Earlier this year, we said 2017 could be another “splash” offseason for John Schneider. But he dived into the deep end early, giving Doug Baldwin a $46 million deal this week.
Now the big question: What does that mean for Seattle’s 2017 salary cap? More important: What does it mean for the underpaid Michael Bennett? And, by extension, what might that mean for the highly paid Jimmy Graham?
Continue reading What does Baldwin deal mean for Bennett, 2017?
Three years ago, the Seahawks gave $11 million per year to a wide receiver who had never played a down for them.
No surprise: Like all of the big-money receiver deals Seattle has made over the last decade, Percy Harvin did not work out. On top of that, the Hawks lost Golden Tate, a homegrown receiver they couldn’t afford because they had paid Harvin.
But that didn’t stop the Seahawks from paying big again Tuesday — this time with a guy they had developed from scratch.
It turns out the Seahawks were fine paying Doug Baldwin the bloated market value for wide receivers — more proof that Paul Allen, John Schneider and Pete Carroll are more than fair when it comes to guys they have developed.
Continue reading Seahawks pay big for another receiver, but at least they know this one
A year ago at this time, the Seahawks had all kinds of financial turmoil — and it ultimately played a role in ruining team chemistry and the season.
Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner needed extensions. Bruce Irvin was unhappy his option had not been picked up. Michael Bennett was dissatisfied with his brand-new deal. And, unbeknownst to everyone in June, Kam Chancellor was the most displeased of all.
As it turned out, Chancellor was the only player who caused a ruckus, holding out until the third week of the season, but it was a distraction that did indeed affect chemistry and performance. The Seahawks ultimately fell short of a third straight Super Bowl because of it.
This June, the Seahawks seemingly are one big, happy family again — of one mind as they prepare for a Super Bowl redux. Sure, Bennett and Chancellor still feel they are underpaid. And Doug Baldwin is waiting to get a new contract. But, out of their own mouths, none of those three are going to hold out and screw up team chemistry.
Pete Carroll and John Schneider have raised expectations so high that missing a third straight Super Bowl appearance was considered a stunning failure last season — especially after the Seahawks had recovered from a poor start and put together a dominant second half of the season.
Not even record-setting performances from both the offense and defense could make anyone feel any better after the Seahawks let themselves be ramrodded by the Panthers in the playoffs.
The fact is, though, there’s a reason no team has gone to the Super Bowl three straight times in the salary-cap era or that the only team in the 16-game era to do it (Buffalo) lost every title game (four straight) or that the only other team to reach three straight, Miami, did it in 14-game seasons.
Football is a game of attrition. The more games they play, the more players they lose.
Continue reading Worn down by two Super runs, Hawks refreshed
The Seahawks didn’t have a so-called “championship offseason” last year, and the results were pretty predictable: no championship.
Everyone hoped they could overcome all of the negatives — the loss of confidence in Pete Carroll after his asinine Super Bowl call, the silly fan backlash against Russell Wilson, the poor health of almost their entire secondary, the pointless holdout of Kam Chancellor, the idiotic coaching decision to start Drew Nowak at center.
It all added up to a disjointed start and disheartening finish. It was obviously too much to overcome for a team that had become fractured and really needed to be glued back together again.
The Hawks entered this offseason with more than a few concerns about their ability to bounce back. They needed to replace Marshawn Lynch, deal with unhappy campers Chancellor and Michael Bennett, rebuild their offensive line and fortify their defensive line.
At this point, it looks like they have put the glue in place for all of those fixes: Lynch was replaced by three draft picks; Chancellor made up with the team; Bennett sounds like he will come back ready to repeat his stellar 2015 season; the club replaced Russell Okung, Alvin Bailey and J.R. Sweezy with five linemen and Brandon Mebane with three.
Carroll says this offseason “almost feels like a rebirth.”
“We’ve been through a lot of stuff; we’ve been challenged by a lot of stuff,” he told 710 ESPN on Monday. “We’ve learned so much: winning and losing and then trying to come back again and still maintaining this huge standard and expectation. And we know it’s right there for us. Everybody feels it. That’s what is really fueling the energy around the building and why we’re so enthused. And then we hit it with this draft, so it’s feeling pretty good. Millions of things have to happen, but we’re in the right place right now.”
Let’s take a post-draft look at the roster and see whether that is true:
Just like last year, Michael Bennett is staying at home in Hawaii during Seattle’s offseason workout program. But, asked Thursday whether he will be at training camp, he said, “Why would I not be there?”
The question is pertinent because Bennett has been dissatisfied with his contract. He stayed away from OTAs last year, too, but returned in time for the mandatory minicamp in June, was present for all of training camp and then turned in his best NFL season.
All signs have pointed to Bennett not holding out, even though he has far outplayed the four-year, $28.5 million contract he signed in 2014.
For some reason, there has been a lot of concern about Marshawn Lynch’s retirement status: Is he really retiring? Why hasn’t he submitted his papers? Is he trying to screw the Seahawks? Will they make him a June 1 cut?
So many conspiracy theories.
Some people have wondered whether the Seahawks would designate Lynch as a post-June 1 move, thereby allowing the team an extra $2.5 million in 2016 cap space (but removing $2.5 million from the 2017 cap).
But anyone who has followed John Schneider’s moves with the Hawks understands he likes to take his lumps now, not later. He confirmed that once again Tuesday in an interview with KJR 950, saying the team will place Lynch on the reserve-retired list by June 1 so all of his $5 million in dead money (the unamortized portion of his signing bonus) hits this year’s cap.
Schneider clearly just wants to wipe that slate clean for 2017 and feels no need for an extra $2.5 million this offseason.
“It’s basically like a credit card, like you want to pay off your credit card as you go,’’ Schneider said. “So, like with us, if we place him on reserve/retired (by June 1) then we accept that cap hit this year, and we would rather do that than do it after June 1.’’
Continue reading Forget the Lynch drama; check out the cap space
The Seahawks lost seven games last season, and most of those losses occurred because their offensive line got pushed around.
The Rams and Panthers especially dominated Seattle with their great defensive fronts — the Rams’ Aaron Donald, Michael Brockers, Robert Quinn and William Hayes; the Panthers’ Kawann Short, Star Lotulelei, Kony Ealy and Charles Johnson. Those crews handed Seattle four losses, including the one that knocked the Hawks out of the playoffs.
The Seahawks will see those lines at least three times next season, and Pete Carroll and John Schneider know they have to get stronger up front if they are going to avoid the same fate they suffered in 2015. They can’t be swept by the Rams if they want to win the NFC West, and they can’t lose to the Panthers if they want to win the NFC.
That’s all you really need to know to understand why they drafted 6-foot-6, 324-pound tackle Germain Ifedi in the first round, 6-4, 314-pound guard Rees Odhiambo in the third and 6-2, 299-pound center Joey Hunt in the sixth. They are all smart, strong and athletic — and it sounds like the Seahawks think they all have a chance to start, now or later.
Continue reading Hawks going big to avoid going home early again
How many running backs does it take to replace Marshawn Lynch while he rides off into the sunset on a camel? Apparently three.
As Lynch led their running game for most of the last six years, the Seahawks had drafted just four running backs (including one fullback). Now, with Lynch retiring — yes, he is, Pete Carroll and John Schneider confirmed — the Seahawks added three backs in this draft alone.
But none of them will displace Thomas Rawls as the starter. Carroll made that clear Saturday after the Seahawks added Alex Collins and Zac Brooks to a backfield that already included third-rounder C.J. Prosise, Rawls and former second-rounder Christine Michael.
“Thomas gives us a great element in his style of play. We love the way he is physical and aggressive and tough,” Carroll said of the second-year back who took over for an injured Lynch as a rookie and rushed for 830 yards before suffering a broken ankle against Baltimore in Week 14.
“I think the message of who we are and what we’re about has been Thomas,” Carroll said. “We’re really excited to continue to see that.”
There’s no sign the Seahawks were interested in Ryan Clady, despite their major need at left tackle, but apparently — if they had been interested — they could have gotten him for a Day 3 pick and $6 million.
That’s what the Jets reportedly gave the Broncos on Sunday — replacing the retiring D’Brickashaw Ferguson with Clady, who was available because Denver signed Russell Okung away from the Seahawks. Instead of possibly replacing Okung in Seattle, Clady is joining former Seahawks James Carpenter and Breno Giacomini in New York.
The Seahawks apparently have no interest in adding another veteran tackle before the draft. As John Schneider told 710 ESPN last week: “We addressed (the offensive line) early in free agency, we’ll address it again in the draft and then we’ll see what’s happening this summer.”
CHAWK TALK: Everything being said about the Seahawks 