Tag Archives: John Schneider

Contracts

Hawks will pay Wilson $30M APY in 2020, but in what form?

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Wilson signing contractMatt Ryan just became the NFL’s first $30 million player, and the handwringing is already beginning about Russell Wilson’s next contract.

Ryan reportedly signed a five-year deal worth $150 million, with $100 million guaranteed. So there’s the new bar for quarterbacks; Aaron Rodgers and Wilson (and maybe another QB or two) will surpass it in the next year.

Wilson is signed through 2019, so the Seahawks will need to extend him next offseason. However, it sounds like Wilson’s camp is expecting to get the franchise tag in 2020, which would mean Wilson’s agent, Mark Rodgers, does not think the Seahawks will meet his asking price next year.

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NFL draft, Trades

How the Hawks moved down to add Green

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John Schneider draftingThe Seahawks got Rasheem Green because four teams fell in love with other defenders in the first round, but should Seattle have gotten more out of moving down?

Everyone knew Seattle was going to trade down from 18 — the question was which team would be the trade partner. It was somewhat apropos that it turned out to be Green Bay, especially after John Schneider and Mike Holmgren, both former Packers, had chatted on draft day about the difficulty in trading down.

“I was talking to Coach Holmgren about … how everyone thinks you’re going to move back and it’s so easy,” Schneider said after the first day. “The board has to start falling a certain way, and you have to have certain people that want to give up and that want to come with us. Where Green Bay came from is a long way, from 27 to 18. We weren’t confident.”

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NFL draft, The roster

A look at the roster after the draft

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NFL draft“You never hear a doctor come out of a surgery, ‘You know what, I don’t know if that was such a good surgery.’” — John Schneider

As always, and as with every team, the Seahawks think their draft went well. Of course, they got their typical mixed reviews from analysts (the NFL’s worst grade in this composite) — understandable considering they drafted Rashaad Penny and Will Dissly higher than most ranked them and then traded up for a punter.

We’ve long known Schneider is not great at getting the best value for his picks — certainly not like the Patriots and some other teams are — but, throwing draft strategy out, it looks like the Hawks landed five roster locks and a couple of potential projects. And they kept Earl Thomas (reportedly ignoring Dallas’ offer of a third-round pick on Day 2).

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NFL draft

Can Schneider end his five-year funk?

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NFL draftCan John Schneider end his run as the NFL’s worst Day 3 drafter today?

Once upon a time, the Seahawks having eight picks on Day 3 of the draft was something to get excited about.

But that was back when Schneider had built a momentary reputation as the NFL’s preeminent Day 3 picker, cultivating Pro Bowl players such as Kam Chancellor, Richard Sherman and K.J. Wright from the middle rounds and key role players such as Malcolm Smith, Byron Maxwell, Jeremy Lane and J.R. Sweezy in the sixth and seventh rounds.

For Seattle, Day 3 is no longer the big deal it was for that flash-in-the-pan stretch (2010-12). In fact, Schneider and company have been the worst Day 3 drafters in the NFL since 2013 (based on Pro Football Reference’s weighted AV ratings).

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NFL draft

Will Penny be worth it?

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NFL draftEven Rashaad Penny did not expect to be drafted in the first round, which tells you all you need to know about whether the Seahawks made the right pick at the right time.

John Schneider and Pete Carroll said they had offers to move down from 27, but they obviously didn’t want to risk dropping too far and losing the running back to another team. Their fears might have been confirmed when a team apparently called right after they drafted Penny and offered to trade for the back. Schneider said he had never been offered a deal AFTER drafting a player.

Obviously some people think Penny, just the third back ever drafted in the first round by Seattle, is going to be great. For the pick to be worth it, though, Penny will need to become the primary rusher and score 8-10 touchdowns a year. To do that, new line coach Mike Solari will have to fix a run-blocking unit that was among the league’s worst last season.

If the Seahawks cannot fix the blocking and continue to use a rotation rather than riding Penny, he will have been a wasted pick.

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NFL draft

Last two drafts were bigger than this one

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NFL draftAs the Seahawks undergo the biggest roster reshuffle since Pete Carroll and John Schneider arrived in 2010, some are making the mistake of calling this the most important draft in the Schneider/Carroll era.

The simple fact is the last two drafts were more significant.

Every draft is important, but the Seahawks (with no picks on Day 2) are not set up for success in this one like they were in 2016 and 2017, when they had 11 picks in the first two days. Those players should be a big part of the team’s core in 2018-19. They need to come through this year — something Schneider has said more than once.

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NFL draft

Hawks are still figuring out how to draft

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NFL draftIt’s no secret that John Schneider’s Seahawks have been in a draft dry spell — and are still trying to choreograph the right rain dance. To that end, the Hawks apparently have changed the way they are preparing for the draft.

Since putting together their Super Bowl core in 2010-12, Schneider and company have added very few contributors. One study places the Seahawks in the bottom three in the NFL since 2013. Just three of 28 picks from the 2013-15 drafts remain, and only a handful of selections from the past two years have shown any promise — with last year’s Malik McDowell mistake hanging heavy around Schneider’s neck as the Hawks prepare for this week’s draft.

Schneider has blamed the run of ineffective drafts on three things: (1) A strong roster that made it tough to make the team, (2) ignoring red flags and making too many “excuses” for keeping risky players on their draft list and (3) not adding enough guys who were willing to compete with the Super Bowl vets.

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The roster, Trades

Schneider overrules Positive Pete on Thomas

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Pic -- Schneider at CombineNot long after Pete Carroll tried to quell any trade talk about Earl Thomas on Thursday, John Schneider made it clear the Seahawks are still listening.

“He’s a Seahawk. I don’t know what anybody’s talking about,” Carroll told KJR. “He’s a Seahawk and we’re happy to have him.”

Asked whether the safety would report for training camp, Carroll said, “He’d better be there. He’s on the roster. We’re counting on him.”

Asked why he was not at the offseason workout program, Carroll said, “Some guys make those choices. Not always do all of the players make it, for various reasons.”

A little while later, at his annual Ben’s Fund event, Schneider said Thomas would not hold out, but he also offered a much less optimistic take on the safety’s future with the team — basically the same stance the GM has had since the Combine.

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Free agency, NFL draft, The roster

Topic of the day: Quarterbacks

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Draft -- Schneider and CarrollQuarterbacks were the topic of the day for Pete Carroll and John Schneider on Thursday. The gist of their individual messages: Colin Kaepernick still could be an option (don’t count on it), Russell Wilson’s contract is not a problem (it really isn’t) and Schneider feels like he has done a poor job of acquiring quarterbacks behind Wilson (he has).

In separate interviews, Carroll and Schneider were asked about the recent Kaepernick brouhaha, and both waved off the protest topic and gave lip-service answers about their level of interest.

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NFL draft, The roster

Secondary queries: A 2 for Thomas? And use it on a corner?

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NFL draftWith the draft fast approaching next week, the Seahawks have solidified almost every position on the team.

After re-signing Austin Davis and Paul Dawson, they at least have a pretty full complement at every position — some obviously stronger in talent than others. The one spot that is still very unsettled is the secondary.

Yeah, they have re-signed Bradley McDougald and Justin Coleman and added Maurice Alexander, Dontae Johnson and C.J. Smith. But we still don’t know whether Earl Thomas will remain a Seahawk or who will be the No. 2 corner opposite Shaquill Griffin.

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