With about $27 million in cap room for 2017, the Seahawks don’t have a large surplus to spend on free agents. But they won't exactly be hurting for cap space, either, and the question is what they will do with that room. Will they look to invest in positions of weakness with the goal of improving in 2017 or will they try to preserve future cap room for when more pressing contract decisions need to be made.
Investing in an Offensive Line
While there may be some differing opinions on the strengths of the Seahawks it is pretty much universally agreed upon that their biggest weakness is the offensive line. The Seahawks have a total investment of just $7.9 million a year in their line, by far the lowest in the NFL, where the average team invests close to $27 million. It’s been a position of neglect for some time as the Seahawks have allowed, over the past few seasons, a complete turnover of the line to occur by moving on from their starting tackles, guards, and center.
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It should be early in free agency when we learn if the Seahawks are going to approach their line differently than in the past. A number of veteran left tackles, including former Seahawk Russell Okung, are expected to be available. While none will cost top dollar they won’t be cheap either, likely looking for $5-$7 million, which would essentially double the Seahawks investment in the line. If the team instead looks in the bargain bin for $2 million talent that probably is not a good sign for those who feel that Russell Wilson could get injured playing behind this line.
If they fail to address the line it also brings up the next question of what is the long term plan with center/guard Justin Britt? Britt, who is the best lineman on the team, is entering his contract year and should be seeking an extension in the ballpark of $7-8 million a season. Seattle has generally extended players in the final year of their contract if they are in the future plans, and a lack of an extension would indicate moving on from their only passable offensive lineman.
Veteran Extension Decisions
The Seahawks have two big name players who are entering their final contract years – tight end Jimmy Graham and safety Kam Chancellor. The two players carry a total cap charge of $18.1 million and that number could be lowered with extensions or trades.
Seattle traded for Graham in 2015 and while he has not had the statistical impact that he had with the Saints, he was an important part of their offense last season and clearly their second best receiver. Graham will be 31 years old so his market right now should be tied to that of Greg Olsen of the Panthers, which should mean a deal in the $7.5 to $8.5 million a year range.
Graham is currently slated to earn $10 million this season so it’s likely that the Seahawks would have to guarantee very little over what he is currently earning if extended early, which makes the move beneficial to Seattle to do now rather than after the season. Graham has a $2 million roster bonus due in early March so the timeframe for an extension should be before that bonus is earned. Given the lack of depth at the skill positions this would seem like a likely move.
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Chancellor’s situation should be more complicated. Chancellor has been unhappy with his contract for a few seasons and Seattle has shown no signs of moving on his demands. In the past he has stated that he wants to be the highest paid safety in the ballpark of $10 million a season, but it would be difficult to see a team paying a strong safety that highly, unless it was coming from a desperate team with large amounts of cap room like the Browns.
The Seahawks are already overinvested in their secondary with $44.2 million a year in contracts for corners and safeties, which is second in the NFL and about $16 million higher than the league average. With a number of other critical roster decisions coming up in the next year, signing Chancellor at $9 or $10 million a year could negatively impact other roster moves or future negotiating leverage. Without an extension he could look for a trade which would save the team $7.1 million.
Planning for the Future
While there is no salary cap crunch on the horizon, the Seahawks will need to begin planning for their next series of big extensions. This past year they were willing to extend 31-year-old Michael Bennett to a $9.8 million per year extension. Bennett, at the time of signing, had one game remaining in 2016, the playoffs, and a full season in 2017 under contract with the Seahawks. That decision should open the door for a number of critical Seahawks who will be free agents in 2019 to seek extensions late in the year.
At the top of that list should be star cornerback Richard Sherman, who will earn $11 million in 2018 before becoming eligible for free agency. Sherman is a tier one player at a very high priced position and should look to surpass the totals of Darrelle Revis and Josh Norman to become the highest paid corner in the NFL. Earl Thomas is arguably the best player on the defense and the team struggled when he was out of the lineup with an injury. Thomas will also likely look to be the highest paid safety in the NFL if he returns to form.
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Veteran defensive end Cliff Avril, who had 11.5 sacks last season, will be in the exact same position Bennett was last season and should certainly angle for an extension by years end. Finally, linebacker KJ Wright is the fourth star defender to have his contract expire after the 2018 season.
While these are not immediate concerns this March, this could lead to cap space that the Seahawks may essentially put in escrow rather than spend this offseason to help them fit all of these extensions under the salary cap either in December or next year.