures either, Corry acknowledged.

Continue reading Projected market for Hawks’ free agents →

CHAWK LINES, Contracts, Fun & games

Super Bowl weekend notes: Clark & Wilson ready for 2019

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Frank ClarkRight after the Super Bowl, Frank Clark was ready to get started with the Seahawks again: “Let’s get this paperwork (i.e., contract) done so we (can) go on this hunt. I’m tired of the same results.” The Seahawks have been in the playoffs in three of Clark’s four seasons, but it’s nice to see he is aiming higher — and wants to get there with the Seahawks. Now we just have to wait and see how that paperwork turns out.

Speaking of contracts: Talks have not yet begun between John Schneider/Matt Thomas and Russell Wilson’s agent, Mark Rodgers. But that’s no surprise. Those negotiations are not likely to occur until at least May. Meanwhile, right after the Super Bowl, Wilson tweeted: “2019. Going to be a special year.”

Continue reading Super Bowl weekend notes: Clark & Wilson ready for 2019 →

Contracts, Free agency

Pass-rush options aren’t limited to Clark

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Salary cap logo“Business is business so you gotta pay me.” — Frank Clark

The offseason has begun for all but two teams, and football is now in business mode — as Richard Sherman and Frank Clark tweeted recently.

It has been assumed that the Seahawks will keep Clark, their only legit outside pass rusher, via a contract extension or the franchise tag. Pete Carroll confirmed that thought in December when he told 710 ESPN, “He ain’t going anywhere. We aren’t losing him.”

But Carroll also admitted, “We’ve got to figure (the contract) out somehow. It’s a big issue.”

What if the issue is too big? What if John Schneider decides that Clark, who garnered 14 sacks while playing through a bunch of injuries in 2018, is not worth a long-term investment at $17 million APY or more? What if Schneider thinks he can get an equitable pass rusher for closer to $10 million? Or two rushers for the price of Clark?

Continue reading Pass-rush options aren’t limited to Clark →

The roster, X's & O's

Hawks failed Glowinski & still need guards

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Cable and CarrollPete Carroll and John Schneider have to be kicking themselves over how badly they screwed up with Mark Glowinski, who has to be just as happy that they released him from Tom Cable’s broken system in 2017 so he could get his career going in the right direction.

The guard was a good pick by Seattle in the fourth round in 2015, coming off an excellent college career at West Virginia, and he should have become one of Seattle’s line mainstays. Instead, Carroll and Schneider let him go in 2017 and he turned into one of the Indianapolis Colts’ best linemen in 2018, earning a contract worth $6 million a year.

Glowinski is the latest — maybe the greatest — example of how Cable’s system held players back in Seattle.

Continue reading Hawks failed Glowinski & still need guards →

Coaches, Injury report

Huard: Conditioning will be more player-specific under new staff

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Seahawks bandagesAs hip injuries mounted for the Seahawks last season — it seemed like half the team had the same problem at one time or another — we figured they would review the issue after the season and see where they needed to adjust their offseason conditioning.

As it turned out, Pete Carroll was no longer hip to his strength staff at all, so he replaced it. Ivan Lewis, Carroll’s former USC assistant, has replaced longtime conditioning coach Chris Carlisle (at USC and Seattle) and apparently will be tasked with tailoring conditioning to the players in a way Carlisle apparently did not.

Per 710 ESPN’s Brock Huard: “This is going to be … much more catered to position-specific, even player-specific, needs, because they cannot have the number of injuries they’ve had. They just cannot have the number of pulls and strains and soft-tissue injuries. So this was, I think, really in response to that. It was a move to get very player- and positional-specific to enhance those guys and try to keep them injury-free as much as they possibly can.”

Continue reading Huard: Conditioning will be more player-specific under new staff →

Coaches, State of the team

Super Bowl clubs are Hawks’ targets, and it starts at home

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pats-ramsThis Super Bowl matchup is near and dear to the Seahawks’ aching hearts: The division rival the Hawks cannot beat right now vs. the one-time Super Bowl nemesis the Hawks will always regret not beating.

The Rams and Patriots are the teams the Hawks have to figure out how to defeat if they are going to win another Super Bowl under Pete Carroll.

So how do they do that?

Continue reading Super Bowl clubs are Hawks’ targets, and it starts at home →

NFL draft

How will Schneider double his draft picks?

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Pic -- Schneider at CombineDraft season is about to officially begin, with the all-star bowls this weekend and next, which has prompted a new round of mock drafts.

It also raises a key question for Seattle: How will John Schneider get from his current four picks to his usual nine or 10? Will he play the comp game and use 2020 picks? Or will he just do what he did in 2017 — trade down three times?

Continue reading How will Schneider double his draft picks? →

The roster

Looks like Kendricks won’t be an option in 2019

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kendricks mugIt was a long shot anyway, but the Seahawks almost definitely won’t have Mychal Kendricks in 2019.

His sentencing for insider trading was bumped back from late January to April 4. Considering the absolute minimum prison time he is expected to get is eight months, that seemingly removes him as a 2019 option. (Some hold out hope that he will get no time at all, but that would be a serious break with legal precedent for his kind of crime.)

If Kendricks ends up with no more than 15 months, it is possible Pete Carroll and John Schneider would want to bring him back in 2020.

Continue reading Looks like Kendricks won’t be an option in 2019 →