Tag Archives: John Schneider

Free agency

Setting up free agency

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As free agency looms, a big trade on Friday shook up the top of the draft and essentially guaranteed the Seahawks will have a shot at one of the top two defensive players.

The draft is still over a month away though, and the Hawks always like to fill their starting spots with vets before they get that far.

To the delight of many around the league (but not all Seattle fans), the Comeback Player of the Year came back this week: Quarterback Geno Smith signed an incentive-heavy three-year deal.

Seattle also addressed right guard, with Phil Haynes returning and Gabe Jackson leaving. Those moves followed the re-signings of special-teams stalwarts Jason Myers and Nick Bellore.

The Seahawks still need a center, two inside linebackers, a No. 3 receiver and upgrades across their defensive line — though the latter probably will come in the draft.

Let’s first look at the salary cap situation in the wake of Smith’s deal and then the positions they need to tackle next week and beyond.

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NFL Combine, NFL draft

Should Hawks play the lottery and use No. 5 pick on a QB if possible?

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The Seahawks’ draft position improved Saturday.

No, they didn’t make a trade. But Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson’s record-setting performance at the Combine seemed to vault him into the top five of the draft.

That put the Hawks in an even better spot at No. 5, with the top five players now expected to be, in some order, Richardson, Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud, Alabama QB Bryce Young, Alabama OLB Will Anderson Jr. and Georgia DE Jalen Carter.

So the Hawks will have their choice of a top QB or an elite front-seven player – a winning proposition however you slice it.

Last year, after the Hawks traded Russell Wilson, a QB in this draft seemed a no-brainer. But then Geno Smith put together a Pro Bowl season, and there is a real debate now about whether they should take a QB at 5 — especially knowing it is a 50-50 bet or worse.

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Free agency

Wagner return unlikely, but Hawks have other options

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Q&A series: We take a look at some big questions about the Seahawks’ salary cap situation and roster. 

Today’s question: Should the Seahawks bring back Bobby Wagner?

Bobby Wagner reportedly will be a free agent when the new league begins March 15, and plenty of Seattle fans (and former teammates) would like the Seahawks to bring him back.

That does not seem likely, even though the Seahawks do need two inside linebackers.

Even if Wagner were to forgive the way he was unceremoniously dumped by Seattle last year, the issue remains the same: Money.

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Contracts, The roster

2023 is make-or-break for $70M man Adams

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Q&A series: We take a look at some big questions about the Seahawks’ salary cap situation and roster. 

Today’s question: Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs are the highest-paid safety tandem in the NFL and have the largest cap hits on the team in 2023. How is that hurting the team? And how long will that continue?

Recent salary guarantees for Seattle’s top-paid players served as the latest occasion for some fans to grouse about the team’s overinvestment in its safeties.

The Seahawks having the highest-paid safety duo in the NFL is nothing new. Earl Thomas and Kam Chancellor once held that distinction, too.

But Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs are no Chancellor and Thomas, and plenty of fans are understandably irked over Seattle’s waste of resources at the position – they have the highest cap hits on the team in 2023 at $18.1 million each, ahead of star receivers Tyler Lockett and DK Metcalf.

Some who don’t understand capology – or the way the Seahawks operate — want the rehabbing Adams to be cut. That won’t happen, especially after part of his salary was guaranteed on Feb. 17. But you can bet 2024 will be a different conversation, if he does not play up to his $70 million contract in 2023.

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Free agency, The roster

‘A dream opportunity’: Roster review and offseason to-dos

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Pete Carroll and John Schneider clearly were happy they defied most expectations and put together a playoff team in 2022. But they know they have work to do, both citing the 49ers as their paragon as they enter the second half of a two-year franchise build using high draft picks.

As Schneider told Seattle Sports Radio, the 49ers are “the biggest, fastest, most physical football team in the National Football League. And we gotta get back to that. No questions asked. … We know what we need to do to attack this thing and take the next step.”

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Contracts, Free agency

Cap situation makes franchise tag for Geno Smith unlikely

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While the franchise tag seems like an easy fallback option for the Seahawks to retain Geno Smith, a close look at their salary cap situation reveals that they probably are not going to use it – or, if they do, it won’t be for long.

If they do not use it by the March 7 deadline, they would have until March 13, when free agency discussions with other teams can begin, to get a deal with Smith.  

Here’s why.

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State of the team

Lots of optimism, but Hawks have to ‘do something with it’

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In the wake of a surprising (to most) playoff appearance, there is a lot of optimism about the immediate future of the Seahawks. Many seem to think it’s automatic that the team will take the next step and contend next season.

But John Schneider and Pete Carroll have a lot of work to do to convert those positive vibes into a team that can yield positive results in the playoffs. As Carroll said, “It’s nothing unless we do something with it.”

There are two main things to do: Secure the quarterback position and remake the defensive front seven.

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Week 16: At Kansas City

Predictable loss in KC again shows Schneider what he needs to do

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The Seahawks were not going to beat Kansas City. Everyone knew that from the moment the schedule came out back in May.

There was perhaps some hope this week that the Hawks could score against what seemed to be a susceptible Chiefs defense. But, instead, the 24-10 loss was another referendum on the Seahawks’ need for better players on both lines and for Pete Carroll and Clint Hurtt to figure out how to get their defenders to tackle.

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The roster, Week 15: San Francisco

Hawks again need to build a defense to match the 49ers

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The 49ers have what the Seahawks need: The division title and the defense required to attain it.

Led by Nick Bosa, the 49ers have the best defense in the league – one that reminds some of the Legion of Boom that led Seattle to three division titles and two Super Bowls.

“They look just like us,” former LOBer K.J. Wright said on Seattle Sports Radio after the 49ers swept the Seahawks for the first time since 2011.

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Week 8: NY Giants

Lots of credit to go around so far, including Waldron

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The Seahawks had a heck of an October, going 4-1 to leap into first place in the NFC West, and credit has deservedly been shared by many players – Geno Smith, Kenneth Walker III and Tariq Woolen pulled a trifecta of monthly NFC awards.

Clint Hurtt also has gotten a lot of credit for flipping the defense – since Week 6, the Hawks have cut points allowed in half (30.8 to 15), rushing yards almost in half (170 to 92) and passing yards by a quarter (260 to 198) while tripling their sack total (six to 19).

But another guy who should get some credit is Shane Waldron. The second-year OC took some heat early in the season for getting too cute – the worst example coming when he trotted out four RBs against the 49ers and DeeJay Dallas threw an INT at the goal line.

But Waldron has presented a variety of formations and some great concepts that have helped Smith and the offense succeed beyond anyone’s preseason projections. They are the No. 4 scoring offense in the league, at 26.3 ppg – behind only AFC powerhouses Kansas City (31.9) and Buffalo (29) and undefeated Philly (28.1). The Hawks are the No. 7 unit by DVOA.

Continue reading Lots of credit to go around so far, including Waldron →