Irvin reports make sense

April 30, 2015 cc Leave a comment

It’s no surprise that the Seahawks apparently won’t pick up Bruce Irvin’s $7.75 million option. We already have pointed out why they probably wouldn’t do it.

As for the Atlanta trade rumor, it certainly makes more sense than the Michael Bennett/Atlanta rumor from a few weeks ago.

The Seahawks apparently told Danny O’Neil of 710 ESPN that they are not trying to trade Irvin, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t listening to teams asking about him.

O’Neil wrote: “Trading Irvin is not something Seattle is planning to do or has actively pursued. In other words, any ‘chatter’ about a potential trade is occurring somewhere other than Seattle’s front office. The team is planning on having Irvin back at strong-side linebacker, where he has established himself as a strong starter.”

Of course, nothing there says the Hawks are not talking to the Falcons. It is quite possible that Dan Quinn (former Seattle DC now Atlanta’s coach) initiated talks with Seattle about Irvin.

Continue reading Irvin reports make sense →

NFL draft

Hawks more likely to move down than up

April 29, 2015 cc Leave a comment

There seems to be growing sentiment that the Seahawks want to move up in the second round to get an impact player, but it seems more likely that they will bail out of the second round. And not just because John Schneider has moved down in all five of his Seahawks drafts.

Unless a player they really like falls to them, they are likely to see a bunch of similarly skilled players — any of which they might like — and that could make Schneider want to move down and pick up another draft choice or two.

Continue reading Hawks more likely to move down than up →

CHAWK LINES, NFL draft

April 29, 2015 cc Leave a comment

NFL.com put together a seven-round mock draft. Like many, they gave Oregon center Hroniss Grasu to Seattle at No. 63.

Rotoworld gave the Hawks two Michigan players to start off its seven-round mock.

Rob Staton broke down the players selected in the NFL.com and Rotoworld mocks.

Everyone seems to have Ty Montgomery landing in Seattle, which means of course he won’t. But Bob Condotta lists him among 10 players who could fit the Seahawks.

The Seahawks likely have interest in a lot of the guys on this list of “underrated prospects” by Doug Farrar of SI.com.

The NFL has asked reporters not to tip picks on social media.

NFL.com calls out four draft smokescreens from teams.

Football Outsiders put together some data on teams that have created the best and worst trade value in the draft. The Seahawks were the best in 2000-04 — largely because they had two first-round picks in 2000 and 2001 off the Joey Galloway trade.

NFL draft, Trades

Will Hawks move off 63 or pull from 2016 stock?

April 26, 2015 cc Leave a comment

DRAFT COUNTDOWN: Five days. A weekly look at draft-related topics involving the Seahawks.

John Schneider already has made three trades involving picks in this draft, and everyone is curious to know whether he’s going to make another one — moving off the Seahawks’ first pick at No. 63 on Friday.

Last season, Schneider basically ended up swapping sixth-round picks while adding cornerback Marcus Burley and deleting wide receiver Percy Harvin.

But the big move was the one Schneider made March 10, sending center Max Unger and Seattle’s first-round pick (No. 31 overall) to the Saints for tight end Jimmy Graham and a fourth-rounder.

The other day, Schneider said, “When you acquire a player of Jimmy’s caliber with the 31st pick, that makes it that much easier to sleep at night knowing that we wouldn’t be able to get a player like that.”

With Graham coming in as their nominal first-rounder — much like Harvin in 2013 — the Hawks are left to pick at No. 63. But will they stay there? Or will they consider using some 2016 draft capital to add a pick in the second round?

Continue reading Will Hawks move off 63 or pull from 2016 stock? →

Contracts, The roster

Hawks aren’t sure Irvin is worth $7.75 million

April 24, 2015 cc Leave a comment

As expected, the Seahawks are not sure Bruce Irvin is worth $7.75 million.

That much is clear after John Schneider said Wednesday that they have not decided whether to pick up the 2016 option on the 2012 first-round player.

“Those options can be tricky,” the GM said. “That’s all I can get into right now.”

He might not want to get into it, but his meaning is clear: Picking up the option would set a baseline for any future contract negotiations while also forcing the Hawks to take a certain direction with their 2016 salary cap.

It’s hard to see the Hawks exercising the option when they don’t know what Russell Wilson’s contract will look like in 2016 and might not have decided what they are doing with Russell Okung.

Continue reading Hawks aren’t sure Irvin is worth $7.75 million →

Contracts, It's bigger than football, State of the team

Wilson: ‘I can’t wait to play (football) again’

April 22, 2015 cc Leave a comment

Russell Wilson has been the center of attention in Seattle all month — whether it has been talk of his contract, the recent team-building trip to Maui he organized or his talk about baseball.

His HBO interview with Bryant Gumbel caught a lot of attention due to his comments about his “dream” of playing baseball. We’ve already dismissed all of the conspiracy theories surrounding those comments, and Wilson today waved off any concerns himself, saying he is focused on his future as a football player.

“I didn’t say I was going to leave the NFL,” Wilson told ESPN’s The Herd. “I love playing the game of football. To be one of 32 men in the world who get to do what I do, it’s a special thing, and I’ve been able to play in two Super Bowls and I’m only 26 years old. That’s been a blessing.”

Contract negotiations with the Seahawks reportedly have not gone very far, and neither side is saying much.

Continue reading Wilson: ‘I can’t wait to play (football) again’ →

Schedule

This schedule is much better than 2014

April 22, 2015 cc Leave a comment

So, apparently if you lose a Super Bowl in agonizing fashion, you get a much friendlier schedule the next year.

For a team with the fourth-toughest schedule in the league (based on 2014 records), the Seahawks pulled as amenable a schedule as they could have requested Tuesday when the NFL released the full slate.

With a team-record five prime-time games, three straight contests at home in November, a perfectly placed midseason bye, no bad-weather games and a friendly final two months, the Seahawks have a much better setup than they faced in 2014. (Plus, they get Al Michaels calling games three times and we have to suffer through Jon Gruden just once.)

Last year, the Seahawks were among the first set of byes in Week 4 and finished with five rugged division games in the final six weeks — and they still claimed the top seed in the NFC for the second straight year.

Despite a tough early schedule, they are in good position to win the NFC for a third straight year.

Continue reading This schedule is much better than 2014 →

NFL draft, State of the team, The roster

What do Jeanpierre, Bennett mean for draft?

April 21, 2015 cc Leave a comment

With the draft now a little over a week away, some of the Seahawks’ positional concerns were highlighted Monday with the news that (a) Michael Bennett did not show up to offseason workouts, (b) the Hawks re-signed center Lemuel Jeanpierre and (c) the Hawks hosted speedy wide receiver Chris Conley last week.

Bennett’s absence — likely tied to his sudden dissatisfaction with his contract — is nothing to be concerned about now and won’t be unless he remains absent when training camp begins in July.

The only mandatory team event between now and then is the minicamp June 16-18. But if Bennett remains away, he clearly won’t be following up on his stated goal of “trying to be a good Seahawk.”

Continue reading What do Jeanpierre, Bennett mean for draft? →

NFL draft

Would the Seahawks draft a QB in the third?

April 19, 2015 cc Leave a comment

DRAFT COUNTDOWN: Two weeks. A weekly look at draft-related topics involving the Seahawks.

Three years ago, the Seahawks surprised everyone with their third-round pick, selecting an undersized quarterback even though they had just signed a presumptive new starter.

As it turned out, the rookie, Russell Wilson, beat out the favorite, Matt Flynn, and then helped lead the Seahawks to consecutive Super Bowls.

The Seahawks clearly expect to sign Wilson to an extension and have him be their quarterback for the next decade, but it would not be a surprise if the Hawks used another third-round pick (or a fourth) on a QB this year.

Continue reading Would the Seahawks draft a QB in the third? →

Contracts, State of the team

Schneider needs Wilson’s agent to be a team player

April 16, 2015 cc Leave a comment

John Schneider sent a pretty strong message Wednesday about Russell Wilson’s contract, making it clear the Seahawks are not going to mortgage the rest of the roster for the sake of the quarterback.

Talking to KIRO Radio, he twice referred to football as the “ultimate team sport,” talked about keeping as many players as possible and said the Hawks need to “protect” themselves and “make smart decisions.”

The Seahawks are negotiating with Wilson’s agent, Mark Rodgers, but reportedly have not made much progress. Speculation is that Rodgers — a baseball agent — is working in baseball terms rather than football terms, not in sync with NFL economics. That was the fear when Wilson moved off veteran NFL agent Bus Cook and let Rodgers handle it.

“Every negotiation is unique … and this is no different,” Schneider told KIRO’s Dori Monson. “It’s the ultimate team sport. He’s our quarterback. We’d love him to be our quarterback. But the thing is we need to keep as many of these guys together as we possibly can.”

Continue reading Schneider needs Wilson’s agent to be a team player →