Seahawks 2018 offseason thread

[jerseyhawksfan79]

Naz looked good in his time and looks like he could be a star if he can stay healthy ( If, i hate that word ). Because of this i believe Sheldon walks. Willson might not be back unless he signs another team friendly small contract and Graham i can't see them signing him even though i believe they want to. If Graham and Willson both leave the Hawks are REAL thin at TE. Then throw in the possible departing of Bennett and Avril and DE is super thin. Hawks will have a lot of work to do this offseason, and that includes DB/S help also unless they can lock up McDougald but still leaves needs at CB. all this to go along with RB, Oline needs sigh. Wish we had 10+ picks.

Before they let JG walk, I wonder if the FO will let Shotty make a case on how he'll use him and then decide to make a decision to resign or let him walk.

 

[Anointed One]

unless teams arent willing to trade more than a 4th, but i dont see how his worth has dropped that much after we gave up a 2nd.

i just hope they had a better contingency plan than to let him walk and hope for a comp pick.

Not sure if we're on the same page... I'm referring to the comp picks we'd get for letting those two walk...

 

[Anointed One]

Before they let JG walk, I wonder if the FO will let Shotty make a case on how he'll use him and then decide to make a decision to resign or let him walk.

My question would be, why would we want to even entertain keeping him if we're going to go back to focusing on running the football... If that's truly the approach we're taking, we more than likely would want a better blocking TE for that style of offense, no?

 

[jerseyhawksfan79]

My question would be, why would we want to even entertain keeping him if we're going to go back to focusing on running the football... If that's truly the approach we're taking, we more than likely would want a better blocking TE for that style of offense, no?

Aaahhhhhh, I'm stumped on your post. Usually I have an answer but this one I do not. You make sense and if the Hawks are serious about going to the ground and pound then yes we should draft a blocking TE and I would like to see a FB back in the mix as well.

 

[Anointed One]

Clayton referring to our OL... Seahawks' offensive line in 2018: Who, what, and where

Scott and Clayton ran through the players on the Seahawks’ offensive line and discussed what the position group could look like in the future.

Ethan Pocic

“Ethan Pocic made the all-rookie team as an offensive lineman,” Scott said. “Everything that I’m hearing, folks at the building are saying that Ethan Pocic is really the future.”

Pocic finished the 2017 season at right guard. But according to Clayton, Pocic could play left guard or even right tackle next season.

“That’s his versatility. How would he fit at the right tackle position? Remember, that’s where he first started out in training camp,” Clayton said.

Germain Ifedi

A first-round pick in 2016, Ifedi played right guard in his first season and right tackle in 2017.

“Germain Ifedi should have never been at right tackle. They should have just kept him at right guard since he already played one year,” Scott said.

Ifedi could move back to right guard next season, taking over for Pocic, whose skillset makes him more adaptable across the line.

Justin Britt

Justin Britt, Seattle’s center, didn’t finish the season quite as strongly as he started.

“Can he be better?” Scott asked.

“Absolutely,” Clayton replied. “He’s a second-round pick. And he’s played three different positions. Out of the blue, when nobody expected it, nobody was paying attention, he’s a third alternate in the 2017 Pro Bowl. People recognized there was something there.”

Duane Brown

The Seahawks acquired left tackle Duane Brown from the Houston Texans in the middle of the 2017 season. One issue with Brown is his contract, which currently pays him about $9 million in the upcoming year. Brown will be a free agent in 2019, but Clayton said he thinks the Seahawks could extend him with a contract similar to the ones they gave Kam Chancellor and Michael Bennett. Basically, more money up front with fewer years overall.

“He’s a good enough player, Pro Bowl-caliber tackle. And I think you can see he offers good leadership,” Clayton said.

George Fant

Fant’s future is a little unclear. An undrafted rookie, he started 10 games at left tackle for the Seahawks in 2016. Then he tore his ACL in August 2017 and didn’t play another snap.

“First he has to come off the injury. He’s going to be more of a swing type of tackle,” Clayton said. “Everything with him is new. Remember, he was a tight end (in his one year playing football in college) and he comes up and he has to start eight games at left tackle.”

Now that Duane Brown is holding down the left tackle spot, it’s likely Fant will move back to the right side of the line.

“That might be tough for him to go from left to right. But to be able to play, that’s what he needs to do,” Clayton said.

 

[MrS]

Not sure if we're on the same page... I'm referring to the comp picks we'd get for letting those two walk...

No i know what you meant, all i am trying to say is we could get a higher pick sooner if we tag and trade. but again, i have no idea if thats even something they would consider to be possible.

 

[JMR]

No i know what you meant, all i am trying to say is we could get a higher pick sooner if we tag and trade. but again, i have no idea if thats even something they would consider to be possible.

If Jimmy Graham leaves as a UFA and signs a big enough contract, we could get a 3rd round comp pick, which is the best. I have a really hard time believing we could tag him and then trade him for a better pick than that in the '18 draft when he's turning 32 in Nov. I would sooner believe we could trade ET for a 1st or 2nd rounder, which I also think is pretty unlikely.

 

[MrS]

maybe not graham, but possibly richardson. he is 26? still in his prime, still considered a very good player.

question is, would any team be willing to give up a 2nd or early 3rd for him? we needs picks now more than we do in 2019.

 

[chf]

Given his injury history you're not getting a pick that high for Richardson.

 

[MrS]

sheldon richardson?

i definitely dont think we could get a 2nd for paul richardson. maybe not even a 4th.

 

[JMR]

I would rather sign Sheldon Richardson to a long term deal. We are about ready to lose the 2 best players from the DL over the past 3 or 4 years. I think he's a better player than what we are going to get with any draft pick coming to us in a trade, and I think he's worth the $ too. The interior of the DL as well as the depth in the whole unit is suddenly very thin without Bennett, Avril, and Richardson.

 

[HaroldSeattle]

I would rather sign Sheldon Richardson to a long term deal. We are about ready to lose the 2 best players from the DL over the past 3 or 4 years. I think he's a better player than what we are going to get with any draft pick coming to us in a trade, and I think he's worth the $ too. The interior of the DL as well as the depth in the whole unit is suddenly very thin without Bennett, Avril, and Richardson.

Guess I’m the only one not so impressed with Richardson. Would like to see stats that back up the claim he’s been good last season. @blstoker what you got for me?

 

[MrS]

richardson wasnt great, but he did make some plays. but at 26 and having already spent a 2nd round pick on him, best case scenario is we resign him.

 

[Anointed One]

Guess I’m the only one not so impressed with Richardson. Would like to see stats that back up the claim he’s been good last season. @blstoker what you got for me?

I thought he was good for us this year but that's about it... He was very good his first couple of games but then it seemed like he wasn't as productive from then on... This is why i'd be ok w/ letting him walk... Not sure i'd want to pay him the amount of money he's going to get from free agency... His stats would suggest that he had his worst season as a pro with us this year...

Sheldon Richardson

... but as we know, stats aren't the entire story... If Pete believes that he's worth the money and will be that difference maker on the OL, then by all means, resign him... Pete knows more than we do...

If I was to guess, my guess Pete will get a deal done with SRich since they're going to focus on building a younger defense...

 

[JMR]

I guess I look at S Richardson as a bit of an insurance policy against losing both Bennett and Avril (and even if not losing them, they are soon on the decline if not already) and the unknown factor with Malik McDowell. I think we could have a problem on the DL if we don't have any of those 4 going into the '18 season. If McDowell is unable to ever play (or plays and busts), Bennett is cut, Avril is cut or retires, and we don't re-sign Richardson on top of all that, our starting DL is likely Jordan-Reed-Jones-Clark. Now that may not be a terrible starting lineup, but behind that the depth is almost nothing. Maybe Richardson is "only" a $10M a year player, but it may cost upwards of $13M to bring him back; to me that extra few M is worth protecting ourselves against the worst case scenario with Bennett/Avril/McDowell.

Just my opinion, of course. I guess we'll see soon enough.

 

[MrS]

I know this is sort of off-topic, but man am i tired of seeing the patriots play. after brady retires, things will be much more interesting with some new teams getting a shot in the superbowl for once.

the nfc has been putting in new teams almost every year, the afc has been all patriots, broncos, steelers, boring.

 

[MrS]

thought this was kind of interesting, former seahawks OC jeremy bates (fired after one year under carroll) is now the OC for the jets.

8 things to know about Jeremy Bates, Jets' new offensive coordinator

 

[seahawksfan234]

Before they let JG walk, I wonder if the FO will let Shotty make a case on how he'll use him and then decide to make a decision to resign or let him walk.

Despite the amount of touchdowns Jimmy Graham scored, he wasn't a factor most of the time. He just doesn't look like the same player he was in New Orleans, or even the player he was in 2016.

I have to get the impression he wasn't getting open, because he only had a little more than half of the yardage he had in 2016 and his yards per catch dropped from 14.2 to 9.1. Not to mention he had a bunch of really crucial drops.

That + his age and poor run blocking makes me think the Hawks aren't going to re-sign him.

I'd be hesitant to giving him anything more than a 2 year deal. Maybe a 3 year $20m deal with $7m guaranteed so that we could cut him by the 3rd year of the deal with minimal cap penalties. Even that is a bit of a risk IMO.

 

[jerseyhawksfan79]

Despite the amount of touchdowns Jimmy Graham scored, he wasn't a factor most of the time. He just doesn't look like the same player he was in New Orleans, or even the player he was in 2016.

I have to get the impression he wasn't getting open, because he only had a little more than half of the yardage he had in 2016 and his yards per catch dropped from 14.2 to 9.1. Not to mention he had a bunch of really crucial drops.

That + his age and poor run blocking makes me think the Hawks aren't going to re-sign him.

I'd be hesitant to giving him anything more than a 2 year deal. Maybe a 3 year $20m deal with $7m guaranteed so that we could cut him by the 3rd year of the deal with minimal cap penalties. Even that is a bit of a risk IMO.

Very true, just curious. Hawks do have bigger holes to fill and need the money.

 

[seahawksfan234]

Very true, just curious. Hawks do have bigger holes to fill and need the money.

I agree. I'd rather that money be allocated to the offensive line, personally.

Which brings me to what I was going to post about, Andrew Norwell.

He likely won't be re-signed by the Panthers due to their cap situation, and I'd love for the Seahawks to go after him. Here is what PFF has to say about him:

Prior to the 2017 season, the Panthers signed both right guard Trai Turner and left tackle Matt Kalil to big contracts and because of this, the Panthers will have limited cap space to work with impending free agent Norwell. He will very likely have a lot of interest if he hits free agency as the fourth-year guard put together an impressive season that saw him ranked third among guards with a PFF overall grade 88.8 and a first-team All-Pro selection. While Norwell performed well in the run game (83.4 run-block grade – eighth-best among guards), his performance in pass protection is what will set him apart from other players at the position. Throughout the regular season, Norwell allowed just 13 hurries on his 564 pass-blocking snaps, which resulted in a pass-blocking efficiency of 98.3, the second-best best mark among qualifying guards. He was also the only offensive lineman in the NFL to log at least 500 pass-blocking snaps without allowing either a sack or a quarterback hit, which makes him one of only four guards who have achieved this feat since PFF started collecting data back in 2006.

This would actually give the Seahawks a pretty formidable LT-LG-C combo. Additionally, Norwell is still only 26, which means a 5-year deal wouldn't be too much of a risk. It's pretty unlikely given the Seahawks cap situation, but I'd absolutely love if they signed Norwell. I'm not a fan of spending big on guards, but Norwell is a special talent at a fairly young age.

Considering the Seahawks were willing to tie up $8m in Luke Joeckel last year (Tied for third highest average salary per year among LGs), giving Norwell something like a 5 year $45m contract wouldn't be a bad idea IMO.